GST Registration/Migration Process For Existing Taxpayers (Service Tax, Excise and VAT)

Enrolment Requirement For Existing Assessees : Why to Enroll on GST Portal

All existing taxpayers registered under the Central Excise, Service Tax, State Sales Tax or Value Added Tax (VAT), Entry Tax, Luxury Tax and Entertainment Tax are required to provide their details at GST Common Portal (gst.gov.in) managed by GSTN for the purpose of migrating themselves to the GST regime.

• To begin with, the taxpayers registered under the State Vat Department needs to provide their details.
• Service Tax and Excise Taxpayers (not registered with VAT) can migrate to GST till 31st January 2017.
• Once the taxpayers provide their details there will be no need for them to register again with the State or Center once the GST Act is implemented.

Existing Assessee: How to Enroll with GST Common Portal

GST Enrollment Schedule For Existing Service Tax, VAT and Excise Taxpayers

The schedule for enrolment on GST portal for different states is given below. If you are existing Service Tax. Excise or VAT assessee, then you can register during these specified dates. However, the registration will be open till 31/01/2017 for those who miss the chance:

States	Start Date	End Date
VAT – Puducherry, Sikkim	08/11/2016	23/11/2016
VAT – Maharashtra, Goa, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Chhattisgarh	14/11/2016	30/11/2016
VAT – Gujarat	15/11/2016	30/11/2016
VAT – Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Tripura, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram	30/11/2016	15/12/2016
VAT- Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Chandigarh, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan	16/12/2016	31/12/2016
VAT- Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh	01/01/2017	15/01/2017
Enrolment of Taxpayers who are registered under Central Excise Act/ Service Tax Act but not registered under State VAT	01/01/2017	31/01/2017
Delta All Registrants (All Groups)	01/02/2017	20/03/2017

Enrolment Process for Taxpayer already registered with the Service Tax, State VAT department and Excise 

Step 1: Get Provisional ID and Password From Service Tax Department or State VAT Department

The respective State VAT/Service Tax department will be communicating the Provisional ID and Password to the respective registered taxpayers. Taxpayers registered with service tax/excise but not registered with VAT can get thier provisional ID and password by signing in to ACES.GOV.IN website.

VAT registered assessee can get their provisional ID and password from State VAT department website by signing in to the VAT portal

Format of GST Enrolment Provisional ID

Note: In case you are a registered taxpayer with Service Tax/Excise/State VAT Department and you have not received the provisional ID and password, contact your Service Tax/Excise/State VAT Department.

Information Required for Registration With The GST Portal

Before enrolling with the GST Portal, you must ensure to have the following information:

• Provisional ID received from State/ Central Authorities
• Password received from the State/ Central Authorities
• Valid E-mail Address
• Valid Mobile Number
• Bank Account Number
• Bank IFSC

Step 2: Go To GST.GOV.IN and Create Unique User Name and Password

 

Access the GST Common Portal (gst.gov.in). Create your unique the user-name and new password using the provisional ID and password communicated to you.

Step 3: Login 

Login to the GST Common Portal with your newly created the user-name and password

Step 4: Fill Enrolment Application

Fill the enrolment application and provide the business details. Don’t miss any mandatory filed.

Step 5: Verify already available details

Verify the details in the enrolment application that are already available and auto populated from the State Vat system.

Step 6: Sign Application Electronically – Digital Signature or E-Sign

Sign the enrollment application electronically by affixing your digital signature certificate (DSC) or E-sign. In case of E-sign, the Aadhar Number of authorised signatory is mandatory.

Mandatory Requirement of Digital Signature Certificate

– Company
– Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)

Step 7: Attach Documents and Submit Application

Submit the Enrolment Application along with necessary attachments (documents) as specified.

Documents To Be Uploaded on GST Portal

S.No.	Documents	File Size Format	Maximum Allowable Size
1.	Proof of Constitution of Business In case of Partnership firm: Partnership Deed of Partnership Firm (PDF and JPEG format in maximum size of 1 MB) In case of Others: Registration Certificate of the Business Entity	PDF or JPEG	1 MB
2.	Photograph of Promoters/ Partners/ Karta of HUF	JPEG	100 KB
3.	Proof of Appointment of Authorized Signatory	PDF or JPEG	1 MB
4.	Photograph of Authorized Signatory	JPEG	100 KB
5.	Opening page of Bank Passbook/ Statement containing Bank Account Number of < Account Number>, Address of Branch, Address of Account holder and few transaction details	PDF and JPEG	1 MB

Step 8: Verification

Once the application is submitted, the details will be verified by the GST system

Step 9: Issuance of Application Reference Number (ARN)

If details are satisfactory, an Application Reference Number (ARN) will be issued and the status of Provisional ID will be changed to “Migrated” till appointed date (i.e. the date of implementation of the GST Act).

Step 10: On GST Implementation – Issuance of Registration Certificate 

On the implementation date of the GST (i.e. appointed date), the provisional ID status will be changed to “Active” and a provisional Registration Certificate will be issued to every registered taxpayer. Thereafter you will be able to utilize the services available at GST Common Portal like filing of GST Returns, GST Payment etc.

