E-Way Bill Rollout Postponed After IT Glitches

The e-way bill registration portal crashed moments after its launch, because it was unprepared for the load.

The government, on 1 February deferred the implementation of the requirement to carry e-permits for inter- state transportation of goods following technical glitches.

GST provision requiring transporters to carry an electronic waybill or e-way bill when moving goods between states was to be implemented from 1 February to check rampant tax evasion.

After implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) from 1 July 2017, the requirement of carrying e-way bill was postponed pending IT network readiness.

In view of difficulties faced by the trade in generating e-way bill due to initial technological glitches, it has been decided to extend the trial phase for generation of e-way bill, both for inter and intra state movement of goods. It'll be applicable from a date to be notified

— CBEC (@CBEC_India) February 1, 2018

The GST Network, the company developing the I-T backbone for the new indirect tax regime, had been conducting trial runs for the e-way bill system since 17 January 2018, during which a whopping 2.84 lakh such permits were issued on the portal.

However, with the formal launch of the e-way bill on 1 February, the same day the Finance Minister presented the 2018-19 Union Budget, the system witnessed technical glitches.

Sources said the along with inter-state e-way bill generation by all states, 17 states also started generating such permits for intra-state movement of goods, which created pressure on the portal.

Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) Chairperson Vanaja Sarna held a review meeting on 1 February to discuss streamlining the system.

The all-powerful GST Council had on 16 December 2017 decided to implement the e-way bill mechanism for intra-state movement of goods from 1 June and from 1 February for inter-state movement.

What Are E-Way Bills?

An e-way bill is an electronic way bill for movement of goods which can be generated on the GSTN (common portal).

Movement of goods of more than Rs 50,000 in value cannot be made by a registered person without an e-way bill.

The e-way bill can also be generated or cancelled through SMS. When an e-way bill is generated, a unique e-way bill number (EBN) is allocated and is available to the supplier, recipient, and the transporter.

Transporters, who want to generate e-way bill, can visit the e-way bill portal and register themselves by giving the GSTIN. Transporters, who are not registered under GST, can enrol themselves under e-way bill system by providing their PAN or Aadhaar to generate the e-way bill.

E-way bills were proposed to bring uniformity across the states for seamless inter-state movement of goods.

(With inputs from PTI)