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Electronic Way Bill or E-Way is a new milestone in the country ever the since GST regime unfolded to unify direct taxes. The E-Way bill system is said to be made compulsory in all states starting from February 1 of this year. After being implemented and tested in almost 10 states, the government has given the E-Way a green signal throughout the nation to allow traders to monitor and track online the movement of goods and consignment.
What is an E-Way Bill?
It is an electronically generated document that has replaced the Way bill under the previous VAT regime for the movement of goods. The new E-Way bill will be generated from E-Way bill portal and is required for the transport of goods worth over Rs 50, 000 from one place to another. The bill should be compulsorily generated by the supplier, recipient and transporter for the physical movement of goods within or outside a state (for distances exceeding 10 kms) for sales or trading, returns and transfer purposes.
Each time the bill is generated, a unique E-Way bill code or EBN number is allocated to the individuals involved in the movement of goods. Another important feature of the E-Way bill system is that the bill can be generated or even cancelled through simple SMS.
The system of E-Way bills eliminates the need for transit passes for each state and will enable tax authorities to closely inspect the bills anytime to control tax evasion.
Also, the validity limit of the bill is purely based on the distance travelled for the movement of good (for less 100 kms or additional kms). The date and time of E-Way bill generation is also taken into consideration while calculating its validity period.
Documents Needed for E-Way Bill Generation
All invoice receipts, bills and Challan related to the movement of goods, the transporters’ ID and vehicle document are needed in case the goods are transported via road. If the goods are transported by air, rail or ship, then the transporter’s ID, document number and date on the document should be submitted in order to generate E-Way bills.
The discussions related to approval of E-Way bill were held last year, around August 5 by the GST committee and was announced on August 30. However, the panel reportedly did not make solid confirmations about the date of implementing the E-Way bill system. Later, during November when the findings revealed that the projected monthly GST incomes was at Rs 83,346 crores, much below the target amount of Rs 91, 000 crores, the nation reportedly requested to fix the gaping holes in the current GST regime.
The Prologue before the E-Way Bill Practice
The GST council led by the Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley approved the date, February 1 to roll out the E-Way bill system and June 1 as the deadline. Additionally, the new system has given states full freedom to choose their deadline before June 1 of this year. The GST council ran its trial in Karnataka during September 2017 and eventually in Rajasthan, Uttarakand and Kerala. The other states that also came on board were Haryana, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Sikkim and Jharkhand.
The council also listed out 154 items for which the E-Way bill will not be applicable and it includes items like curd, fish, household LPG, Kerosene, vegetables, meat and other items for public distribution system (PDS).
What E-Way Bill has in Store for Accountants?
The advent of GST has hauled in compliance and implementation complexities for many businesses. A large proportion of businesses and tax payers took time to welcome this change. However, many are still at the state of understanding the underlying benefits and success of GST on trade and economy. The new E-Way bill system would drive accounting firms and expert to include this concept in their GST compliance, filing and reporting services to enable individuals and businesses to adapt to this new change.
At Munimji, we offer certificate courses on GST, which would help businesses and individuals seamlessly transition to new tax system.
It is a known fact that accounting practices and processes have undergone a new wave of change over the last few years due to the transformations in the adjacent fields and regulatory systems. The new accounting standards and shift over to the new-age technology has redefined the way businesses, economies and individuals view accounting. No doubt, today, these firms operate as providers of knowledge as a service over the mere practice of juggling numbers and receipts on paper.
But, only a handful of accounting firms admit the fact that all accounting practices based on trends and transformations are mostly time-bound. Organizations that keep up with the constant changes and accordingly upgrade their systems and business philosophies are the ones that survive in the sands of time. One of the major proofs to this is the sudden reduction of business emerging from the auditing domain and the growth of opportunities in consultation, advisory services and tax planning across the world.
Besides, the accounting companies are rampantly turning out to be more tech-savvy to bring in accuracy and efficiency into their accounting practices to positively reflect on the financial health of their customers. Amidst these new transformations and stiff competition to stay relevant in the market, accounting firms should bear in mind, the below methods to recreate themselves as superior accounting businesses:
Be Receptive to Change: Accounting firms need to be highly perceptive toward any slight change in rules and regulations as well as market trends to become flexible enough to serve the growing demands of their multi-generational clientele in real-time.
