Be it a startup or a large corporation, the costs of running a business can weigh heavily on any entrepreneur. In particular, taxation and its various types of class and kind applicable for businesses, is a common source of misery across industries. With the impact of GST that is Goods and Services Tax, brought into effect from 2017, however, these taxation woes have been largely put to rest.

While it is mandatory for various businesses to get certified with GST, it is still a voluntary registration process for certain smaller businesses. As a small business owner, it might seem easier and more convenient to skip the certification process altogether, particularly since it is optional. However, there are various reasons why getting your business, no matter how small, GST certified is a step in the right direction. Let us take a closer look:

Advantages of Being GST Certified
The impact of GST cannot be discounted, as it has helped transform the taxation scenario for businesses all over the country. Here are five ways in which your business too can be benefited by being certified with GST:

1. Taxation becomes simpler:
As mentioned before, the primary drive of the GST initiative is to make taxation simpler and more convenient for business owners. Before GST, states and local governments had a considerable amount of individual control over taxation.

This meant that each state could levy their own rates and types of taxes, even indirect ones. These included a bevy of tax types such as VAT, Central Sales Tax, Excise and so on. While this system was profitable to each state, it was inconvenient for business owners across the nation. With the GST, you as a business owner only need to file for a single tax, which is led by the Central Tax Authority that is the GST Council.

2. Taxation becomes cost-effective:
Cascading taxes, also known as tax on tax, has been a huge issue plaguing Indian businesses for decades. Due to the various applicable taxes charged, the cascading tax effect was a financial concern for both businesses and end consumers.

However, with GST, all these taxes have been unified under one tax umbrella, thereby making taxation financially simpler and more cost-effective. Moreover, it comes with an input tax credit, or ITC structure. The GST you pay to your vendors for your business can be subtracted from the amount you owe to the government in taxes. Ultimately, your tax is lowered and you only need to pay GST on the value addition by your business.

3. Increased business opportunities:
Thanks to GST, businesses no longer have to navigate the inconvenience of state-wise taxation systems. The impact of GST is such that as a GST certified business, you can operate in multiple states and save taxes while doing it. There are increased opportunities for expanding your customer base as well as exploring new avenues for your company across the country. These opportunities provided by GST can really help your bottom line and advance your business goals.

One of your other business goals might also be to raise more capital. A cost-effective and convenient method of raising capital for your business is to avail a reliable business loan with excellent benefits. The Bajaj Finance business loan available on Finserv MARKETS, for example, provides you the opportunity to avail loan amounts of up to Rs. 30 lakhs payable in easy EMIs over 1 to 5 years.

4. Establish your business’ presence:
Registering for GST might be voluntary for you as a small business owner and you might choose to not avail the option at all. However, it is important to consider the competitiveness of your industry as well as the well-established presence of your various competitors.

Therefore, registering with GST as a business might be a good move to establish your presence in your market. Not only does registering as a GST certified business make your taxation woes easier, but also sends a message of credibility to your clients and vendors.

Make availing business loans easier:
There is also a significant impact of GST on what forms the backbone of various businesses across the country: business loans. As mentioned before, GST certified businesses help establish your presence as a credible business. It also clarifies your position as a GST compliant business, meaning you pay your due taxes and follow all centralized GST-related guidelines.

This puts you in an excellent place when you seek business loans for your company from financial institutions. In this way, you can certainly make the most of GST for business loan application in the future and expand your business goals.

The key is, of course, to find a reputable lender with business loan options that are accompanied by a bevy of benefits. To this end Business Loan is the loan of choice of business owners nationwide. They offer customized business loan options up to Rs. 30 lakhs for startups as well as for SME and MSME capital requirements.

Moreover, business loan at few financial institutions requires no collateral and no guarantor, so you can rest easy. These business loans also require just minimal documentation, are approved in 3 minutes and disbursed within 24 hours. With a satisfied customer base of over 100 million customers, you can rest assured that your business needs will be fulfilled with this multifaceted business loan.

By Eddy Z

Eddy is the editorial columnist in Business Fundas, and oversees partner relationships. He posts articles of partners on various topics related to strategy, marketing, supply chain, technology management, social media, e-business, finance, economics and operations management. The articles posted are copyrighted under a Creative Commons unported license 4.0. To contact him, please direct your emails to [email protected].