The Goods and Services Tax (GST) ecosystem, the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has announced upcoming enhancements to the GST system set to benefit millions of taxpayers across India. The improvements are particularly focused on taxpayers who interact with the GST system using Application Suvidha Providers (ASPs).

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ASPs, which facilitate GST compliance and filing for businesses, do so via access to the GST system through officially authorised Application Programming Interface (API) partners, known as GST Suvidha Providers (GSPs). GSPs act as intermediaries, ensuring safe and regulated access to taxpayer data via secured APIs. Recognizing the growing importance of data protection, GSTN is now implementing new mechanisms to ensure taxpayers have greater control and awareness whenever their data is accessed by these third-party providers.

Key Enhancements Introduced

Foremost among the enhancements is the introduction of a real-time notification system. Going forward, taxpayers will receive email and SMS alerts every time an ASP successfully obtains data access through an OTP-based consent process on the GST system. The designated authorised signatory for the taxpayer will be notified of the following details whenever such access is granted:

Name of the ASP and the underlying GSP involved

Date and time the OTP consent was provided

Validity period for which the access consent is valid

This move is expected to provide immediate transparency, alerting taxpayers to all data accesses and enabling them to monitor interactions with their GST data closely.

In addition, the GST Common Portal is being upgraded to offer taxpayers a comprehensive view of both current and historical data accesses granted to ASPs and GSPs. Importantly, taxpayers will be empowered to proactively manage data access by being able to revoke any active consent directly from their GST dashboard.