Important FAQs Related to GST Enrolment 

1. Who can be the primary Authorized Signatory?

A primary Authorized Signatory is the person who is primarily responsible to perform action at the GST Common Portal on behalf of the taxpayer. All communication from the GST Common Portal relating to taxpayer will be sent to the primary Authorized Signatory.

Type of Business	Who can be the Authorized Signatory?
Proprietor	The proprietor or any person authorized  by the proprietor
Partnership	Any authorized  partner or any person authorized  by the partners
Company, LLP, Society or Trust	The person authorized by Board or Governing Body. can act as Primary Authorized Signatory

In case there is a single Authorized Signatory for a business entity, the single Authorized Signatory will be assumed to be the primary Authorized Signatory.

 In case there are multiple Authorized Signatories for a single business entity, one Authorized Signatory need to be designated as primary Authorized Signatory. The e-mail address and mobile number of the Authorized Signatory needs to be provided during enrolment.

 Note: The Authorized Signatory or Primary Authorized cannot be Minor in age.

2. Which details are prefilled in the Enrolment Application? Can I make changes in my Legal Name, State Name and PAN in the Enrolment Application?

Following details are auto-populated from the VAT database in the Enrolment Application:

• PAN of the Business
• Legal Name of Business
• Name of the State
• Reason of liability to obtain registration

You cannot make changes to any of these fields as appearing in the Enrolment Application.

3. What is Principal Place of Business and Additional Place of Business?

Principal Place of Business is the primary location within the State where a taxpayer’s business is performed. The principal place of business is generally the address where the business’s books of accounts and records are kept and is often where the head of the firm or at least top management is located.

Additional Place of business is the place of business where taxpayer carries out business related activities within the State, in addition to the Principal Place of Business.

4. What is HSN and SAC code?

HSN stands for Harmonized System of Nomenclature which is internationally accepted product coding system used to maintain uniformity in classification of goods.

SAC stands for Service Accounting Codes which are adopted by the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) for identification of the services.

5. Which bank account should I provide in the Enrolment Application? I have more than one bank account. Can I add all of them while enrolling with GST Common Portal?

Enter the details of the bank accounts used for the purpose of carrying out business transactions in the Enrolment Application while enrolling with the GST Common Portal.

You can add up to 10 bank accounts while enrolling with GST Common Portal in the Enrolment Application.

6. Can I submit my Enrolment Application at GST Common Portal without electronically signing the application with DSC or E-sign?

Yes, you can submit the Enrolment Application at GST Common Portal without electronically signing it but you need to sign the application at a later date within the time allowed under the GST Act. Only signed Enrolment Applications shall be considered for issue of Final Registration Certificate. You can view the submitted application after login by accessing “My Saved Applications” at the GST Common Portal.

7. Is electronically signing the Enrolment Application using the DSC mandatory for enrolment?

Electronically signing the Enrolment Application using DSC is mandatory for enrolment by Companies, Foreign Companies, Limited Liability Partnership (LLPs) and Foreign Limited Liability Partnership (FLLPs).

For other taxpayers, electronically signing using DSC is optional.

8. My DSC is not registered with the GST Common Portal? Will I be able to submit my Enrolment Application with my DSC? How can I register my DSC with the GST Common Portal?

You cannot submit the Enrolment Application if your DSC is not registered with the GST Common Portal. Therefore, you need to register your DSC at the GST Common Portal by clicking the Register DSC menu.

During registration of DSC with the GST Common Portal, the PAN of the DSC holder will be matched with the PAN database of the CBDT. After validation you need to select the certificate that you need to register.

Note: Only Class -2 or Class 3 DSC can be registered at the GST Common Portal.

9. What is E-Sign? How does it work?

E-Sign stands for Electronic Signature. E-Sign is an online electronic signature service that allows an Aadhaar holder to digitally sign a document. If the taxpayer opts to electronically sign the Enrollment Application or any other document at the GST Common Portal using the E-Sign service, the following steps are performed:-

1. The taxpayer clicks the E-sign button.

2. The GST Common Portal prompts the taxpayer to enter the Aadhaar number of the Authorized Signatory.

3. After validating the Aadhar Number, the GST Common Portal sends a request to UIDAI system to send an OTP.

4. UIDAI system sends an OTP to e-mail address and mobile number registered against Aadhaar number.

5. The GST System prompts the taxpayer to enter the OTP.

6. The taxpayer enters the OTP and submits the Enrollment Application or the document. The e-Signing process is completed.

11. Is there any charge applicable on submission of the Enrolment Application at the GST Common Portal?

No, there is no charge applicable on submission of the Enrolment Application at the GST Common Portal.

12. What is ARN? What is the format of ARN?

ARN refers to Application Reference Number. It is a unique number assigned to each transaction completed at the GST Common Portal. It will also be generated on submission of the Enrolment Application that is electronically signed using DSC. ARN can be used for future correspondence with GSTN.

13. I have multiple businesses in one state registered using the same PAN. Do I need to enrol each business separately with GST?

As one PAN allows one GST Registration in a State, you may register one business entity first. For the remaining business within the State please get in touch with your Jurisdictional Authority.