GST and Investment-friendly India

If you want to know about the details of a revolutionary tax regime that was launched in India recently, you must think of the three letters GST. This means Goods and Services Tax that is levied on a variety of goods and services as a single tax system. The introduction of GST is supposed to have become the most reformative tax regime brought in by any ruling government after India’s Independence in 1948.

The current ruling government has tried to introduce a unified tax system across India that will abolish individual taxes and allow the consumers to pay a single consolidated tax as GST. This kind of tax will help to bring economic growth in the long run.

The implementation of GST is hoped to have helped create a common Indian market. This kind of tax has helped basically in removing the tax layers at multiple points and brought a single point of tax payment for the consumers. This helps in turn, to reduce a check on the cost of goods and services.

Daily Life Expense

The inclusion of certain services in the GST have made them more expensive when compared with the previous financial years. This includes mobile phone bills, premiums for life insurance plans, investment management and banking services, online ticket booking services, basic luxuries such as DTH services. On the other hand, services that have seen a price drop in most of the states have included entertainment taxes in GST. This means movie tickets may turn cheaper in many of the Indian states. Once you are out to watch a movie, you are likely to eat out, too. So, the dining out in restaurants and hotels is supposed to turn pocket-friendly in several states.

Investment after GST Scenario

Long run benefits of GST are many. GST should positively impact multiple sectors such as logistics, warehousing, automobiles, film production, DTH (direct-to-home TV), multiplexes, and others. This definitely would make India an attractive land for investment by NRIs.

NRIs and expatriates occasionally undertake business transactions in India. In case they do not have a fixed place of business, the renting, acquiring, manufacturing or venturing activity towards their businesses would require them to obtain registration as a non-resident taxable person under GST. Casual taxable or non-resident taxable compliance by the NRIs needs to be complied with the provisions of the Goods and Services Tax Act.

GST has enabled anti-profiteering and other counteractive measures that are expected to curb costs in the long run and make the consumer feel at ease by providing them a single point of tax. Investments in a growth oriented and progressive country that is prone to change and disruption needs to be done with caution. Only after careful incubation and adaption to changing economic scenarios of developing nations, the investments need to be carefully carried out – especially post implementation of GST.