Adopt Result-oriented Approaches: It is no secret that becoming more client-centric rather than being fee-centric helps increase your trustworthiness. But, this practice would be incomplete in the absence of a result-oriented approach that involves the use of industry best practices, adherence to regulatory laws and implementation of tools and solutions that break redundancy, inaccuracy and inefficiency in order to achieve client’s financial objectives.
Embrace Technology and IT Tools: Old organizations that advocate old techniques of time-consuming and labour-intensive paperwork and computation fall back in terms of speed and reliability. Millennial accounting firms despite their limited reach and existence in the industry, garner more attention by choosing cloud-based software, online, mobile devices as well as secure client portals that can seamlessly manage complex accounting tasks in large volumes, generate accurate reports and results in real-time and adopt progressive accounting approaches.
Diversify Services by Partnering with Certified Professionals: It is necessary to bring on board experienced and certified accounting professional or build partnerships to increase the credibility and reach of your firm. These professionals bring with them the expertise in multiple areas such as investment, legal representation, tax planning, compliance, payroll practices and technology consulting to add more value to your organizations and diversify your clientele.
Widen your Social Reach and Client Collaboration: With the widespread use of social media and networking platforms, it is easier to find clients over the web and boost profitability. Digital and social media marketing strategies and online communication methods like hosting conferences and expert talks not only increase your branding but also effectively sell your services to the target group. Besides, this method helps alleviate cost involved in hiring agents to bring in new customers.
It has been increasingly noticed that women have walked shoulder to shoulder with men in all fields be it defence, engineering, space research etc. The field of chartered accountancy is no exception to this trend. The huge scope and opportunities in the field of accountancy has attracted many women to enter and excel in the traditionally male-dominated bastion. According to data provided by the ICAI, 24.39% of ICAI’s total members are women which totals to 68,339 up till October 2017. Similarly, 40% of the active students of ICAI are female candidates. These figures indicate that women are giving tough competition to male counterparts in the accounting field.
The esteemed place of the First woman Chartered Accountant in India is held by Ms. R. Sivabhogam. She was also the first lady to occupy the post of Chairperson of Southern India Regional Council of ICAI (then Madras Regional Council), which she held for three consecutive years. A freedom fighter and avid follower of Mahatma Gandhi, Ms. R. Sivabhogam participated in Non-Cooperation movement and spent a year in imprisonment. It was while in the jail she developed keen interest in accounting field. Subsequently, after she was released from jail, she became the first woman accountant in India in the year 1933.
Sivabhogam became member of ICAI in the year 1949 upon its formation in the same year. In 1950 she became the fellow and was elected as a member in the very first year of the formation of the Southern India Regional Council (then Madras Regional Council). She also held the post of the chairperson of Madras Regional Council from 1955 to 1958.
As we know, Chartered Accountancy offers many career opportunities for women. Career in chartered accountancy is equally beneficial whether a candidate is looking for escalation in a corporate job, great financial rewards or self-employment opportunities. Let us see some of the areas where a female candidate can work and excel:
1. Greater Flexibility with Self Employment Opportunity:
The career path of a woman is often different from her male counterpart as she has a greater responsibility towards her family. She may have to take a break from career when she has young children to rear. In other words, work-life balance is more critical for women as compared to men. Chartered Accountancy is a career path which provides greater flexibility in terms of self-employment as compared to other fields. A qualified CA can start her own accountancy practice or simply take consulting assignments as per her convenience.
2. Scope in Academics:
Qualified CAs are also in great demand in education field be it universities or private coaching institutions. A qualified CA can earn pretty well without investing must time into the profession. Hence, managing work-life balance would be easier than ever.
3. Job Opportunity in the Traditional Areas of Accounting:
It goes without saying that scope and demand for CAs in Taxation and Audit are ever increasing. It would not be difficult for a female candidate to find a job in some good company in taxation or audit profiles. Moreover, she can switch between job and self-employment without reflecting any career break in the resume.
