The Lok Sabha on Friday cleared the Health Security and National Security Cess Bill, opening the door for the Centre to levy a special cess on pan masala manufacturing units. The revenue raised from this levy will be channelled into bolstering national security initiatives and improving public health systems.

During the Parliament Winter Session's debate, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the cess will be shared with the states, noting that public health falls within the state government’s domain.

The bill, first introduced on December 1, 2025, allows the Centre to levy a cess not only on pan masala but also on any additional products that may be notified later.

Under the proposed framework, the cess will be charged to anyone who owns or controls machines, or undertakes manual processes, to produce the specified goods.

As per Rule 10A, taxpayers (except those registered under TCS, TDS, or Suo-moto registrations) must furnish their bank account details within 30 days of grant of registration or before filing details of outward supplies in GSTR-1 or IFF, whichever is earlier.

The following updates have been implemented on the GST Portal with respect to Rule 10A:

Automatic Suspension:
If a taxpayer fails to furnish bank account details within 30 days of registration, the system will automatically suspend the registration. The suspension order can be viewed at: Services > User Services > View Notices and Orders.

Adding Bank Account Details:
Taxpayers can add bank account details through a non-core amendment by navigating to: Services > Registration > Amendment of Registration (Non-Core Fields).

Automatic Dropping of Cancellation Proceedings:
Once bank account details are furnished, cancellation proceedings will be automatically dropped by the system.

The Supreme Court on Thursday held that leasing out of residential premises to an entity which is using it as hostel for students and working professionals is exempted from GST.

A bench of justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan upheld the verdict of the Karnataka High Court which said that leasing out of residential premises to an entity which is using it as hostel to students and working professionals is exempt under GST.

"In the case on hand, the ultimate use of the property as residence remains unchanged. However, if 18 per cent GST is levied on this transaction between the respondent No. 1 and the lessee i.e. M/s DTwelve Spaces Private Limited, the same would ultimately be passed on to the students and working professionals which would lead to a situation where the legislative intent behind granting exemption for residential use is defeated," the bench said.

Table 3.2 of Form GSTR-3B captures the inter-state supplies made to unregistered persons, composition taxpayers, and UIN holders out of the total supplies declared in Table 3.1 & 3.1.1 of GSTR-3B and is auto-populated from corresponding supplies declared in GSTR-1, GSTR-1A, and IFF in the requisite tables.

It is to inform you that from November-2025 tax period onwards, value of supplies auto-populated in Table 3.2 of GSTR-3B from the returns/forms mentioned above, shall be made non-editable. The GSTR-3B shall be filed henceforth with the system generated auto-populated values only in table 3.2.

Further, in case any modification/amendment is required in the auto-populated values of Table 3.2 of GSTR-3B, then the same can be done through GSTR-1A for the same tax period. The values thus reported in GSTR-1A shall change the auto-populated values of table 3.2 in GSTR-3B instantly and the taxpayers can file their GSTR-3B with the updated values. Moreover, the amendment of such supplies can always be reported in Form GSTR-1/IFF filed for subsequent tax periods.

The government has proposed to increase the central excise duty on tobacco and its products with sharper tax hikes for cigarettes containing tobacco and smoking mixtures for pipes and cigarettes. The move will ensure that once the Goods and Services Tax Compensation Cess outlives its utility and gets scrapped in a month or two, the tax incidence on these productions remain the same, and revenues don’t fall.

The ministry of finance will introduce the Central Excise (Amendment) Bill 2025 in Lok Sabha on Monday with this purpose, sources said.

New ‘Health & National Security’ Cess on Pan Masala Production
Separately, the government will also table the “Health Security se National Security Cess Bill, 2025:, in the Lok Sabha on Monday to levy a cess on the machines installed or processes undertaken by which the specified goods. These include pan masala, manufactured or produced, whether manually or through hybrid processes. The cess will have the twin purposes of enabling targeted utilisation for public health, as well as national security.

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has ruled that trade between Jammu and Kashmir and the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir or PoK across the Line of Control is intra-state trade and therefore, no GST can levied on it.

Though cross- LoC trade remains suspended due to the hostilities between India and Pakistan since 2019, the ruling by a division bench is reaffirmation of the government's stand that PoK is part of Jammu and Kashmir and an integral part of India.

Even after the scrapping of Article 370, the J&K assembly continues to have 24 vacant seats reserved for the PoK. As per the erstwhile constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, the entire J&K including PoK is an integral part of India. J&Ks separate constitution was also scrapped with revocation of Article 370.

The Allahabad High Court has come down heavily on GST authorities for passing frequent orders for the cancellation of the GST registration of traders without assigning reasons.The court has said that such action of the authorities amount to announcing an "economic death" of a business entity as the cancellation orders passed in such a casual manner inflict disproportionate hardship on traders and disrupt legitimate business activity.

