Deeper data analytics, leveraging technology, moving away from enforcement-led and intrusive actions, tracking taxpayers who do not pay tax in cash and using invoice matching are among the measures that central and state officers have been asked to focus on to deepen the tax base under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.Following a series of process reforms announced at the 57th meeting of the GST Council last week, tax officials have also been asked to undertake granular data analysis to identify opportunities to expand the tax base. This includes closely monitoring transactions in which retail sales may be misdeclared as business-to-business (B2B) transactions to claim input tax credit (ITC), and identifying registered GST taxpayers who report no cash tax payments and instead set off their entire GST liability against eligible ITC.Several business-friendly measures announced at the Council meeting, including the introduction of a Rs 10,000 threshold for issuing showcause notices under GST, are also likely to be rolled out before April 1, 2027, the implementation date for other measures.“It is very important to look at stabilising the GST system. And that’s why rate rationalisation was undertaken last year and now the process reforms. The GST authorities have been instructed to use technology and data analytics to detect evasion and make efforts to deepen the tax base. Although we have a good number of taxpayers registered under GST, there is scope to widen the tax base and we have asked states to widen the base,” a senior official said.Also Read | GST reforms will sustain growth momentum, help face global headwinds“Businesses that are registered but showing anomalies in their GST declarations can have their transactions studied, and they can be nudged accordingly to become part of the tax system,” the official added.The technology-led GST data analytics initiative is expected to follow the approach of the Income Tax Department’s NUDGE (Non-intrusive Usage of Data to Guide and Enable) campaign, which uses risk analytics, behavioural insights and information sharing through global networks such as the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) framework to nudge taxpayers towards compliance.Invoice matching, e-invoicingGST authorities will also rely on the Invoice Management System (IMS) to match credit details between sellers and buyers. Under a proposed additional layer to prevent mismatch notices, buyers will be able to accept, reject or hold each invoice as it appears. Accepted invoices will flow into their returns.Story continues below this ad“A seller who wants to reduce something he has reported does it where the buyer will see it, so the two sides stay aligned. Much else rests on this,” the official said.Linking the input and output ledgers with the summary return would help identify fake credit as it arises, the official added.To enable this invoice-matching mechanism, GST authorities will also introduce electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) as a step before the matching process. E-invoicing for business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions will be introduced from April 1, 2027, the official said, adding that the GST Network will provide the necessary support system to states for the transition.Under the existing GST e-Invoice System, businesses are required to upload B2B invoices to a government-approved Invoice Registration Portal (IRP) for validation and the generation of a unique Invoice Reference Number (IRN) and a QR code.E-way bill interceptionStory continues below this adGST authorities are also expecting smoother movement of goods following the Council’s recent decision to allow vehicles to be stopped only by tax officers from the state of the supplier or recipient, and only on the basis of “specific intelligence” and due authorisation.The measure was initially proposed only for supplier states. However, following detailed discussions at the Council meeting, recipient states were also included at the request of some states, the official said.“This measure has removed the legitimacy of stopping vehicles carrying goods randomly by any state. Now, if goods moving from Delhi to Punjab get stopped in Haryana, then the legitimacy of stopping the vehicle in Haryana can be questioned legally by the business,” the official said.