Goods and Services Tax

Contractual GST reimbursement depends on tax-risk allocation, while statutory compliance remains unaffected by any employer-payment adjustment.
Notes
GST
GST liability on works or composite supplies remains governed by the applicable statute, whereas reimbursement of an incremental GST burden depends on the contract's allocation of tax risk. An inclusive-tax clause must be read with any change-in-law, price-adjustment, tender or award provisions to determine whether the employer owes an adjustment; GST becoming payable alone does not establish reimbursement. Contract-wise reconciliation of pre- and post-GST work may determine a revised GST-inclusive value and support a supplementary agreement where adjustment is contractually justified. Such contractual relief operates only between contractor and employer and cannot permit revised returns contrary to statute or waive statutory limitation, interest or penalties.
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Successive GST writ petitions fail when an earlier challenge was withdrawn without liberty to refile the same adjudication dispute.
Case-Laws
GST
Withdrawal of a writ petition without liberty to file afresh abandons the Article 226 remedy for the same cause of action, although it does not create res judicata. Applying the public-policy principle underlying Order XXIII Rule 1 CPC to writ proceedings, the High Court treated a later GST challenge seeking substantially identical relief against the same adjudication order as non-maintainable. Altering the grounds did not create a fresh basis for relief. The unavailed statutory appellate remedy and unexplained delay in invoking writ jurisdiction further supported dismissal; pending interlocutory applications were disposed of.
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Acquiescence to a tax demand makes voluntarily admitted liability subject to consequential interest and penalty.
Case-Laws
GST
Voluntary payment of tax demanded under an unchallenged show-cause notice alleging fraudulent transactions amounts to acquiescence in the notice and admission of its allegations. Once tax is paid without objection to the invocation of section 74, no separate finding of fraud is required for consequential interest and penalty. Payment does not permit the taxpayer to later deny that liability, and the procedure does not breach section 74(5). The interest and penalty demand therefore remains enforceable.
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Pre-trial detention in CGST prosecutions remains non-punitive, supporting bail where investigation is complete and trial is delayed.
Case-Laws
GST
Pre-trial detention in CGST prosecutions is non-punitive and serves to secure the accused's attendance at trial, subject to the presumption of innocence and the right to a speedy trial. Bail may be appropriate where investigation is complete, a complaint has been filed, no criminal antecedents or risks of absconding, witness intimidation or evidence tampering are shown, and trial completion is unlikely within a reasonable time. Parity with co-accused already released on bail may also support release. Bail conditions should secure attendance and preserve trial integrity.
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E-way bill reuse allegations require cogent proof, not vehicle-movement suspicion, invalidating detention-based tax and penalties.
Case-Laws
GST
Alleged re-use of an e-way bill and intent to evade tax require cogent evidence; toll-plaza movement records, photographs, and suspicion cannot replace proof. Where accompanying invoices, e-invoices, and e-way bills show no discrepancy in the goods' description, quantity, value, or ownership, and no independent evidence proves an earlier completed journey or delivery, the contravention remains unproved. Failure to verify material showing that a prior trip carried different goods further undermines the allegation. Detention-based tax and penalty were set aside, with refund of deposited amounts in accordance with law.
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Coercive recovery during GST searches is restrained pending scrutiny, preserving normal business operations and requiring adherence to investigation guidelines.
Case-Laws
GST
Coercive recovery during an ongoing GST inspection or search, where payment is alleged to have been obtained through pressure, may be subject to interim safeguards. Normal business operations may continue pending further consideration, while tax authorities refrain from coercive steps to discharge the alleged liability. Investigation guidelines remain applicable throughout the inspection or search, providing the framework for conduct of the inquiry and protection against pressured payment pending notice.
