NOTIFICATIONS

Notification No. Subject
Notification No.14/2021-Central Tax, dt. 01.05.2021 Seeks to extend specified compliances falling between 15.04.2021 to 30.05.2021 till 31.05.2021 in exercise of powers under section 168A of CGST Act
Notification No. 46/2020-Central Tax dt. 09.06.2020 Seeks to extend period to pass order under Section 54(7) of CGST Act.
Notification No. 3/2019-Compensation Cess (Rate) dt. 30.09.2019 Seeks to disallow the refund of compensation cess in case of inverted duty structure for tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes
Notification No. 20/2018-Central Tax (Rate), dt. 26.07.2018 Extension of due date for filing of application for refund under section 55 by notified agencies
Notification No. 44/2017-Central Tax (Rate), dt. 14.11.2017

Expand the List of supply where no refund of unutilized ITC is allowed

Notification No. 49/2017-Central Tax dt. 18.10.2017 Notifies the evidences produced for claiming refund by the supplier of deemed export i.e. (i) acknowledgment by PO or tax invoice duly signed by recipient of EOU. (II) undertaking by recipient that no ITC has been availed by him and undertaking that he shall not claimed refund in respect of such supplies.
Notification No. 11/2017-Integrated Tax dt. 13.10.2017 Seeks to cross-empower State Tax officers who are authorized to be the proper officers for the purposes of section 54
Notification No. 39/2017-Central Tax dt. 13.10.2017 Seeks to cross-empower State Tax officers who are authorized to be the proper officers for the purposes of section 54 or section 55 of the said Acts shall act as PO for processing and grant of refund under CGST Act.
Notification No. 37/2017-Central Tax dt. 04.10.2017 Notification on extension of facility of LUT to all exporters issued.
Notification No. 15/2017-Central Tax (Rate), dt. 28.06.2017 Notify that supplies relating to Construction services specified in sub-item (b) of item 5 of Schedule II is not eligible for refund of unutilized ITC under CGST Act
Notification No. 05/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dt. 28.06.2017 Notifies supplies of goods with HSN in respect of which no refund of unutilised input tax credit shall be allowed under section 54 (3)
Notification No. 06/2017-Integrated Tax dt. 28.06.2017 Prescribe rate of interest on delay payment of tax u/s 50(1) @18% , undue and excess claim of ITC or undue or excess reduction in Output Tax liab u/s 50(3) @ 24%, where refund is withheld @6 u/s 54(12) ,refund of tax u/s 56 and refund arise on order of AA or AT and not paid wit in 60 days @ 9%
Notification No. 05/2017-Integrated Tax (Rate) dt. 28.06.2017 Supplies of goods in respect of which no refund of unutilised input tax credit shall be allowed
Notification No. 13/2017-Central Tax, dt. 28.06.2017 Prescribe rate of interest on delay payment of tax u/s 50(1) @18% , undue and excess claim of ITC or undue or excess reduction in Output Tax liab u/s 50(3) @ 24%, where refund is withheld @6 u/s 54(12) ,refund of tax u/s 56 and refund arise on order of AA or AT and not paid wit in 60 days @ 9%

CIRCULAR

Circular No. Subject
Circular No. 168/24/2021 - GST dt. 30.12.2021 Mechanism for filing of refund claim by the taxpayers registered in erstwhile Union Territory of Daman & Diu for period prior to merger with U.T. of Dadra & Nagar Haveli

PORTAL RELATED UPDATES

Date Subject
10.06.2025 System Validation for Filing of Refund Applications on GST Portal for QRMP Taxpayers
08.05.2025 Updates in Refund Filing Process for Recipients of Deemed Export
08.05.2025 Updates in Refund Filing Process for various refund categories

