In a recent ruling, the AAR, Maharashtra has announced that importers who are having godowns or store goods at custom warehouses in different stages would not require a separate registration for each stage. Such companies would only need to make registration only once at a place where their headquarters are located.
This announcement has come as a big relief from importers, having godowns or custom warehouses in different Indian states.
AAR, further, declared that these firms will be allowed to sell their products in different states and can raise invoices against the same from their head offices.
When discussed on this matter, one of the tax officials and partner at KPMG, Harpreet Singh, said the issue related to GST registration in multiple states by importers have been seen in many recent cases. For instance, in one of the cases, the appellant-Aarel Import Export had the head office in Mumbai and sell products like black matpe, agarbatti, and pet coke.
The appellant, in this case, was looking to import Coke from Indonesia, store the imported item at the customs warehouse, and sell this product in Odisha. For such purpose, he wanted to clear bills from Mumbai office by paying customs duty, if any and IGST.
Therefore, seeing the above case scenario, AAR has declared that importer would not require separate registration in Odisha and also stated that the place where the applicant makes taxable supply would be Mumbai. AAR, further argued that the applicant is not having a physical storage facility in Odisha, so it allowed to clear goods as per the bills or invoices issued at its Mumbai headquarters. The facility to mentioned GSTIN of Mumbai office on the e-Way bill is also offered to the applicant in the given case by AAR.
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Similarly, in another case, petitioner Gandhar Oil Refinery (India) Ltd was having a manufacturing facility in plants located at Silvassa and Taloja in Maharashtra. The company was engaged in trading activity with others located in different states for non-coking coal. In this case, too, the AAR has made it very clear that the applicant would not require to make separate registration in each state from where it imports goods or store them in godowns.
