Centre Proposes Curbing GST Officers’ Arrest Powers, Single Application for Multi-State Registration

New Delhi: The Centre is likely to bring in a slew of changes in Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms in its upcoming GST Council meeting this week, including enforcement framework.

Income tax officers are likely to lose the power to arrest evaders, as part of decriminalisation of the GST law.

Among the changes, businesses are likely to soon get to file GST registrations for multiple states together through a single application process, according to top sources.

After rate rationalisation of tax in the 56th GST Council meeting in September 2025, the 57th meeting, to be held on October 7, is likely to take up several taxpayer-friendly decisions in its policy reforms.

“For enforcement framework provision, if the GST Council, comprising Union and state finance ministers, approves the proposal, the GST enforcement could shift to judicial oversight from departmental arrest, while reserving criminal prosecution for serious and deliberate tax fraud,” the sources said.

Currently, as per the provision, commissioner-level officers are empowered to authorise any central or state tax officer to arrest such a person who has committed specified offences under the law.

The power to arrest is principally limited to serious offences, including issuing fake invoices, availing or utilising fraudulent input tax credit (ITC), and collecting tax but failing to deposit it with the government within the prescribed period.

However, the proposed reforms, if approved, could fundamentally change the framework in which GST officers operate to make an arrest.

“The key proposal is to remove the power of GST officers to directly arrest taxpayers and instead require judicial authorisation for an arrest.

In other words, the enforcement model could move from departmental arrest powers towards greater judicial oversight,” the sources said.

Besides, the GST Council may also consider a proposal to allow businesses to file for GST registration in multiple states through a single application process and also list out a unified set of documents that tax officers may ask for.

The move is aimed at bringing about ease of doing business and deliberating on a redesigned and simpler GST registration form for large businesses.

Currently there are over 1.68 crore businesses registered under GST.

The new registration form will be easier to fill and will be accompanied by guidance at all stages. Besides, the form would also list the documents that need to be uploaded.

“Once the redesigned registration system kicks in, the details provided by businesses would be carried over when applying for registration in other states,” the sources said.

If the business applies for registration in multiple states, the applications can be filled together. “The GST system will determine which office has jurisdiction based on the location given when filling the form.

The council is also likely to approve a set of guidelines for officers specifying which documents may be called for, for what purpose and when they are enough.

This would bring about consistency across states for GST registration. An applicant in one state will be asked for the same things as an applicant in another,” the source added.

Meanwhile, the sources also said that the GST Council might consider recasting its tax officers’ committees, making them leaner as the indirect tax regime matures over time.

“The structure of the committee, which supports the Council in overall functioning, is proposed to be recast into three consolidated bodies — the secretariat, the implementation committee, and a single standing committee of officers,” the sources added.