The Supreme Court (SC) has directed the Centre and the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council to issue advisory to states for implementing the Document Identification Number (DIN) for all communication sent by GST officers to taxpayers.
- A DIN is a 20-digit identification code that is affixed to every communication sent to taxpayers by the government.
- The move will bring in further transparency and accountability in the indirect tax administration and ensure that taxpayers are not harassed.
- The central government had in October 2019 implemented electronic generation of Document Identification Number (DIN) for all communications made by income tax officers to taxpayers.
- At present, DIN is mandatory for every type of communication with the I-T department, be it a notice, a letter, an order, a summon, or any other correspondence. Without it, the document and communication will be deemed invalid.
- The apex court further said it will bring in transparency and accountability in the indirect tax administration, which are so vital for efficient governance.
- The court noted that the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the governing body for direct taxes had implemented DIN on all communications made by Income tax officers in 2019 to ensure better transparency.
- However, in GST, only two states — Karnataka and Kerala —have implemented the system.
