Role of technology heads in GST compliance

Role of technology heads in GST 

compliance

Uniting India into a single market through the complex implementation of the Goods and Services Tax is impossible without technology.  GST Compliance with GST will determine the course of success in the future for all business owners.

The transition to GST from the current system is no mean task. Patchwork IT solutions will be unable to meet the requirements of GST compliance right from GST registration to filing monthly returns and claiming input credit tax.

Technology is the backbone of transition

At the fulcrum of this change lies technology. The implementation of GST demands the overhaul of IT and ERP systems current structure of most enterprises, as it will impact each business process beginning from procurement, supply chain and logistics to manufacturing and distribution.

A huge task, therefore, lies ahead of IT head across industries as they must first assess the impact of GST on the existing interfaces and applications before making the required changes. Apart from a thorough understanding of GST, IT heads must be ready to enable processes in a manner to:

• Make master data amendments
• Carry out modifications to invoice formats
• Take control of open, partially open and backlog transactions

This is apart from making some specific GST related changes to the IT system.

Customised solutions by GSPs

While this seems like a humungous task to achieve, GST transition can be made easy with the help of GST Suvidha Providers or GSPs. GSPs have been envisaged to make tax compliance easier for corporations. Their primary role of GSP is thus to collaborate with taxpayers registering on the GST network (GSTN) and cut out an IT solution that will make GST transition stress free and compliance hassle free thereon for businesses.

GSP providers such as Excellon are providing solutions that are highly customisable, reliable and scalable. Fully cloud-based solutions, can either customise existing ERP applications (depending on its features) or help overhaul ERP and IT system to meet the statutory requirements.

Efficient tax technology is key

While choosing a GSP or any other software solution, IT heads need to ensure that the solution being provided is an end to end solution right from data capturing, computing the right amount of GST to be paid based on destination, generating invoices and filing returns monthly and finally claiming input credit tax.

As is evident efficient tax technology is the need of the hour. Efficient tax technology will not only ensure compliance but also play a critical role in providing an audit trail for all transactions being made. The major task for IT heads across industries is, therefore, to help their organisation build a robust technological infrastructure to ensure complete GST compliance.

Emphasis on IT heads should be laid on an assurance of quality, and building and learning to operate the proper control to avoid pitfalls at a later date. Finally, IT heads must work in cognisance with various department heads to be able to comply with the GST strategy as envisioned by the organisation. As India waits to implement a radical tax reform, technology heads of organisations must play the role of a navigator helping various business processes to be GST compliant.