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Excess GST realisation alone cannot establish apartment-sale profiteering where no GST rate reduction or input tax credit benefit exists.
Case-Laws
GST
Anti-profiteering under section 171 of the CGST Act requires a benefit arising from a GST rate reduction or additional input tax credit to be passed to recipients through a commensurate price reduction. For affordable apartments launched and booked after GST commenced, the agreed price already reflected applicable GST rates and no pre-GST CENVAT credit was available for comparison with post-GST input tax credit. Differential GST realisation from purchasers does not constitute a saving or profiteering benefit under section 171. A profiteering computation founded on alleged excess GST recovery was therefore rejected, as recovery of excess GST falls outside the Tribunal's jurisdiction; the excess amount was to be refunded in accordance with law.
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GST rate reduction on cinema tickets must reach consumers despite maximum-price caps; retrospective anti-profiteering penalties cannot apply.
Case-Laws
GST
GST rate reductions on cinema admission tickets must be passed to consumers through a commensurate price reduction, even where State rules prescribe maximum ticket prices. A maximum-price cap does not prevent lower pricing. Retaining cum-tax ticket prices while increasing the base price, without cogent justification and without challenging the computation, constituted failure to pass on the tax benefit; cost and market factors were immaterial. Where ticket recipients cannot be identified, the profiteered amount, with interest, is payable in equal shares to the Central and State Consumer Welfare Funds. An anti-profiteering penalty cannot be imposed retrospectively where the penalty provision entered into force after the investigated period.
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Commensurate GST price reduction for cinema tickets overrides base-price increases where suppliers cannot prove benefits reached viewers.
Case-Laws
GST
Section 171 of the CGST Act requires suppliers to pass any GST-rate reduction to recipients through a commensurate reduction in prices. For cinema admission tickets, increased base prices and general commercial pricing considerations do not displace that obligation. A supplier must provide cogent evidence that the tax benefit reached viewers; failure to challenge the DGAP methodology or substantiate price increases supports a finding of non-passing. Non-reduction of first- and second-class ticket prices after the rate cut constituted contravention, requiring deposit of the profiteered amount with interest in consumer welfare funds; no penalty was imposed.
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Anti-profiteering computation must reflect reversed unutilised tax credit, while later-enacted penalties cannot apply to earlier non-passing periods.
Case-Laws
GST
Anti-profiteering computation for construction services must account for GST input tax credit that remained unutilised and was subsequently reversed. The additional credit benefit attributable to eligible homebuyers requires a commensurate reduction in price and must be passed on, including applicable GST, with 18% interest from collection of the excess amount until repayment. Penalty for failure to pass on the benefit does not apply to the relevant period because the penalty provision came into force only after that period ended.
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Curative refund-formula amendments can support differential input-tax-credit refunds despite earlier claims and conflicting administrative circulars.
Case-Laws
GST
Curative and clarificatory amendment to the Rule 89(5) refund formula applies retrospectively to refund or rectification applications filed within the statutory period, including differential claims for pre-amendment periods under an inverted duty structure. An administrative circular treating the amendment as prospective cannot override the statutory refund entitlement. Supplementary refund claims are maintainable despite earlier adjudication of refunds for the same tax periods, provided the differential amount is otherwise admissible and claimed within the prescribed period. Eligible differential refunds remain subject to arithmetical verification.
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Unaccounted stock taxation displaces confiscation where assessment provisions apply, leaving no standalone basis to restore a fine.
Case-Laws
GST
