If your business holds GST registration, this update is crucial for you.
The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has announced that from October 1, 2024, data related to GST returns older than seven years will no longer be accessible on the GST portal.
This decision highlights the importance of downloading and saving any necessary records before the deadline.
Why Is GSTN Deleting Old Data?
Experts believe that older data on the GST portal contributes to increased load on the system.
To optimize portal performance, GSTN has decided to remove GST return data older than seven years.
As of October 1, 2024, taxpayers will no longer have access to this data. An official advisory regarding this change was issued by GSTN on September 24, 2024.
How Can Taxpayers Retain Old GST Data?
According to GSTN’s advisory, taxpayers will still be able to access returns data from the past seven years.
Any records older than that will be automatically deleted each month. For example, on October 1, 2024, data from September 2017 will be removed.
If you need access to older data, you must download it from the GST portal and store it securely before September 30, 2024.
GST: Over 7 Years in Operation
GST was introduced in July 2017 to create a unified tax system across the country. It replaced multiple state-level taxes and aimed to streamline tax collection.
Although the initial implementation brought challenges for taxpayers, the system has now stabilized, and the government’s revenue from GST continues to rise.
Tax evasion cases have also seen a reduction.
Important Deadline: Download Data Before September 30
Tax experts are advising all GST-registered taxpayers to download and save their returns data that is older than seven years before the September 30, 2024 deadline.
While the government will retain copies of the deleted data, retrieving it after removal will be a complicated process.
