Thiruvananthapuram: With traders finding it difficult to submit tax returns online after demonetisation, the state government has decided to issue an order tweaking the Kerala Value Added Tax Act to allow them to submit the amount in invalid tender at the Treasury.
Additionally, it will allow people to pay all taxes in invalid tender. The Centre has already allowed the state Treasury to accept Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes till November 30.
The order will lay down the procedures to be followed by traders while submitting the money. “But to facilitate e-filing, the traders should have money in their bank accounts. The e-filing will be complete only if the traders produce documents showing that the tax amount was transferred online,” a top finance department source said.
The Government Order allowing payment in cash is primarily an attempt to tide over the sudden difficulties in the e-filing process. By empowering the Treasury to accept invalid tenders for any kind of tax payment, the state government is trying to increase the flow of funds into the Treasury. In the days after demonetisation, Treasury income had virtually dried up; from a daily inflow of Rs 450-500 crore it shrunk to less than Rs 20 crore.
Tax returns of those paying sales tax are being filed online ever since the online platform Kerala Value Added Tax Information System (KVATIS) came into being nearly a decade ago.
