Biometric Check, Geo-Tagging To Become Mandatory For New GST Registrations

The Central Board for Indirect Taxes will soon strengthen its registration verification for new Goods and Services Tax registrants through biometric identity authentication and geo-tagging to verify place of business, according to CBIC Chairman Vivek Johri.

Speaking to media, Johri added that even existing taxpayers who have been identified as 'risky' could be subjected to further biometric verification.

"We have been using OTP-based authentication previously. Now we are going to go for biometric authentication also. The person in suspicious cases may be asked to go to an Aadhaar centre to have his biometric verified so that we are absolutely certain that this is the person whose identity is being produced," Johri told media persons.

The GST authorities are currently running a pilot on biometric verification and geo-tagging physical addresses in 2-3 states to ensure the necessary infrastructure is available.

Geotagging would ensure that the physical address is available to the department for all time to come and the person cannot deny disclosing it later, Johri explained.

Analytics is helping the department track down fake entities and watch the behavious of new entities. "We are looking at whether registration verification needs to be strengthened further," he said.

A second pattern noted by the department is the generation and circulation of fake credit for which the department has already tightened provisions, Johri explained.