Business News | Centre Plans Faceless CGST Scheme in 3-4 Months, Seeks to Cut Taxpayer-officer Interface: Govt Sources

New Delhi [India], October 6 (ANI): The Centre plans to launch a faceless scheme under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) on a pilot basis within the next three to four months, in a move aimed at reducing direct interaction between taxpayers and tax officials, Finance Ministry sources said on Tuesday.

“Faceless scheme for CGST will be started in 3 to 4 months on a trial basis,” Finance Ministry sources said.

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Under the proposed system, cases will be assigned randomly using technology rather than remaining tied to individual local officers, potentially marking a significant change in the way central GST proceedings are administered.

In the Faceless scheme, cases are assigned randomly using artificial intelligence and data analytics to specialised teams rather than local, individual officers.

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The proposed framework draws on the faceless system already used by the Income Tax Department, where assessments are designed to minimise physical interaction between taxpayers and tax authorities.

Currently, Income Tax runs a faceless scheme which eliminates physical and person-to-person interaction between Income taxpayers and tax authorities,” the sources said.

The move is significant for businesses because GST administration can involve direct interaction with jurisdictional officers during scrutiny and other proceedings. A faceless framework could reduce the role of physical jurisdiction and individual officer discretion while allowing cases to be distributed among specialised teams.

The Income Tax Department's faceless assessment framework similarly uses automated allocation and dynamic jurisdiction. The government has previously said the system was designed to improve efficiency, transparency and accountability by eliminating taxpayer-officer interface to the extent technologically possible.

The proposed faceless framework comes as the government looks to make more parts of the GST administration system-driven and reduce taxpayer interaction with individual officers. The GST Council, which is scheduled to meet on October 8, is also expected to consider process reforms covering registration, refunds and returns, according to Finance Ministry sources.

CBIC has already been increasing the use of technology and data analytics in GST scrutiny. In May 2023, it rolled out an Automated Return Scrutiny Module for Centre-administered taxpayers, under which returns are selected using data analytics and system-identified risks, while discrepancies are communicated electronically through the GST portal. The proposed faceless scheme would go a step further by changing how cases themselves are assigned and handled.

Details on which CGST proceedings will initially be brought under the faceless framework and how widely the pilot will be rolled out are yet to be specified.

The experience of the pilot will therefore be important in determining whether the faceless model can subsequently be expanded across CGST administration. (ANI)

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