GST rate cuts hit Goa: Revenue rises just 1% despite enforcement drive

NT Reporter

Panaji

Goa registered a marginal rise of just 1 per cent in post-state Goods and Services Tax (SGST) settlement from the Centre during 2025-26, according to figures released by the finance ministry on Wednesday.

The net SGST revenue accrued to the state for the year ending March 31, 2026, amounted to Rs 4,575 crore, compared to Rs 4,515 crore in 2024-25.

A senior government official said the near-stagnant revenue was due to tax rate cuts implemented in September last year.

“We were expecting the GST collection to come down significantly in 2025–26 due to the rate cuts. However, an emphasis on compliance and strict enforcement of return filing by department officials resulted in the collection remaining steady. Since the month of December, tax officials have been on an overdrive to prevent evasion,” he said.

According to the office of the Commissioner of Commercial Tax, the overall business performance of Goan companies and commercial establishments was satisfactory in 2025–26. However, GST revenues were adversely affected by the rationalisation of rates undertaken by the Union government.

As per monthly data, Goa received Rs 396 crore in post-SGST settlement for March 2026, as against
Rs 378 crore in March 2025, reflecting a rise of 5 per cent. The pre-settlement SGST during the month stood at Rs 243 crore, compared to Rs 229 crore in March 2025.

Post-settlement SGST refers to the actual revenue retained by the destination state, where goods or services are consumed, after the Centre settles the IGST collected on inter-state sales. It accounts for input tax credit and other refunds and reflects the actual GST revenue of the respective state.

New tax slabs came into effect from September 22 last year, as the Centre reduced GST slabs to two—5 per cent and 18 per cent—from the earlier four slabs. The Centre also simplified the GSTN registration system for small dealers and e-commerce suppliers. The reforms benefited a wide range of goods, including food items, consumer goods, medicines, cars and two-wheelers.

Goa has approximately 45,000 GST payers. Each month, around 200 new taxpayers are added to the GSTN portal, while about 50 drop out due to reasons such as closure of businesses.