By CA Surekha S. Ahuja
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) is expected to issue a comprehensive circular to streamline the filing of departmental appeals before the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) in cases involving taxpayers registered in multiple States.
The proposed framework addresses an important procedural gap that surfaced after GSTAT became operational.
Background
In major investigations by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI)—including cases involving fake Input Tax Credit (ITC), circular trading, invoice fraud, and other pan-India GST investigations—a Common Adjudicating Authority often passes a single adjudication order covering taxpayers registered in different States.
Although Section 107 of the CGST Act governs the first appellate stage and Section 112 provides for appeals before GSTAT, there has been uncertainty regarding:
- Which Commissioner should decide whether the Department should file an appeal?
- Which GSTAT Bench should hear the departmental appeal where multiple States are involved?
Proposed CBIC Framework
The forthcoming circular is expected to clarify that:
- Adjudication will continue to remain centralised through the Common Adjudicating Authority.
- After an order under Section 107 is passed, the appellate order will be uploaded on the GST portal and communicated to the Commissioner supervising the Common Adjudicating Authority.
- The Commissioner will examine the order, obtain DGGI comments wherever necessary, and forward recommendations to the jurisdictional Commissioners of all affected taxpayers.
- Each jurisdictional Commissioner will independently decide whether to file a departmental appeal under Section 112 before the GSTAT Bench having territorial jurisdiction over that taxpayer's registration.
This eliminates uncertainty regarding routing of departmental appeals through the Commissionerate supervising the Common Adjudicating Authority.
Why This Matters
The proposed framework is expected to:
- Bring uniformity in departmental appellate procedures across India.
- Reduce jurisdictional disputes and technical objections relating to departmental appeals.
- Ensure appeals are filed before the correct GSTAT Bench.
- Improve coordination in DGGI-led multi-State investigations.
- Provide greater certainty to businesses operating through multiple GST registrations.
- Strengthen procedural efficiency without disturbing centralised adjudication.
Practical Impact on Multi-State Businesses
Large business groups, manufacturers, e-commerce operators, logistics companies, and enterprises having GST registrations across several States are likely to benefit from a clear, predictable and jurisdiction-based appellate mechanism. Instead of uncertainty over the competent authority for departmental appeals, each registration will now be dealt with by its own jurisdictional Commissioner, while maintaining coordinated administration at the adjudication stage.
Key Takeaway
The proposed CBIC circular is a welcome administrative reform that aligns centralised adjudication with decentralised appellate decision-making. While it does not alter the substantive provisions of the CGST Act, it is expected to significantly reduce procedural ambiguity, improve litigation management, and promote a more efficient and consistent GST appellate process across India.
