EVALUATING GST IMPLEMENTATION: INSIGHTS INTO TAX PROFESSIONALS' UNDERSTANDING, CHALLENGES, AND PERCEPTIONS IN MADHYA PRADESH AND CHHATTISGARH

Goods and Services Tax (GST) has permanently changed the taxation landscape in India. Since GST compliance depends on them, the roles and responsibilities of tax professionals have changed. The study evaluated the understanding of GST among tax professionals, examined the challenges they face under the GST system, and assessed how their understanding and challenges influence their overall perception of GST. For this purpose, data was collected from 120 tax professionals in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh using a structured questionnaire and were analyzed using percentages, one-sample t-test, and multiple regression analysis. It was found that 69.20% of tax professionals have high levels of understanding for input tax credit and 93.30% have high level of understanding of reverse charge mechanism and 69.10% have moderate understanding of GST litigation matters and many professionals have cited the complexity of client queries (80%), frequent amendments (70.80%), and increased workload (36.60%) as key obstacles. The study also dives further to assess how the depth of understanding and the nature of the challenge drive the tax professionals’ perception towards GST, in terms of their perception of GST’s efficiency or trust in the system. Multiple regression analysis (R²=0.614) revealed that challenges faced (?=0.661) had a stronger influence on professionals' perceptions than their understanding levels (?=0.255). The paper suggests that GST implementation and reception would be improved through additional training, technological assistance, and policy clarification. Technological tools and streamlined processes could improve efficiency for tax professionals and their perception.