The court has highlighted that depriving a dealer of this statutory lifeline, without assigning reasons or affording an adequate opportunity to rectify the mistake, is antithetical to both the letter and spirit of the GST law.Allowing a writ petition filed by Anil Art and Craft, a bench of Justices Saumitra Dayal Singh and Indrajeet Shukla set aside an October 15 order of the assistant commissioner (state tax), Bhadohi, cancelling the petitioner's GST registration with retrospective effect from October 8.

The court directed that a copy each of the judgment and the petition be sent to the commercial tax commissioner, who has been asked to issue appropriate administrative instructions within 15 days to all GST officers dealing with registration cancellation."These instructions must specifically provide for penal consequences against officers who pass non-speaking orders or deny reasonable opportunity in such matters, so that similar lapses are not repeated," the bench said.

The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has announced that changes relating to Rule 10A will be activated on the GST Portal soon. In an advisory dated November 20, the network urged taxpayers to immediately furnish their bank account details if they have not done so already.
Under Rule 10A, all taxpayers—except those registered under TCS, TDS, or those registered suo motu by tax authorities—must furnish their bank account details within 30 days of receiving GST registration or before filing outward supply details in GSTR-1 or IFF, whichever is earlier.
GSTN stated that once the changes go live, the system will enforce compliance.
Taxpayers who fail to update their bank details may face suspension of GST registration, which can halt business activities, invoicing, and tax filings.

How to update bank account details
Taxpayers can add or update their bank account details by filing a non-core amendment on the GST portal. The path provided in the advisory is:

Services - Registration - Amendment of Registration Non-Core Fields

GSTN has advised completing the update in advance to avoid any operational disruption once the rule-based checks are implemented.

Despite the October slowdown, GST revenues are expected to rebound sharply in November, with internal government assessments reviewed by The Mint indicating that the September rate cuts will not significantly dent central or state revenues.

Officials told The Mint that overall revenue buoyancy should remain strong, backed by resilient domestic demand and an expanding indirect tax base.

As reported by The Mint, gross GST receipts grew at an average annual rate of 9.8% between April and September, before dropping to 4.6% in October. However, assessments shared with the publication project a recovery to nearly 10% growth in November, taking monthly GST collections close to Rs 2 trillion. One senior official told The Mint that October's receipts of Rs 1.96 trillion reflected consumer behaviour shaped by expectations of rate reductions.

The GST rate cuts brought down retail inflation by 85 basis points to a record low of 0.25 per cent in October and the declining trend is likely to continue in the coming months, according to experts.

The Consumer Price Index- (CPI-) based retail inflation was lowest in the current series (base year 2012), which captures data since January 2014.

CPI inflation increased in case of personal care and effects, owing to higher gold prices, at 57.8 per cent, an SBI research report said, adding that if if the precious metal is excluded, headline CPI turns the print negative at -0.57 per cent year-on-year.

Come Dec, Bengal will have its own GST
appellate tribunal, paving the way for faster resolution of tax-related disputes. According to official sources, the tribunal will hear appeals against GST orders passed by adjudicating authorities and commissioners. The move is expected to ease the mounting backlog of cases pending in high courts.
Welcoming the move, Confederation of West Bengal Trade Associations (CWBTA) president Sushil Poddar said, "The opening of GST appellate tribunal in Bengal will be a major relief for small and medium businesses. Taxpayers will no longer need to travel to other states or approach the high court for appeals. This will make the process faster, fairer and more accessible." tnn

The Goods and Services (GST) revenue for the Financial Year 2026 (FY26) will still be higher than budgeted collections, according to SBI Research.

The report projects that even after accounting for similar gains and losses across states following tax rationalisation measures, Goods and Services Tax (GST) receipts in FY26 are likely to surpass the government’s budget estimates.

“We project GST revenue for FY26 will still be higher than budgeted GST collections,” the report said.

The projections are based on the growth rate assumptions released by the GST Council, SBI Research noted.

The government is preparing a comprehensive overhaul of goods and services tax (GST) processes, spanning digitised scrutiny, automated refunds, and data-driven return-filing.

The reforms, being finalised by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), are aimed at improving transparency, easing compliance, and ensuring quicker fund releases for businesses, particularly micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), according to a senior government official.

As part of the move towards full automation, the return-filing system is being redesigned to enable auto-population of key forms using data from e-invoices, e-way bills, and supplier filings.

India's goods and services tax (GST) revenues have remained robust even after early September's sweeping structural rationalisation that slashed rates on 99% of the taxed items, giving North Block confidence it would eventually have to deal with only a modest and manageable shortfall from FY26 budget estimates.

Officials told ET the continued strength in GST collections demonstrates that the reforms are simultaneously underpinning local consumption and revenue buoyancy for the government.