CIRCULARS

Circular No. Subject
Circular No. 197/09/2023-GST dt.17.07.2023 Clarification on refund-related issues
Circular No. 181/13/2022-GST dt.10.11.2022 Clarification on refund related issues
Circular No. 147/03/2021-GST dt.12.03.2021 Clarification on refund related issues
Circular No.05/2021-Customs dt.17.02.2021 IGST refunds on exports-extension in SB005 alternate mechanism
Circular No.04/2021-Customs dt.16.02.2021 Extension of Board's Circular No. 12/2018-Customs dated 29.05.2018 for sanction of pending IGST refund claims where the records have not been transmitted to ICEGATE due to GSTR-1 and GSTR- 3B mismatch error
Circular No. 125/44/2019-GST dt. 18.11.2019 Seeks to clarify the fully electronic refund process through FORM GST RFD-01 and single disbursement.
Circular No.26/2018-Customs dt.28.08.2019 -IGST Export refunds- extension in SB005 alternate mechanism and revised processing in certain cases including disbursal of Compensation cess
Circular No. 110/29/2019-GST dt.03.10.2019 Eligibility to file a refund application in FORM GST RFD-01 for a period and category under which a NIL refund application has already been filed.
Circular No. 104/23/2019-GST dt.28.06.2019 Processing of refund applications in FORM GST RFD-01A submitted by taxpayers wrongly mapped on the  common portal.
Circular No. 94/13/2019-GST dt.28.03.2019 Clarifications on refund related issues under GST.

Circular No.01/2019-Customs dt.02.01.2019

IGST Export Refunds - resolution of errors
Circular No.79/53/2018-GST, dt.31.12.2018 Clarification on refund related issues
Circular No.75/2018-GST dt.27.12.2018 Guidelines for processing of applications for financial assistance under the Central Sector Scheme named Seva Bhoj Yojna of the Ministry of Culture
Circular No.70/2018-GST dt.26.10.2018 (Para 3) Clarification on certain issues related to refund.
Circular No.40/2018-Customs dt.24.10.2018 IGST Export Refunds  extension in SB005 alternate mechanism and revised processing in certain cases including disbursal of compensation Cess
Circular No.33/2018-Customs dt.19.09.2018 Sanction of pending IGST refund claims where the records have not been transmitted from GSTN to DG (System).
Circular No.59/33/2018-GST dt.04.09.2018 Clarification on refund related issues.
Circular No.56/30/2018-GST dt.24.08.2018 Clarification regarding removal of restriction of refund of accumulated ITC on fabrics
Circular No.21/2018-Customs dt.18.07.2018 Refund of IGST on export of Goods on payment of duty-Setting up of Help Desks.
Circular No.48/22/2018-GST dt.14.06.2018 Clarifications of certain issues under GST
Circular No.45/19/2018-GST dt.30.05.2018 Clarifications on refund related issues
Circular No.40/14/2018-GST dt.06.04.2018 Clarification on issues related to furnishing of Bond/Letter of Undertaking for exports
Circular No.08/2018-Customs dt.23.03.2018 Refund of IGST on Export-Extension of date in SB005 alternate mechanism cases & clarifications in other cases
Circular No.06/2018-Customs dt.16.03.2018 Refund of IGST un Export-EGM Error related cases
Circular No.37/11/2018-GST dt.15.03.2018 Clarifications on exports related refund issues
Circular No.05/2018-Customs dt.23.02.2018 Refund of IGST on Export-Invoice mis-match Cases-Alternative Mechanism with Officer Interface.
Circular No.24/24/2017-GST dt.21.12.2017 Manual filing and processing of refund claims on account of inverted duty structure, deemed exports and excess balance in electronic cash ledger
Circular No.18/18/2017-GST dt.16.11.2017 Refund of unutilized input tax credit of GST paid on inputs in respect of exporters of fabrics.
Circular No.17/17/2017-GST dt.15.11.2017 Manual filing and processing of refund claims in respect of zero-rated supplies
Circular No.3/3/2017-GST dt.05.07.2017 Proper officer relating to provisions other than Registration and Composition under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017

INSTRUCTIONS

Instruction No. Subject
Instruction No. 04/2022-GST dt. 28.11.2022 Manner of processing and sanction of IGST refunds, withheld in terms of clause (c) of sub-rule (4) of rule 96, transmitted to the jurisdictional GST authorities under sub-rule (5A) of rule 96 of the CGST Rules, 2017.

PRESS RELEASE

Date

Subject

30.05.2018 Press Release on Corrigendum to Circular No. 45/19/2018-GST
20.06.2019 Press Release on IGST refunds to the exporters for taking further necessary action
22.12.2018 Press Release on recommendations regarding returns made during 31st Meeting of the GST Council
03.12.2018 Press Release  on Status of GST refunds
08.11.2018 Press Release on Disposal of refunds
12.10.2018 Press Release by CBIC regarding GST refunds
01.08.2018 Press Release on Rs 54,378 Crores of Refunds Processed Under GST during the refund fortnight
12.06.2018 Press Release on Extension of Special Refund Fortnight till 16.6.2018
28.03.2018 Press Release on  Refund Fortnight
16.03.2018 Press Release on GST Export Refunds
10.03.2018 Press Release on exporter extension v1.0 in GST Council meeting held on 10.03.2018
29.11.2017 CBEC Press Release dt 29.11.2017 on -- "GST Refund"

