GST officers bust 304 syndicates involving Rs 25,000 crore fake ITC claims

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

GST officers have busted 304 syndicates involving 9,000 fake GSTINs and input tax credit (ITC) claims of Rs 25,000 crore in the ongoing drive against bogus firms, CBIC chairman Vivek Johri said on Saturday. The chief of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) flagged that only 40 per cent of the corporate income taxpayer base is registered under Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Currently, 1.39 lakh businesses are registered under GST, launched 6 years ago on July 1, 2017. Speaking at the GST Day 2023 event here, Johri appealed to the business to get registered under GST and said the department is conducting an outreach programme to make businesses aware of the benefits of GST.

The Centre and state tax officers are conducting a special two-month drive to identify fake businesses registered under GST for the purpose of claiming ITC fraudulently and defrauding the exchequer. In the ongoing drive, officers have identified 304 syndicates involving 9,000 fake GSTINs (GST identification numbers) and bogus ITC claims of Rs 25,000 crore, Johri said.

He said the department is using advanced data analytics, and adopting a non-intrusive approach to nab evaders. «I warn those who continue to do this that we come at them with very heavy hand...we want a larger but clean taxpayer base so that honest taxpayers are protected,» Johri said.