COMPULSORY REGISTRATION UNDER GST - Handbook of GST Law & Procedures (CBIC) [October 2024] - GST

3. COMPULSORY REGISTRATION UNDER GST 3.1 The GST law enlists certain categories of suppliers who are required to get compulsory registration irrespective of their turnover that is to say, the specified threshold exemption limit is not available to them. Section 24 of CGST Act, 2017 makes it mandatory for certain type of persons to obtain registration irrespective of their turnover. They are: - (a) Supplier of inter-state supply: Inter-state supply means the location of the supplier and the place of supply are in different States or different territories. Persons engaged in such supplies shall be covered under compulsory registration criteria and they have to take GST number before making inter-state supplies. Exceptions Any person making the following inter-state supplies shall not be covered under compulsory registration eligibility criteria: Inter-state supply of services where the aggregate value of such supplies is not exceeding the exemption limit. Inter-state supply of hand-crafted goods, the aggregate value of such supplies does not exceed the exemption limit Job-workers having a turnover of less than the exemption limit. This clause shall not be applicable to jewellery, goldsmiths, and silversmith s wares, and other articles manufactured on a job work basis. (b) Casual Taxable Person: Casual Taxable Person is defined under Section 2(20) of CGST Act, 2017 and it includes a person who occasionally undertakes transactions involving supply of goods or services or both in the course or furtherance of business, whether as principal, agent or in any other capacity, in a State or a Union territory where he has no fixed place of business. GST registration is compulsory under Section 24 of the CGST Act, 2017 for a Casual Taxable Person (CTP) before supplying goods or services in the taxable territory. However, CTP is exempted from this requirement if he is engaged in the supply of handicraft goods and the aggregate turnover of such supplies does not cross the GST threshold. (c) Taxpayer under Reverse Charge Mechanism: Under the reverse charge mechanism (RCM), the recipient of goods or services is liable to pay tax and all provisions of GST law shall be applicable to him. It is compulsory to get registered under GST law for a person, who is liable to pay tax under the reverse charge mechanism (RCM). (d) Non-resident taxable person: Non-resident taxable person is defined under Section 2(77) of the CGST Act, 2017. Non-resident taxable person means any person who occasionally undertakes transactions involving supply of goods or services or both, whether as principal or agent or in any other capacity, but who has no fixed place of business or residence in India. Registration under the GST is compulsory for the Non-resident taxable person if he is engaged in any kind of taxable supply in the taxable territory. Every Non-Resident Taxable Person (NRTP), whether an individual or company, making taxable supplies in India has to register under the GST regime irrespective of the frequency and amount of the transaction. (e) E-Commerce Operator: Electronic Commerce Operator means any person who owns, operates or manages digital or electronic facility or platform for electronic commerce. Hence, a person who is providing a platform for others to sell goods or services is considered an e-commerce operator. Main examples of such operators selling goods are Amazon, Flipkart etc. and operators selling services are Uber, Ola, Swiggy etc. Registration under the Goods and Service Tax Act is compulsory for the e-commerce operator if he is engaged in any kind of taxable supply in the taxable territory. (f) Supplier of OIDAR Services: Online Information and Database Access or Retrieval services (OIDAR) is a category of services provided through the medium of internet and received by the recipient online without having any physical interface with the supplier of such services, for example, downloading of an e-book online for a payment. IGST Act, 2017 defines OIDAR to mean services whose delivery is mediated by information technology over the internet or an electronic network and the nature of which renders their supply impossible to ensure in the absence of information technology. For example, advertisement on the Internet, providing cloud services, online supply of digital content (movies, television shows, music and the like); provision of e-books, movie, music, software and other intangibles through telecommunication networks or internet; providing data or information, retrievable or otherwise, to any person in electronic form through a computer network; digital data storage; online gaming, excluding the online money gaming as defined in clause (80B) of section 2 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (12 of 2017); etc. Registration under the Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017 is compulsory for the supplier of OIDAR Services. (g) Persons who are required to deduct tax (TDS) under Section 51 of the CGST Act, 2017 whether or not separately registered under this Act; (h) Persons who make taxable supply of goods or services or both on behalf of other taxable persons whether as an agent or otherwise; (i) Input Service Distributor (ISD), whether or not separately registered under the CGST Act, 2017; (j) Persons who supply goods or services or both, other than supplies specified under sub-section (5) of Section 9, through such electronic commerce operator who is required to collect tax at source under Section 52; (k) Every person supplying online information and database access or retrieval services from a place outside India to a person in India, other than a registered person; (l) Every person supplying online money gaming from a place outside India to a person in India; (m) Such other person or class of persons as may be notified by the Government on the recommendations of the Council.