Few suggestions for practitioners as implementation date for GST is approaching near

Rohit Jain

As the date of Implementation is approaching near, I would like to give suggestions to my fellow practitioners, so that we can serve our clients in efficient and effective manner:

1. Those practitioners who got large number of small and mid size clients who generally don’t have a robust system of accounting must develop a Standard format for capturing data from clients in order to save their precious time and energy.

2. Study the accounting systems & procedures of medium and Big sized clients thoroughly so that you can act as their GST implementation guide.

3. Use of industry wide accepted GST software should be adopted instead of filing returns manually every month.

4. A proper fees chart should be developed based on turnover and volume of transactions undertaken by clients and Institute should urge all practitioners to follow it.

5. Regular update should be made available to clients on GST related matters on websites of practitioners. A new tab on website named GST should be inserted on home page of their respective websites.

6. Pool of professional resources should be developed at every branch of ICAI for continuous guidance.

7. Regular industry wide guidance campaign should be organised so that the transition from current indirect tax regime to GST should be smooth.

8. A standard compliance checklist should be developed on the basis of client’s business which should contain information about procedures to be performed right from the registration to assessment, it will help you in providing better consultancy services to clients belonging to specific industries.

9. As problems faced by most clients are of similar nature, FAQs should be developed at office level keeping in mind the clientele.

10. Regular in house training programmes should be conducted for Articles and other permanent staff of the office.

(The author is a practicing Chartered Accountant at Indore City and can also be reached at rohitjain3663@gmail.com)