How to find out whether the business house is having valid GST Identification Number?

Have you ever had to deal with the GST Identification Number (GSTIN)? If not, you may want to start keeping track of this number now. The GSTIN is a 17 – digit number that businesses need to register with the GST Council.

In this blog post, we’ll explain how to register for a GSTIN and what you need to do in order to get one.

Before the existence of structure of GSTIN, the central and state taxes were there, they are separately calculated. All the deals which are registered under the VAT law were given a unique TIN by their respective state tax authorities, Services providers were also assigned numbers for tax by the Central Board of indirect taxes.

The GST was introduced with the sole purpose of subsuming all the indirect and direct taxes in a single tax window which is popularly known as the Goods and Services tax.

This tax will be imposed on the supply of the goods or services or both at each stage of the supply chain that is from the manufacturer or importer to the last retailer.

That simply means all the taxes which were levied by the central and states will now be covered under the Goods and Services tax.

What is the GST Identification number?

When any company or enterprise is done with the process of registration, then a unique code is issued to the entity. This will be printed on all the invoices received and sent by the registered taxpayers and companies or organizations.

The sole proprietorship firms and partnerships can also apply for the GST identification number.

Businesses that are required to Mandatory register under GSTIN.

• The business is registered under the old tax regime such as VAT, excise, and service tax.
• The goods and services that are rendered across the states
• Distributors of the input services
• Aggregators of E-Commerce.
• Supplier
• The business houses that provide online information, database access, and retrieval services, outside of India to person or business houses in India.
• Companies that sell their products through an E-commerce aggregator.
• Businesses and other people as notified by the Central and State governments,  which is based on the GST Council suggestions.

      GST Identification application online :

      Here we are providing a step-by-step procedure for obtaining the GST Identification Number.

• Frist you need to visit the official online GST registration portal.
• Then you have to log in by using the TRN and the Captcha
• Click on the edit icon from my saved application page
• The sections are provided there, you need to fill in all the details there in each section.
• Fill in the details of the principal place of business and commodities, and click on the save button.
• Fill in the HSN code and your bank details.
• Upload the document after scanning them, document such as permanent account number, proof of business address, address proof of the director, bank account details, and authorization details.
• Visit the verification page and click the declaration page after reading it.
• Submit your application in any of the following ways –

E-sign method with the OTP  received on the registered mobile number which is linked to your Aadhar card.

• Or by the medium of the Electronic Verification Code received on your registered mobile number.
• After the submission of the application, the ARN (Application Reference number) is given to you on your mobile number.
• After that you can GST check status of the application and GSTIN on the GST portal.
• Your GSTIN number will be provided to you if everything goes well within seven working days.

 What is the Structure of GST Identification Number–

The GSTIN is the 15-digit number assigned to the taxpayer, and it is PAN – the base number.

The format of the GST Identification Number breakdown is

• The coming first two digits represent the state code according to the census 2011, Each state is presented with a different state code for example code for the Delhi is 07.
• The coming next ten digits will be the permanent account number of the taxpayer
• The 13 digital is based on the number of registration within the state.
• The 14^th number will be alphabet Z  by default.
• The digit at the end will be the check code, it can be the alphabet or a number.

 Cost of the GSTIN :

The fee to obtain the GSTIN is not there which means it is free of cost.

How the GSTIN is different from GSTN :

There is a huge difference between GSTIN and GSTN. The GSTIN is a tax registration number provided to the taxpayer under the GST. But GSTN is the goods and services tax network an organization that manages the complete IT system of the GST portal.

The GST portal is the platform where you can register your company or entity and can do all the things related to the Goods and Services.

How one can verify the GST identification number :

There is a large portion of our population that is not aware of the GST law and the related issues thereto. Due to a lack of knowledge and unawareness among the customer, many times fake GST bills are issued by the seller taking the advantage of the illiteracy of GST laws.  The customer usually does not pay attention to the details of the bills and GST Identification Number regarding the tax deduction to CGST and SGST and therefore it becomes favourable for the sellers.

The registration under the GST regime entirely depends on the fact that whether the entity is falling under the threshold of the GST limit or not.

There are two types of entities registered and unregistered under the law. the one who got their registration done is provide the GSTIN number, the number is always on the bills issued by the entity, and it also shows the breakup of CGST and SGST.

Whenever any registered GST entity trade with the non -registered ones the burden of paying off GST lies on the registered entity, therefore usually they avoid dealing with non-registered entities.

The checking of the GSTIN is very important because it is possible that by use of a fake number entity is charging the GST but not providing it to the government, so it becomes important to know the number.

How to know about the fake invoice :

Some are detailed in the invoices which are necessary to be checked when it comes to fake invoices such as –

• If the invoice is without the GST Identification Number then it would be fake.
• If the entity is nonregistered but still uses the GSTIN, then it is fake.

Checking the GST rate which will applicable :

when you authenticate the GST Identification Number than you can check whether the rate applied is correct or not simply by-

• On the CBIC that is the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs portal.
• Validate the rate by checking it on the GST chart with the HSN code (Harmonized System of Nomenclature)  which is used to classify the goods under GST.

Important things should know about the facts and issues of GSTIN :

The business house must mention the GST Identification Number on the bills, without it the invoice will be considered void. If any person issues the old bills then a complaint can be filed against them.

The consumer got the right of approaching the tax department directly or he can file a complaint with the consumer forums.

No bill should be accepted unless it contains the GSTIN. One should also hold knowledge of the structural format of the GSTIN number.

You can check the bills on the government websites :

The online procedure or say guide to check the bill is simple and completed with few steps.

• You have to visit GST.gov.in Portal and need to click on the GSTIN/UIN
• Then enter the GST Identification Number number in the search box
• Fill in the Captcha code and click the search button
• When the click button is hit the page will open showing all the details regarding the company, its states, registration, location, etc.

The helpline number 011-21400643 and mailing address [email protected] are provided. if you find any discrepancies you can write or call these addresses.