Unaccounted bricks and coal found during survey are to be taxed by treating the goods as supplied and applying assessment provisions, rather than through confiscation proceedings and penalty for excess stock. Where the entire confiscation order, including penalty and fine in lieu of confiscation, has been quashed and that finding remains unchallenged, no separate basis survives to maintain or restore the fine. Revenue appeals limited to restoration of the fine were therefore dismissed.
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Monetary-limit policy requires departmental GST appeals below threshold to establish a specified exception before merits review.
Case-Laws
GST
Departmental GST appeals below the prescribed monetary limit require the Revenue to identify and establish a specified exception to the binding litigation-management policy. A bare assertion that the Commissioner approved an appeal does not establish a case-specific, reasoned exercise of residual discretion or satisfy conditions governing the right of appeal. Maintainability must be determined before tax merits. Without an established exception, an appeal below the threshold is not maintainable and the underlying tax merits are not examined.
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Mandatory detention penalty timelines invalidate delayed orders, requiring consequential relief and reversal of affirming appellate orders.
Case-Laws
GST
Mandatory seven-day period for passing a detention penalty order after service of notice under section 129(3) is binding because of the term “shall”. A penalty order issued after that period violates the statutory time limit and vitiates the detention penalty proceedings. Such an order is void from inception and a nullity; an appellate order affirming it must also be set aside, with consequential relief.
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COVID-19 limitation exclusion and destination-specific e-way bills govern revisional timelines and penalties for undocumented third-party plywood deliveries.
Case-Laws
GST
COVID-19 limitation exclusion applies to judicial, quasi-judicial and departmental proceedings, and must be excluded when calculating the period for exercising revisional powers where the statutory period overlaps that exclusion. For transport compliance, an e-way bill and tax invoice must cover the actual movement and destination of goods. Documents issued after detention do not cure the absence of destination-specific documentation at interception, particularly where no evidence supports a claimed technical glitch. Such undocumented third-party unloading may be treated as a wilful contravention intended to evade tax and may attract penalty under Section 129(1).
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Mandatory detention-penalty time limits invalidate delayed orders and require release of security in transit-document discrepancy proceedings.
Case-Laws
GST
Section 129(3) of the CGST/KGST Act imposes a mandatory seven-day period, measured from service of notice, for issuing a detention-penalty order concerning a transit-document discrepancy. The term “shall” requires strict compliance because the provision authorises coercive detention and seizure; the absence of an express consequence for delay does not make the limit directory. An order passed after the prescribed period is illegal and without jurisdiction, with consequential setting aside of the penalty and appellate orders and release of the bank guarantee.
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Cinematographic-film copyright licensing: GST classification excludes information technology software, preserving regularisation and writ review for jurisdictional error.
Case-Laws
GST
Writ jurisdiction remained available despite a statutory appellate remedy because the disputed GST classification involved an apparent jurisdictional error of law without factual dispute; the non-functionality of the Tribunal when the petitions were filed also supported intervention. Licensing of copyright in cinematographic films by the original holder was classified as intellectual-property rights in goods other than information technology software: a passive audiovisual film lacks the computer-based manipulation or interactivity required for software, and its delivery method does not alter the supply's character. Pre-1 October 2021 GST regularisation at 12% on an “as is where is” basis extended to producer-to-distributor theatrical-rights licensing and could not be confined to downstream transactions, rendering the contrary classification and demands erroneous.
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CBI arrests 'absconding' IRS officer in Rs 40-lakh bribery case
GST
Dated:- 21-9-2026
PTI
New Delhi, Sep 21 (PTI) The CBI has taken the custody of “absconding” IRS officer Vinay Kumar Kantheti from Uttarakhand's Rishikesh in connection with Rs 40-lakh alleged bribe demanded to settle a GST and royalty matter involving a stone-quarrying firm in Maharashtra, officials said Monday.

