On 8 October 2026, the 57th GST Council meeting, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi, approved several procedural reforms to improve the ease of doing business and reduce the compliance burden on taxpayers. The Council focused on simplifying GST procedures, with no changes to GST rates.
Key Decisions
- Arrest Powers: Removal of arrest powers from tax officers, as announced by the Finance Minister.
- Prosecution Threshold: Increased from ₹1 crore to ₹5 crore.
- GST Registration: Automatic acceptance of routine changes in GST registration.
- Refund Processing: Acknowledgement period reduced from 15 days to 10 days.
- Faster Refunds: 90% of eligible refund claims to be issued within three working days.
- Input Tax Credit (ITC): Expanded eligibility to cover additional expenditure categories, including telecom towers and employer-provided insurance.
- GST Rates: No changes were made to the existing GST rate structure.
