GST collections up 26% to over Rs 1.47L cr in September

The goods import revenue was up 39% year-on-year

India's Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection for September topped Rs 1.47 lakh crore, growing at 26 per cent year-on-year. This is the seventh consecutive month that GST revenues have crossed Rs 1.4 lakh crore. The gross collection for the month stood at Rs 1,47,686 crore.

Better reporting coupled with economic recovery has had an impact on GST collections in the past months. Imports appeared to have contributed the most as businesses built up stocks in the festive season.

The goods import revenue was up 39 per cent year-on-year.

"With the pandemic behind us, further reduction in e-invoicing threshold from Oct 1, 2022 and the recent amendments to extend year-end compliance due dates, we expect the last quarter of 2022 to witness even higher collections," said Mahesh Jaising, Partner, Leader–Indirect Tax, Deloitte India.

An elevated inflation could also be the reason for rising GST collections along with improved consumption.

The State Bank of India, in recent research, had said the gap between the actual GST revenues versus inflation-adjusted revenues started increasing since May 2020 with a significant difference between the two since mid-2021.

While the finance ministry has exuded confidence that the revenues could be higher from October onwards, many economists believe that going forward with normalisation of the base, the GST revenue growth may get flattened.

"The GST revenues are sustaining at a higher level, which is very encouraging. Moreover, the YoY growth remains substantial, although the pace of the same may wear off in the coming months, as the base normalises and inflation moderates," said Aditi Nayar, chief economist at ICRA.