SimplifiTax - Tax, Accounting & Financial Advisory

GSTN Advisory dated 01-05-2025

The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has issued an advisory announcing the rollout of Phase-III changes in Table 12 and Table 13 of Form GSTR-1 and Form GSTR-1A, with effect from the return period of May 2025. These changes are part of ongoing efforts to improve the accuracy, uniformity, and compliance of GST returns filed by taxpayers.

1. Table 12 – Structured HSN Code Reporting

As part of Phase-III implementation –

Manual entry of HSN codes will be discontinued. Instead, taxpayers will be required to select the relevant HSN (Harmonised System of Nomenclature) code from a predefined dropdown menu, eliminating the possibility of typographical errors and non-standard entries.
Table 12 will now be bifurcated into two parts –

1. B2B (Business-to-Business)
2. B2C (Business-to-Consumer)
  This categorisation aims to provide a clearer and more segmented view of outward supplies, enabling better validation and analytics by the tax authorities.

This structural change is intended to enhance data quality, improve system validation, and facilitate more accurate tax reconciliation at both supplier and recipient ends.

2. Table 13 – Now Mandatory for All Taxpayers

From the May 2025 return period onwards, the reporting of details in Table 13 of Form GSTR-1/1A will also be made mandatory.

Table 13 pertains to “Documents Issued”, including details of invoices, credit/debit notes, receipt vouchers, delivery challans, etc.
This table provides a comprehensive overview of the various commercial documents issued during the return period, which is crucial for audit trails and cross-verification by authorities.

Making this table mandatory will help standardise document-level reporting across taxpayers and strengthen the audit and compliance ecosystem.

3. Objective and Implications

The overall aim of these reforms is to –

Ensure uniformity in HSN reporting
Reduce classification errors and mismatches between suppliers and recipients
Enable better data analytics and risk profiling by the GSTN
Support enhanced taxpayer compliance through structured return filing

Taxpayers are advised to familiarise themselves with the new return filing structure before the due date of the May 2025 returns and ensure internal systems are updated accordingly.