In a trap operation on August 27, the CBI had apprehended Customs House Agent Narinder Rajput while allegedly accepting Rs 40 lakh on behalf of Superintendent, CGST Rakesh Kumar Sinha and Kantheti, the agency said.

The CBI had also arrested Kantheti, a 2009-batch IRS officer posted as the Additional Commissioner, CGST in Maharashtra's Raigad dist

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Advisory on use of version 3.3 of emSigner
GST
Dated:- 21-9-2026

This is an advance information to the all users – Taxpayers and Tax Officers, of GST System who use Digital Certificate Signature on the GST Portal.

A new version of emSigner (v3.3) is being made available for download for the purpose of providing compatibility with tokens (USB dongles) that are issued on or after 21-September-2026.

A. Users with valid certificates: There is no change for the users having existing valid digital certificates and their existing token (USB Dongle) are working, as of 21-Sep-2026. If your existing DSC works normally, you may continue using your current emSigner version.

If you encounter signing failures or if your certificate

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tem
Requirement

Operating system
Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit); Linux (Ubuntu 18 and above); macOS (10.6 and above)

System type
64-bit operating system

Installed RAM
8 GB and above

Storage
64 GB and above

1.2 Java

Item
Requirement

Java runtime
Java 1.8 – OpenJDK or Oracle

Availability
Java must be pre-installed; it is not bundled with the installer

Higher versions
Java 9 and above are not supported

1.3 Browser

Browser
Supported version

Internet Explorer
10.0 and above

Firefox
6.0 and above

Chrome
16.0 and above

Safari
6.0 and above

Opera
12.1 and above

Microsoft Edge
Since first version

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E-Way Bill Validity Extension Limits Excessive Penalties for Brief Post-Expiry Transport Delays When Renewal Window Recently Elapsed
Case-Laws
GST
E-way bill rules permit validity extensions in exceptional circumstances and provide a further eight-hour window after expiry to seek extension. Transport after that period may justify detention and penalty, but a brief delay in renewing the e-way bill does not necessarily warrant a 200% penalty. Where interception occurred shortly after the additional extension window, comparable decisions supported relief while recognising that the lapse could still attract a nominal sanction. The 200% penalty orders were set aside, subject to payment of a token fine and refund of the balance penalty deposit.
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Input tax credit verification requires invoice-wise reconciliation, while incorrect IGST reporting on intra-State renting does not bar credit.
Case-Laws
GST
Input tax credit claimed in GSTR-3B but not reflected in GSTR-2A requires category-wise and invoice-wise reconciliation; invoices alone or supplier default do not establish entitlement, while the entire mismatch cannot be disallowed without verification. Supplier certificates may be considered under the applicable circular but must be verified, and reverse-charge credit and tax-head or B2B-to-B2C reporting errors require independent examination. Effective opportunity of hearing is required before adjudication. Renting of immovable property is supplied where the property is located; where the supplier and property are in the same State, CGST and SGST credit remains available despite erroneous IGST reporting if tax is paid and no revenue loss arises.
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Vested appeal rights prevent retrospective pre-deposit requirements in penalty-only appeals arising from pre-amendment show-cause notices.
Case-Laws
GST
The vested right of appeal arises when the lis is instituted, and a later amendment imposing a fresh pre-deposit obligation does not apply to pending proceedings without clear legislative intent. Where a penalty-only appeal arose from a show-cause notice issued before the amended proviso took effect, the post-amendment pre-deposit requirement could not be imposed. The Registry's objection was set aside, the appeal was admitted without pre-deposit, and jurisdictional and merits issues remained open for final hearing.
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Statutory limits on GST appeal condonation prevail, while restored registrations can render departmental challenges infructuous and ineffective.
Case-Laws
GST
Section 107(4) of the GST law fixes an outer limit on an appellate authority's power to condone delay in appeals against cancellation of registration. Extraordinary writ jurisdiction cannot enlarge that statutory appellate jurisdiction; condonation beyond the prescribed maximum is legally unsustainable. Where the Department has implemented appellate directions by restoring cancelled GST registrations, it cannot seek annulment without addressing the resulting alteration of the taxpayers' legal and commercial position. The departmental appeals consequently become infructuous where no effective or workable relief remains available.
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Outsourced hospital food supply remains taxable, while unproven suppression requires ordinary demand proceedings and tax-inclusive valuation.
Case-Laws
GST
Food supplied by an independent outsourced caterer to a hospital is a separate taxable supply, not a composite healthcare supply, because the caterer contracts only to supply food and cannot rely on the healthcare-provider clarification. Reliance on that clarification, although legally incorrect, does not by itself establish fraud, wilful misstatement, or suppression with intent to evade tax; the demand must therefore proceed under the ordinary tax-demand route. Where invoices did not separately identify or collect tax, the invoiced consideration is tax-inclusive and differential tax must be recomputed using cum-tax valuation after invoice verification.
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Credit-note turnover adjustments preserve inverted-duty refunds, while ministerial re-computation does not constitute an impermissible appellate remand.
Case-Laws
GST
Credit notes for returned or rejected processed-fabric supplies are excluded from outward taxable supply turnover when calculating an inverted-duty refund of accumulated input tax credit. The identical input-output supplies clarification is confined to accumulation caused by a rate reduction on the same goods over time; it does not apply where higher-taxed chemicals and dyes are used to process fabrics taxed at a lower rate without an output-rate reduction. Once refund eligibility and computational parameters are determined, consequential re-quantification is ministerial, does not reopen the merits, and does not constitute an appellate remand.
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