"We are broadly aligned with budgeted revenues. Any deviation will be modest," a senior official told ET. The GST reforms, effective September 22, reduced the multi-layered tax structure to effectively two broad slabs of 5% and 18%, along with a special 40% rate for select items. The official cited above added that the government strategically timed the implementation date of GST rationalisation with the festive season, helping undergird domestic consumption.

The Invoice Management System (IMS) was introduced on the GST portal from the October 2024 tax period. It enables recipient taxpayers to accept, reject, or keep pending their individual records uploaded by their suppliers through GSTR-1/1A/IFF. To further enhance the taxpayer convenience, a new section for "Import of Goods" has been introduced in IMS wherein the Bill of Entry (BoE) filed by the taxpayer for import of goods including import from SEZ, will be made available in the IMS for taking allowed action on individual BoE. This functionality will be available from Oct-2025 period onwards.

It may be noted that, If no action is taken on an individual BoE, it will be treated as deemed accepted and based on the action taken, the GST Portal will generate the draft GSTR 2B for the recipient on 14th of subsequent month. Please click here to read the detailed advisory on the new changes.

As per the Finance Act,2023 (8 of 2023), dt. 31-03-2023, implemented w.e.f 01-10-2023 vide Notification No. 28/2023 – Central Tax dated 31th July, 2023, the taxpayers shall not be allowed file their GST returns after the expiry of a period of three years from the due date of furnishing the said return under Section 37 ( Outward Supply), Section 39 (payment of liability), Section 44 ( Annual Return) and Section 52 (Tax Collected at Source). These Sections cover GSTR-1, GSR-1A, GSTR 3B, GSTR-4, GSTR-5, GSTR-5A, GSTR-6, GSTR 7, GSTR 8 and GSTR 9 or 9C.

Hence, above mentioned returns will be barred for filing after the expiry of three years from the due date. The said restriction will be implemented on the GST portal from November 2025 Tax period which means any return whose due date was three years back or more and hasn’t been filed till November Tax period will be barred from Filling. In this regard an advisory was already issued by GSTN on 29th October, 2024.

The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) recently announced a new feature in the Invoice Management System (IMS) on the GST portal. This allows taxpayers to mark credit notes as "Pending" for one tax period.

In an advisory issued on October 17, 2025, GSTN also mentioned that the IMS functionality has been improved giving a flexibility to the taxpayers to modify their ITC reversal upon accepting these credit notes, which helps to settle numerous business disputes.

Bhogavalli Mallikarjuna Gupta, Associate Director - GST, RSM India. said to ET Wealth Online that a new table 6A1 was introduced in GSTR-9.

Gupta says:

A new section, Table 6A1, has been introduced in GSTR-9. It allows taxpayers to present a more accurate and reconciled view of their input tax credit (ITC) claims, assisting both taxpayers and officers during desk reviews. This enhancement minimizes the chances of scrutiny or notices and helps reduce litigation costs in terms of both time and money.

With GSTR- 9/9C now open for taxpayers to file and the deadline creeping up on December 31, 2025, it’s a good idea for both professionals and taxpayers to quickly check out the changes in the GSTR-9/9C annual return forms for FY 2024-25.

Bhogavalli Mallikarjuna Gupta, Associate Director - GST, RSM India, said to ET Wealth Online that the upcoming GSTR-9 and GSTR-9C filings for the financial year 2024–25 are set to undergo significant changes, particularly in Table 8A, Table 8C, insertion of new Table 6A1, and other key sections.

Gupta says that these reforms are part of the government’s continued push to enhance the ease of doing business and cut down on litigation time and costs for taxpayers.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday the ultimate goal of the tax department is to make life easier for honest taxpayers, but hinted that dishonest taxpayers would face the music. “Don’t give comfort to the dishonest taxpayer in any way. … economic growth and prosperity will surely follow,” she said, while inaugurating the new Central GST (CGST) building in Ghaziabad.

Prompt disciplinary action would be taken against erring Central GST officials to maintain public trust, she said. “If there are people who are bad sheep among taxpayers, follow the protocol to get hold of them. But don’t look at everybody with suspicion,” she said. “Galat kiya hai toh khair nahi, sahi kiya hai toh koi bair nahi (If you do wrong, you won’t be forgiven, if you are right, there would be no ill feeling against you),” Sitharaman said.

With GSTR- 9/9C now open for taxpayers to file and the deadline creeping up on December 31, 2025, it’s a good idea for both professionals and taxpayers to quickly check out the changes in the GSTR-9/9C annual return forms for FY 2024-25.

Bhogavalli Mallikarjuna Gupta, Associate Director - GST, RSM India, said to ET Wealth Online that the upcoming GSTR-9 and GSTR-9C filings for the financial year 2024–25 are set to undergo significant changes, particularly in Table 8A, Table 8C, insertion of new Table 6A1, and other key sections.

Gupta says that these reforms are part of the government’s continued push to enhance the ease of doing business and cut down on litigation time and costs for taxpayers.