THE HIMACHAL PRADESH GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2020
(As Assented to by the Governor on 27th October, 2020)
AN
Act
further to amend the Himachal Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (Act No. 10 of 2017).
Be enacted by the Legislative Assembly of Himachal Pradesh in the Seventy-first year of the Republic of India as follows :-
1. Short title and commencement.-
(1) This Act may be called the Himachal Pradesh Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Act, 2020.
(2) Save as otherwise provided, the provisions of this Act, shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. Amendment of section 2.-
In section 2 of the Himachal Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (10 of 2017) (hereinafter referred to as the "principal Act"), in clause (114), for subclauses (c) and (d), the following sub-clauses shall be substituted, namely:-
"(c) Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu;
(d) Ladakh;".
3. Amendment of section 10,-
In section 10 of the principal Act, in sub-section (2), in clauses (b), (c) and (d), after the words "of goods", the words "or services" shall be inserted.
4. Amendment of section 16.-
In section 16 of the principal Act, in sub-section (4), the words "invoice relating to such" shall be omitted.
5. Amendment of section 29.-
In section 29 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), for clause (c), the following clause shall be substituted, namely :-
"(c) the taxable person is no longer liable to be registered under section 22 or section 24 or intends to opt out of the registration voluntarily made under sub-section (3) of section 25:".
6. Amendment of section 30.-
In section 30 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), in the end for the sign ".", the sign ":" shall be substituted and thereafter, the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:-
"Provided that such period may, on sufficient cause being shown, and for reasons be recorded in writing, be extended,-
(a) by the Additional Commissioner or the Joint Commissioner, as the case may be, for a period not exceeding thirty days; and
(b) by the Commissioner, for a further period not exceeding thirty days, beyond the period specified in clause (a).".
7. Amendment of section 31.-
In section 31 of the principal Act, in sub-section (2), for the proviso, the following proviso shall be substituted, namely:-
"Provided that the Government may, on the recommendations of the Council, by notification,-
(a) specify the categories of services or supplies in respect of which a tax invoice shall be issued, within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed; and
(b) subject to the condition mentioned therein, specify the categories of services in respect of which,-
(i) any other document issued in relation to the supply shall be deemed to be a tax invoice; or
(ii) tax invoice may not be issued.".
8. Amendment of section 51.-
In section 51 of the principal Act,-
(a) for sub-section (3), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:-
"(3) A certificate of tax deduction at source shall be issued in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed."; and
(b) sub-section (4) shall be omitted.
9. Amendment of section 122.-
In section 122 of the principal Act, after sub-section (1), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:-
"(1A) Any person who retains the benefit of a transaction covered under clauses (i), (ii), (vii) or clause (ix) of sub-section (1) and at whose instance such transaction is conducted, shall be liable to pay a penalty of an amount equivalent to the tax evaded or input tax credit availed of or passed on.".
10. Amendment of section 132,-
In section 132 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1),-
(a) for the words "Whoever commits any of the following offences", the words, "Whoever commits, or causes to commit and retain the benefits arising out of, any of the following offences'' shall be substituted;
(b) for clause (c), the following clause shall be substituted, namely:-
"(c) avails input tax credit using the invoice or bill referred to in clause (b) or fraudulently avails input tax credit without any invoice or bill;"; and
(c) in clause (e), the words and sign ", fraudulently avails input tax credit" shall be omitted.
11. Amendment of section 140.-
In section 140 of the principal Act,-
(a) in sub-section (7), after the words "existing law", the words "within such time and" shall be inserted and shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from 1st day of July, 2017;
(b) in sub-section (2), after the words "appointed day", the words "within such time and" shall be inserted and shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from 1st day of July, 2017;
(c) in sub-section (3), after the words "goods held in stock on the appointed day", the sign and words ", within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed," shall be inserted and shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from 1st day of July, 2017;
(d) in sub-section (5), after the words "existing law", the sign and words ", within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed" shall be inserted and shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from 1st day of July, 2017; and
(e) in sub-section (6), after the words "goods held in stock on the appointed day", the sign and words ", within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed," shall be inserted and shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from 1st day of July, 2017.
12. Insertion of new section 168A.-
After section 168 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely:-
"168A. Power of Government to extend time limit in special circumstances.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Government may, on the recommendations of the Council, by notification, extend the time limit specified in, or prescribed or notified under, this Act in respect of actions which cannot be completed or complied with due to force majeure.
(2) The power to issue notification under sub-section (1) shall include the power to give retrospective effect to such notification from a date not earlier than the date of commencement of this Act.
Explanation.- For the purposes of this section, the expression "force majeure" means a case of war, epidemic, flood, drought, fire, cyclone, earthquake or any other calamity caused by nature or otherwise affecting the implementation of any of the provisions of this Act.".
13. Amendment of section 172.-
In section 172 of the principal Act, in sub-section (7), in the proviso, for the words "three years", the words "five years" shall be substituted.
14. Amendment of Schedule-II.-
In SCHEDULE-II Annexed to the principal Act, in paragraph 4, the words and sign "whether or not for a consideration," wherever they occur, shall be omitted and shall be deemed to have been omitted with effect from the 1st day of July, 2017.
15. Exemption from levy or collection of State tax in certain cases with retrospective effect.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the notification of the Government of Himachal Pradesh number 1/2017-STATE TAX (RATE) published in the Rajpatra (e-Gazette), Himachal Pradesh in English Version vide No. EXN-F(10)-14/2017-Loose, on 30th June, 2017 and in Hindi Version on 28th December, 2017, on the recommendations of the Council, in exercise of the powers conferred under section 9 of the principal Act,-
(a) no State tax shall be levied or collected in respect of supply of fishmeal (falling under heading 2301), during the period commencing from the 1st day of July, 2017 and ending with the 30th day of September, 2019 (both inclusive); and
(b) State tax at the rate of six percent shall be levied or collected in respect of supply of pulley, wheels and other parts (falling under heading 8483) and used as parts of agricultural machinery (falling under headings 8432, 8433 and 8436), during the period commencing from the 1st day of July, 2017 and ending with the 31st day of December, 2018 (both days inclusive).
(2) No refund shall be made of all such tax which has been collected, but which would not have been so collected, had sub-section (7) been in force at allmaterial times.