The Government of India has established a network of support services for taxpayers, including small traders and rural entrepreneurs. The Ministry of Finance reports that 457 Aaykar Seva Kendras (ASKs) are operational across the country for income tax queries, and GST Seva Kendras or Helpdesks are available in all CGST Commissionerates. These centers offer guidance and address grievances. To enhance compliance, the department conducts regular “Taxpayers’ Hubs” in smaller cities and publishes informational brochures. Awareness is also spread through mass media campaigns. The government has set specific timelines for grievance redressal for both income tax and GST matters.
Filing procedures for small taxpayers have been simplified, with pre-filled ITRs and online utilities for income tax. Under GST, the registration threshold for goods has been increased to ₹40 lakh, and for the composition scheme to ₹1.5 crore. A quarterly return filing and monthly payment (QRMP) scheme is available for businesses with a turnover up to ₹5 crore. New measures also include the conditional waiver of mandatory GST registration for intra-state supply of goods through e-commerce operators and expedited registration approvals. An Aayakar Sewa Kendra is also functional in Narnaul within the Bhiwani-Mahendragarh constituency, offering services like SMS-based NIL filing and offline tools for remote areas.
Ministry of Finance
Department of Revenue
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3651
TO BE ANSWERED ON MONDAY, AUGUST 11, 2025/SRAVANA 20, 1947 (SAKA)
HELPDESK FOR GST AND INCOME TAX
3651. SHRI DHARAMBIR SINGH:
Will the Minister of FINANCE be please to state:
(a) whether the Government has set up district-level helpdesks for GST and income tax queries;
(b) whether small traders and rural entrepreneurs are provided regular training on tax compliance;
(c) whether any timeline for grievance redressal in tax refunds and PAN related issues have been fixed;
(d) whether simplification of filing procedures for small taxpayers has been done;
(e) whether any survey has been conducted to assess taxpayers satisfaction in Tier-3 towns and rural areas;
(f) whether such support services are active and accessible in Bhiwani–Mahendragarh Lok Sabha constituency; and
(g) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE
(SHRI PANKAJ CHAUDHARY)
(a) Aaykar Seva Kendras (ASKs) at various locations in the country are established on requirement basis. As on date, 457 ASKs centres have been established in different Income Tax Offices spread all over India.
CGST Commissionerate across the country have fully operational GST Seva Kendras or Helpdesks in their respective jurisdictions which extend help/guidance and address the grievances of taxpayers/ citizens.
(b) Taxpayers’ Hubs are regularly conducted in Tier II and Tier III cities with the objective of enhancing tax awareness and promoting voluntary compliance. The Department also brings out Taxpayer Information Series Brochures every year to educate all taxpayers including small traders and rural entrepreneurs. These brochures are widely circulated in every taxpayer hub, fairs and also published on Department’s website.
The Government has regularly taken various steps to provide awareness and training sessions to small traders and rural entrepreneurs to enhance their understanding of compliance requirements by organizing GST awareness drives across their jurisdictions, time to time. Further, more public awareness is created through mass media like print, tv and radios on regular basis.
(c) Yes, as per Service Delivery Standards, Citizens Charter of Income Tax Department and there is a timeline for grievance redressal of issues relating to GST Portal by GSTN.
(d) With respect to direct taxes:
The Income Tax Department has simplified filing procedure for the taxpayers in filing the ITRs by providing a pre-fill of relevant income and tax related information in ITR. The Department has provided the Annual Information Statement, Form 26AS and Taxpayer Information Statement for the taxpayer to know their transactions for the purpose of preparing and filing of the ITR from the e-filing portal. The e-filing mode is made available in Online, Offline and Excel utilities giving more choice for the users. The Department has released videos which provide step by step guide to taxpayers with respect to filing of ITR and associated queries. These videos are available in Youtube from the e-filing portal.
With respect to GST:
i. The threshold limit of annual turnover for registration under GST for entities engaged in supply of goods has been increased to Rs. 40 lakhs (other than some special category States) effective from April 1, 2019, which was initially Rs. 20 lakhs.
ii. The threshold limit of annual turnover for supply of goods under composition scheme has been increased to Rs. 1.5 crore (other than some special category States) effective from 1 st April 2019, which was initially Rs. 75 lakhs.
iii. A scheme of quarterly return filing and monthly payment (QRMP) has been introduced where small taxpayers with turnover up to Rs. 5 crores have an option to file returns on quarterly basis, instead of monthly return.
iv. To facilitate small taxpayers in making supply of goods through e-commerce operators (ECOs), the requirement of mandatory registration for intra-state supply of goods through ECOs has been conditionally waived off with effect from 01.10.2023.
v. Expeditious approval within seven working days where the applicant undergoes authentication of Aadhaar number while submitting the said application, and approval within thirty days where the applicant fails to undergo authentication of Aadhaar number or does not opt for the same.
vi. Deemed approval of application for registration where the proper officer fails to take action within the prescribed timelines.
vii. Furnishing of bank account details upto thirty days from the date of grant of registration or the date on which the details required under section 37 is due to be furnished, whichever is earlier.
viii. To facilitate and ease return filing process, an auto-generated return with editing facility is being provided to the taxpayers on the portal based on details of the outward supplies furnished by the taxpayers and their suppliers.
ix. A new option has been provided to allow the amendment of outward supplies of goods or services for current tax period.
x. UPI & IMPS has been provided as an additional mode for payment of GST to facilitate taxpayers and to further encourage digital payment.
(e) No.
(f) and (g) : One Aayakar Sewa Kendra (ASK) is functional at Narnaul in Mahendargarh District Facility for NIL filing of GSTR-1, 3B via SMS is available. Further, offline tools for facilitating taxpayers in filing of returns and refund claims in remote areas with network issues are available free of charge.
