Prashant Ganti, Head of Product Management, Global Accounting, Compliance and Payroll Solutions, Zoho shares his insights on GST and its impact on Zoho’s business, SME’s and startups
We see India being a key market for us in the coming days and months ahead. Today, there is about 80-85 lakh registered businesses in India and more to be registered for GST in the coming years. The proliferation of smartphones, broadband connectivity, and the new GST regime is a great opportunity for businesses to move their accounting and other operations online. Transitioning to the new GST regime will be a lot easier for the business with the right technology partner.
Zoho’s GST Ready accounting software, Zoho Books is built for Indian businesses. The accounting app is also tightly integrated with the other Zoho products so the finance data is no more in silo but can be accessed by other functions as desired.
Apart from launching the GST ready suite, we’ve also been spreading GST awareness among the SME community. We just completed our Pan India GST unlocked events where we brought in GST experts to address GST concerns from business owners. We’ve also set up an exclusive GST Helpline for Indian businesses. With GST becoming a reality, businesses are now looking for a solution that’s compliant and cost effective and Zoho has been helping them with both.
Our products are built and designed for every business needs. India is a big market for us and we understand SMEs and their technology needs better than others. Until now, the complex Indian tax structure had made it hard for businesses to operate effectively. But, this is no longer the case, as GST will make business operations a lot more efficient. Right from the increase in the threshold for GSTIN registration to claiming input tax credit, start-ups gain to benefit a lot under the tax regime. The majority of the start-ups seems to be in the services sector. Under GST, they will be able to set off their VAT paid on purchases with the service tax on their sales. Earlier this wasn’t possible.
Further with GST, there’s a need to move online as every process is online; right from registration, to return filing, and to tax payments. This is where adopting modern technology plays a crucial role in keeping businesses compliant. Take the case of invoicing, for example. With Zoho Books, businesses can continue generating invoices like they used to and the system ensures that the invoices contain all key details needed for filing purpose.