COMMUNITY INSIGHTS

Topic

Publish Date

Pre-Deposit Refund Delayed? Courts Say That's Unconstitutional

"Justice delayed is justice denied," they say. But what if it's delayed not by courts—but by portals, procedural rigidity, and a misinterpretation of the word "may"? This is the story of a taxpayer who fulfilled every requirement under the law, won their appeal fair and square, and yet had to knock on the doors of the High Court just to get back what was rightfully theirs—a statutory pre-deposit................... Read More

05.06.2025

GST Refund Filing Just Got Simpler: Here's What You Need to Know

In an effort to reduce compliance hassles and make the refund process smoother, the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) rolled out key changes via advisory on 8th May 2025. These updates are especially important for exporters, SEZ suppliers, and those involved in deemed exports - whether as suppliers or recipients. On 8th May 2025, GSTN issued a detailed advisory outlining a major shift in refund processing logic.................... Read More

03.06.2025

Zero-Rated Supply: Bond/LUT or IGST-What’s Right for You?

Exports are the lifeblood of any growing economy and India’s GST regime gives them a major boost through zero-rating. Whether you're shipping goods overseas or providing services to foreign clients, GST ensures that taxes don't eat into your margins. That’s where Section 16 of the IGST Act steps in. But here’s the catch: exporters have to choose between two refund routes-and the choice isn’t always obvious...................... Read More

20.05.2025

GST Refund for Unregistered Persons: Who Can Claim?

Under GST law, whenever any excess tax is paid by the registered person, he can apply for refund of the same. Have you ever thought about the claim of refund by the person who is not even registered under GST. This article explores when and how an unregistered person can claim a refund under the GST regime Recommendation by the Council Meeting: Earlier there was no procedure for claim of refund of tax borne by the.................... Read More

 

19.04.2025

Amount Available in Cash Ledger- How to claim Refund

The electronic cash ledger is maintained in FORM GST PMT-05 on the common portal for crediting the amount deposited and debiting the payment therefrom towards tax, interest, penalty, fee or any other amount. It can be accessed under the post-login mode on the GST portal under Services > Ledgers > Electronic Cash Ledger. Sometimes the amount available in the electronic cash ledger is not fully utilised for the payment of tax..................... Read More

07.03.2025

Master the GST Refund Process: Secure What’s Rightfully Yours

Running a business comes with its fair share of challenges, and managing taxes is undoubtedly one of them. Imagine this: you’ve paid excess GST, and that money could be working for your business, yet it’s stuck in the system. The good news? GST refunds are designed to give you relief, ensuring your funds flow back to where they belong-your pocket. Navigating the refund process may seem daunting at first, but with the right guidance..................... Read More

26.01.2025

 

CASE LAW

Authority

One liner

2025(04)LCX0432

Madhya Pradesh High Court

Ashirwad Inds.

Non-service of notice vitiates the appellate order; natural justice must be upheld.
2025(04)LCX0196

Madras High Court

Prakash Impex

Refund claim should be considered in view of representation dated 03.10.2022 filed by the assessee
2025(04)LCX0128

Jharkhand High Court

Tata Steel Ltd

Refund rejection and appellate orders based on grounds that are not supported by section 54 of CGST Act, Rule 89(2) of CGST Rules and Circular 125/44/2019-GST, were quashed
2025(04)LCX0101

Andhra Pradesh High Court

Alstom Transport India Limited

Assessee being the registered person in GST, entitled to refund of unutilized ITC arising out of IGST paid on export of services as non-mention of the categories of supply in the application form cannot preclude grant of refund.
2025(04)LCX0093

Hyderabad Tribunal

Aurobindo Pharma Ltd.

IGST paid manually via TR6 challan due to short payment of CVD on imported goods is not eligible for refund as Section 142(3) of the CGST Act does not grant a vested right to refund of duties like CVD and SAD when these have been paid due to non-fulfillment of export obligations
 
2025(02)LCX0366

Delhi High Court

Truth Fashion

Mere decision taken by commissioner to assail a refund order would not qualify Section 54(11) of CGST Act and cannot ipso facto or automatically result in the principal order being placed in abeyance.
2025(02)LCX0357

Gujarat High Court

Patanjali Foods Limited

Court struck down para 2 of the Circular No. 181/13/2022-GST dated 10.11.2022 as discriminatory and ultra vires, holding that the assessee's refund application, filed within the statutory period, cannot be denied due to the notification's prospective effect.
2025(01)LCX0491

Andhra Pradesh High Court

Priyanka Refineries Pvt. Ltd.

