Deadline won't be extended, file GSTR-3B return before Diwali: Govt

Having ruled out further extension of the date for filing Goods and Services Tax Returns (GSTR), the government on Friday said the October 20 deadline to file the GSTR-3B would not be extended.

It also said that real estate, a major area of tax evasion and black money generation, could soon be brought under GST.

"No extension of time will be given for filing GSTR-3B for September 2017. Please file this by October 20, 2017," the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) said through notices issued in several national dailies.

"Please file your return at the earliest (positively before Diwali)," CBEC said, referring to the major festival coming up next week, which is also observed as the start of the accounting year by many in the trading community.

The GSTR-3B return is a self-assessment by businesses of their sale and purchases during the period concerned.

"The one sector in India where maximum amount of tax evasion and cash generation takes place and which is still outside GST is real estate. Some of the states have been pressing for it.

"I personally believe that there is a strong case to bring real estate into the GST," Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday, while delivering the Annual Mahindra Lecture at Harvard University in the US.

He said, the issue would be taken up at the next meeting of the GST Council scheduled for November 9.

Petroleum products, alcohol and real estate are three sectors which are still outside the GST since several states are opposing their inclusion in the new pan-India indirect tax regime.