What is GST registration for foreigners?

GST registration for foreigners is necessary for the non-resident taxable persons who are making taxable supplies in India. With India emerging as an economic powerhouse, a lot of non-resident Indias are willing to set up business in India. Hence, a non-resident taxable person has to apply for GST registration if he is undertaking transactions involving the supply of goods or services or both.

Hence, an individual who is staying abroad or a foreign business or an organization that is supplying foods or services in India is considered as a Non-resident taxable person who has to comply with all the regulations under the Goods and Service Law Act. The non-resident taxable person must appoint a nominee in India who can undertake the compliances on their behalf in accordance with the GST regulations. GST registration by the foreigners is to be obtained 5 days before commencing with the business.

Why GST registration?

The Goods and Services Tax Act was introduced by the Indian government, to subsume different types of taxes levied at the Central or State level such as Service Tax, Luxury Tax, VAT, entertainment tax, etc, and a consolidated structure is offered under the GST Act. Here, a non-resident India who undertakes transactional activities that are relevant to services and goods should also register as a taxable person under GST.

The Goods and Service Tax Law has improved the ease of doing business. The complexities of tax have reduced as the GST has subsumed multiple taxes into a single simple system.

What are the documents required to obtain the GST registration?

GST registration for a non-resident taxable person requires the submission of the following documents.

• 1

  Principal place of business proof

  • For own business- Any document that is supporting the ownership of the premise like the latest tax property or the municipal khata or the copy of the electricity bill.
  • For rented or leased premises- A copy of the valid rent or lease agreement with any document that is supporting the ownership of the lessor's premises like the property tax receipt or municipal khata copy or the electricity bill.
  • For premises not covered above- A copy of the consent letter with a document supporting the ownership of the consenter's premises like the municipal khata or the electricity bill copy. Even for shared properties, the same documents can be uploaded.
• 2

  Identity Proof

  It is necessary to submit the scanned copy of the passport of the Non-resident taxable person with the VISA details. In the case of a business entity that is incorporated or established outside India the application for the registration, it should be submitted along with the tax identification number or the unique number that is based on which the entity is identified by the government of that country or the PAN if it is available.

  • In the case of the Company/ Society / LLC/ FCNR etc, a person holding the attorney power with the authorization certificate.
  • A scanned copy of the incorporation certificate of the company is registered outside India or in the country.
  • Scanned copy of the license that is issued by the foreign country if it is available.
  • Scanned copy of the clearance certificate that is issued by the Government of India, if available.
• 3

  Bank Account proof

  Scanned copy of the first page of the bank passbook or one page of the bank statement, the opening page of the bank passbook held in the name of the business that contains the Account number, name of the account holder, MICR, IFSC code, and branch details.

Eligibility Criteria

Who can register as a non-resident taxpayer under GST in India?

Irrespective of the turnover a non-resident taxable person is required to obtain GST registration in India. Here it should be noted that all the non-resident taxpayers are required to obtain the GST registration five days before commencing with the business activity.

It is better if the foreign business that is supplying the goods and services gets the GST registration at the earliest. It is to be noted that the NRI cannot exercise the option to pay taxes under the composition scheme.

A business entity that is incorporated or established outside India that is making the supply of taxable goods and services is required to obtain the GST registration in India his tax identification number will be based on the country.

Benefits of obtaining GST registration

What are the benefits of getting GST registration?

• Unified taxation system: GST registration is a unified platform that has subsumed all the other taxes such as the VAT registration, service tax registrations. All indirect taxes are streamlined under one umbrella GST registration.
• Ease of doing business: There are multiple taxes such as the Central Sales Tax, Additional Custom duty, purchase tax, luxury tax. etc anymore as the GST undertakes the taxes on the goods and services. This has made business easier for the taxpayers.
• Decreased tax liability: With a greater annual turnover threshold the taxes which need to be paid are lower as compared to what was in the case of the VAT. GST has also increased the tax base considerably which decreased the overall tax liability and made business more compliant.

Important Instructions to be followed by the taxpayers applying for GST registration for foreigners

• The name of the applicant must be entered as per the passport.
• The applicant must apply for GST registration on the common portal by filing form GST REG-09 at least five days before the business's commencement.
• Tax identification number / unique number (number by which the respective government identifies the entity) or PAN (if applicable) is necessary to be submitted along with the application in case of a business entity incorporated or established outside India.
• The application must be duly signed or verified through EVC.