COVID-19: Govt defers release of April GST collection data

New Delhi: The government on Friday deferred the release of April GST revenue collection data due to the ongoing lockdown, sources said.

The government had last month extended the deadline to file GST returns for March to May 5, from April 20.

As per convention, the government releases a GST revenue collection number on the basis of cash collection in a particular month. However, with the situation arising out of COVID-19, the government has decided to wait until the extended deadline for filing returns before the release of the collection figure.

Sources said due to the “unprecedented situation” arising out of the coronavirus outbreak, it has been decided to defer the April GST collection data release. No date has yet been decided to release this data, they said.

“The government will wait till May 5 before announcing the collections,” a source said.

For business activity in a particular month, GST return has to be filed in a staggered manner by the 20th of next month. Hence for transactions in March, GST return had to be filed by April 20, which was extended till May 5.

According to another source, low collection figure till now could have been the reason for the deferment of GST data release on Friday. The nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 disease was imposed on March 25.