CBIC Waived Late Fee for Delaying Filing of GSTR-4 of FY 2021-22

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on 26th May 2022 waived late fees for two months till June for delayed filing of GSTR-4 returns for the financial year 2021-22 by small taxpayers registered under the composition scheme.

The Gist of CBIC Notification

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) vide a notification number 7/2022, dated 26th May 2022 announced that the late fee shall be waived from May 1 to June 30, 2022, for the delay in filing GSTR-4 for the financial year 2021-2022.

GSTR- 4 Filing – Annual Return for Composition Scheme

GSTR-4 is filed annually by the taxpayers registered under the composition scheme. GST composition scheme can be opted by any traders whose turnover is less than Rs 1.5 crore, while it is Rs.75 lakh for businesses in north-eastern states. Under this scheme, the manufacturers and traders must pay GST at 1% on their turnover. In contrast, the restaurants that are not serving alcohol and service providers pay GST of 5% and 6%, respectively. The GSTR-4 return is much simpler when compared to the annual return in Form GSTR-9 applicable to regular taxpayers. The annual return in Form GSTR-4 has only four tables, out of which one table is auto-filled as per the Form CMP-08 filed every quarter during the particular financial year.

Traders and manufacturers can opt into the composition scheme if their annual turnover is less than Rs.1.5 crore for all states except those doing business from the north-eastern states that allow a limit of up to Rs.75 lakh.
On the other hand, service providers and those making mixed supplies of goods and services have a threshold turnover limit of up to Rs.50 lakh to qualify for the special composition scheme.

Due Date for Furnishing GSTR-4

The GST law needs the taxpayers to submit this return on or before 30th April of the financial year after the relevant financial year or the date as extended by the government. The government waived the late fee payable for delay in furnishing from GSTR-4 for the financial year 2021-22 till June 30, 2022.

Late Fee for Delay in filing GSTR-4

According to GST law, Rs.50 per day is charged as a late fee for delay in filing GSTR-4. However, where the total amount of tax payable is nil, a maximum of Rs.500 can be imposed as a late fee. For all other cases, the maximum fee that can be charged is Rs 2,000. With this notification, composition taxpayers need not cough up any late fee for filing the annual return between 1st May 2022 and 30th June 2022. For any delay after that, they must pay the late fee from 1st May 2022 until the actual date of filing the return. Even where the late fee does not reflect on the GST portal, a composition taxpayer is duly bound to calculate and pay the late fee. The GST Network launched the facility to file this return on 21st July 2020. It was then followed by the launch of the GSTR-4 offline tool on 6th August 2020 to allow some tables of GSTR-4 to be prepared without the internet