4. Opportunity at the top management positions:
Demand for female executives at top management positions like CEO, CFO, Vice-president etc is on the rise. Being a qualified chartered accountant will prove to be an additional advantage as no one understands a business more deeply than a chartered accountant. The qualified women CA have greater chance to get selected at board level positions as compared to their non-CA counterparts. Hence, being a CA is of great value at top management positions.
Women have excelled in all fields including traditionally male-dominated fields like engineering or space science. However, considering the work-life balance requirement of women, chartered accountancy proves to be the best career path for women. Chartered Accountancy is the only career choice which provides great career opportunity in terms of entrepreneurship as well as in employment sector. It offers good financial rewards without compromising work-life balance. Hence, it is not an exaggeration to say that chartered accountancy is the best career choice for women.
The Central Bank, also known as National Bank or Reserve Bank in some countries, is an apex monetary authority in a country. It is an institution that manages and oversees a country’s money supply, inflation and interest rates. It regulates the commercial banking system and acts as watchdog and regulator of other banks of a country. A Central Bank of a country acts as a banker and financial adviser to the government. Due to its pivotal role in the banking system, it is also known as “lender of last resort”.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the apex monetary Institution which controls Indian Rupee, monetary policy and banking system in India. The central Bank was first established in the year 1935 under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. After India’s independence, the RBI was nationalised on 1 January 1949. In the year 1974, RBI became the member of Asian Clearing Union, an institution established by United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). RBI plays a vital role in the developmental strategy of the Government as it regulates the monetary policy of the country.
The core think tank of RBI is the committee of Central Board of Directors. The directors are appointed for a term of 4 years.
The RBI is currently headed by The Governor Urjit Patel. Two of the four deputy governors are selected from executive directors of the banks. One is selected from among the chairpersons of the public sector banks. A prominent economist is chosen as the fourth deputy governor.
RBI has many vital functions to perform in the economy. Here we would provide a brief list of the core functions of RBI.
1. Regulation of Banking System
2. Currency Printing
3. Exchange Control Management and Regulation
4. Monetary Policy Formulation
5. Detection and Regulation of counterfeit currency notes
RBI indulges into a lot of research work and publishes different research literature annually, Half-yearly, Quarterly, Bi-monthly, monthly as well as weekly. Below is a brief list of publications by RBI.
| Publication | Frequency of Publication |
| Annual Report | Annual |
| Report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India | Annual |
| Financial Stability Report | Half-yearly |
| Monetary Policy Report | Half-yearly |
| Report on Foreign Exchange Reserves | Half-yearly |
| Variations to Foreign Exchange Reserves in India: Sources, Arbitrage and Costs | Quarterly |
| Macroeconomic and Monetary Developments | Quarterly |
| Quarterly Statistics on Deposits and Credit of Scheduled Commercial Banks | Quarterly |
| Quarterly Industrial Outlook Survey | Quarterly |
| Consumer Confidence Survey | Quarterly |
| Survey of Professional Forecasters | Bi-Monthly |
| RBI Bulletin | Monthly |
| Monetary and Credit Information Review | Monthly |
| Weekly Statistical Supplements | Weekly |
| Transferor | Resident |
| Transferee | Any person (Resident or Non Resident) |
| Asset Transferred | Immovable property except agricultural land |
| Point of Deduction | Payment or credit whichever is earlier |
| Rate of Deduction | 1% (if PAN available) |
| Consideration paid/payable | Rs. 50 Lacs or more |
| TAN number | Not required |
| Aerial Distance From Municipal Limits | Population as per last Census |
| Within 2 Kms | >10,000 but <= 1,00,000 |
| Within 6 Kms | >1,00,000 but <=10,00,000 |
| Within 8 Kms | >10,00,000 |
On analysis of above definition of agricultural land it can be said that
The registration for transfer of immovable properties cannot be done unless the transferee provides proof of deduction of tax at source and payment thereof to the registering officer.
| Section | Default | Rate of simple interest | Amount on which interest is levied | Interest beginning from date | Interest Upto |
| 201(1A) | Failure to deduct TDS | 1% Per Month or part of month | Amount on which short deduction / non-deduction of TDS | Date when TDS was deductible | TDS is deducted |
| 201(1A) | Failure to pay tax after deduction | 1.5% Per Month or part of month | Amount on which TDS is not deposited | Date when TDS was required to be deposited | TDS Was actually paid |
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