Question 1

Is a pure labour contract for building a house exempt from GST?

Accepted Answer

Two exemptions exist for pure labour contracts, meaning contracts where the contractor supplies only labour and the owner buys all materials. First, construction, erection or installation of original works pertaining to a single residential unit, otherwise than as part of a residential complex, is exempt. Second, pure labour services under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana for beneficiary-led individual house construction are exempt. Outside these, labour contracts are taxable at 18 percent. A mason team building one independent house in Kattupakkam on labour-only terms therefore charges no GST, but the same team working on an apartment project must.

Question 2

Where is the place of supply for services connected to a building or land?

Accepted Answer

Services directly relating to immovable property, including those of architects, interior decorators, engineers, surveyors, construction and works contract services, renting, and accommodation in hotels, are supplied where the property is located, under Section 12(3). The recipient's location and registration are irrelevant. So a Kattupakkam architect designing a factory in Coimbatore charges CGST plus SGST of Tamil Nadu, but for a project in Kochi the place of supply is Kerala and IGST applies. For hotels, the state where the hotel stands is always the place of supply, which is why accommodation is invariably billed with that state's local taxes regardless of where the guest's business is registered.

Question 3

What is the penalty for running a business without GST registration?

Accepted Answer

A taxable person who is liable to register but fails to do so faces a penalty of Rs.10,000 or the amount of tax evaded, whichever is higher, under Section 122 of the CGST Act. Beyond the penalty, the department can demand the tax for the entire unregistered period with interest at 18 percent per annum, and you cannot recover that tax from customers you billed without GST. Goods moved without registration and e-way bills, required for consignments above Rs.50,000, also risk detention. If your turnover has crossed the threshold, registering within thirty days is far cheaper than regularising later.

Question 4

How many digits of the HSN code must I print on my tax invoices?

Accepted Answer

Under Notification 78/2020 Central Tax, taxpayers with aggregate turnover up to Rs.5 crore in the preceding financial year must mention a 4-digit HSN code on all B2B tax invoices, though it is optional on B2C invoices. Taxpayers with turnover above Rs.5 crore must mention 6-digit HSN codes on every invoice, including B2C. Eight digits are required for specified goods such as certain chemicals and for export documentation. Services follow the same rule using SAC codes, which begin with 99. Printing truncated or wrong codes on invoices creates mismatches later, so set the codes correctly in your billing software once.

Question 5

What are the most common mistakes Chennai businesses make with GST refunds and ITC?

Accepted Answer

The recurring ones we see across Kattupakkam are: missing the two-year limitation for RFD-01, mismatches between GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and shipping bill data that stall export refunds, forgetting the April LUT renewal, claiming ITC on invoices absent from GSTR-2B, ignoring blocked credits under Section 17(5), breaching the 180-day supplier payment rule, and treating deficiency memos as rejections instead of refiling within limitation. Each of these is preventable with a simple monthly checklist and a year-end reconciliation. ChennaiGST builds exactly this discipline into its retainer engagements; call +91 - 9600 606 444 if any of these sounds familiar.

Question 6

How is the place of supply decided when I sell goods?

Accepted Answer

Section 10 of the IGST Act gives the tests. Where the sale involves movement of goods, the place of supply is the location where the movement terminates for delivery to the recipient, whoever arranges the transport. Where there is no movement, it is the location of the goods at the time of delivery, which covers over-the-counter sales and sales of installed machinery in place. Where goods are assembled or installed at site, the place of supply is the site of installation. Getting this right decides whether you charge CGST plus SGST or IGST, and a Kattupakkam seller delivering to a Bengaluru buyer charges IGST because delivery terminates in Karnataka.

Question 7

Which everyday goods now attract 5 percent GST?

Accepted Answer

The 5 percent slab now covers most household essentials that earlier fell in the 12 or 18 percent brackets: soaps, shampoos, toothpaste and toothbrushes, hair oil, bicycles, kitchen utensils and tableware. Packaged foods such as butter, ghee, cheese, namkeens, sauces, pasta, biscuits and chocolates are also at 5 percent, as are most medicines, medical devices and agricultural machinery. Apparel and footwear priced up to Rs.2,500 per piece attract 5 percent as well. Retailers in Kattupakkam should update billing software rate masters item by item rather than assuming old rates continue.

Question 8

Can my GST registration be cancelled for not filing returns?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Under Rule 21A, the department can suspend a GSTIN where returns are not filed for a continuous period, and Section 29 permits cancellation where a regular taxpayer has not filed returns for six months (two quarters for QRMP, and a composition taxpayer defaulting on the annual return beyond three months). During suspension you cannot issue tax invoices or file returns, which freezes the business. If cancellation happens, revocation must be sought through REG-21 within 90 days after clearing all dues. If you have received a suspension notice in Kattupakkam, call +91 - 9600 606 444 immediately.

Question 9

Is GST payable on hostel or paying guest accommodation in Kattupakkam?

Accepted Answer

A specific exemption effective 15 July 2024 covers accommodation services supplied at a value up to Rs.20,000 per person per month, provided the accommodation is supplied for a minimum continuous period of ninety days. Student hostels and working men's or women's PGs in Kattupakkam charging within this limit for long stays are therefore exempt. Where the monthly charge exceeds Rs.20,000, or the stay is shorter than ninety days, the supply is taxable like ordinary accommodation. Operators should maintain stay records and agreements evidencing the duration, because the ninety-day condition is what officers test first during verification.

Question 10

What is self-invoicing under RCM and is there a time limit for it?

Accepted Answer

When you receive supplies liable to reverse charge from an unregistered supplier, Section 31(3)(f) requires you, the recipient, to issue an invoice on yourself, because the supplier cannot issue a tax invoice. You must also issue a payment voucher when paying the supplier. From 1 November 2024, Rule 47A prescribes a firm deadline: the self-invoice must be issued within thirty days of receiving the supply. This document is not a formality; the time limit for claiming the RCM credit is reckoned from the self-invoice, and its absence can cost you the credit besides inviting penalty. Maintain a monthly self-invoice series covering rent, freight, legal fees and similar unregistered-supplier heads.

Question 11

Why are so many businesses suddenly receiving GST notices these days?

Accepted Answer

Enforcement has shifted from manual selection to data analytics. The portal now automatically compares GSTR-1 with GSTR-3B and flags tax shortfalls through DRC-01B intimations under Rule 88C, and compares GSTR-2B with GSTR-3B to flag excess ITC through DRC-01C under Rule 88D. E-way bill, e-invoice, TDS and income tax data are also cross-matched, and limitation deadlines for older financial years have pushed departments to clear pending demands in batches. The practical lesson for Kattupakkam businesses is that mismatches no longer go unnoticed, so month-wise reconciliation before filing is now essential hygiene rather than a year-end exercise.

Question 12

How do I register my DSC on the GST portal, and why does the emSigner error keep appearing?

Accepted Answer

After logging in, open My Profile and select Register or Update DSC, choose the authorised signatory's PAN, and sign with the USB token; the certificate must be Class 3 and the PAN on it must match the signatory's PAN on the portal. Signing requires the emSigner utility running in the background, and the common failure to establish connection error means emSigner is not started, is blocked by the browser, or another application occupies its port. Run emSigner as administrator, keep the token connected, and use the trusted-site settings the portal recommends. We troubleshoot DSC issues for Kattupakkam companies routinely; call +91 - 9600 606 444.

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