Court struck down the circular no. 181/13/2022-GST, because it wrongly restricted refund applications for ITC, and clarified that such applications could still be made u/s 54 of the CGST Act
2024(10)LCX0396

Gujarat High Court

Ascent Meditech Ltd.

Amendment to Rule 89(5) of the GST Act is clarificatory in nature and applicable retrospectively, allowing for refunds to be claimed by assessees who filed applications within the prescribed two-year period.
2024(08)LCX0507

Karnataka High Court

ITD Cemindia JV

Refund for unutilized ITC was allowed, as Metro-related works contracts falls under clause 6(a) of Schedule II of the CGST Act
2024(09)LCX0563

Karnataka High Court

Amazon Development Centre India Private Limited

The court correctly applied the IGST Act and CBIC Circular to classify the services as export, not intermediary.
 
2024(03)LCX0288

Kerala High Court

M Trans Corporation

Assessee claimed ITC in wrong head, did not get refund of such ITC, as application is not filed within the period of two years from the last date of filing the returns for the relevant year.
2024(01)LCX0544

Gujarat High Court

Gujarat State Police Housing Corporation Limited

HC ruled a refund claim for tax paid under a mistake of law can be processed, despite being filed after the two-year limit prescribed u/s 54of the GST Act
2024(01)LCX0328

Calcutta High Court

Sunil Kumar Poddar

If a tax payer possesses the valid shipping bills, but for some reason may not have been able to upload the same in Form GSTR 1 at the time of claiming refund, the law should not be so rigid so as not to permit the claimant to rectify the mistake that has been committed inadvertently.
2024(01)LCX0275

Kerala High Court

Malabar Fuel Corporation

Refund of credit accumulated to a dealer as a result of higher tax on inputs than the output supplies, even when the input and output supplies are one and the same
2024(01)LCX0172

Madras High Court

Tulip Nilgiris Exports Private Limited

Assessee can club refund claims pertaining to more than one financial year.
2024(01)LCX0129

Madras High Court

VSM Weavess India Private Limited

Refund claim for zero rated supplies does not disentitle the assessee from claiming a refund for unutilized ITC arising from the inverted duty structure.
2023(12)LCX0012

Delhi High Court

Grapes Digital Pvt. Ltd

 
2023(05)LCX0032

Delhi High Court

Alex Tour And Travel Private Limited

Revenue can not ignore an order passed by the appellate authority on the ground that it proposes to appeal the said order

2022(02)LCX0052

Gujarat High Court

MESSERS FILATEX INDIA LTD

 

2022(01)LCX0030

Delhi High Court

National Internet Exchange of India

 

2022(01)LCX0127

Bombay High Court

R. K. Copper and Alloy LLP

 

2022(03)LCX0193

Calcutta High Court

Shivaco Associates & Anr.

Refund of unutilized ITC on inverted duty structure allowed even input and output supply is same irrespective of circular 135/05/2020.

2021(01)LCX0103

Rajasthan High Court

Mega Jewels Private Limited

 

2021(02)LCX0111

Allahabad High Court

Bushrah Export House

Refund cannot be withheld without communicating the reasons in Part B of FORM GST RD-07 u/s 54(7) read with Rule 92(2)

2021(02)LCX0198

Karnataka High Court

Asiatic Clinical Research Pvt. Ltd 


2021(08)LCX0076

Jharkhand High Court

Prakash Mica Exports Private Limited

 

2021(08)LCX0182

Madras High Court

Platinum Holdings Private Limited

Section 54 permits any entity to seek a refund of taxes, including an SEZ

2021(09)LCX0011

Supreme Court

VKC Footsteps India Pvt. Ltd

Explanation (a) to Rule 89 is not ultra vires to Section 54(3).

2021(11)LCX0073

Bombay High Court

Laxmi Organic Industries Ltd.

Circular 125/44/201 cannot affect or control the statutory rule, i.e., rule 97A so far as it creates a condition that the refund application has to be filed online only

2020(12)LCX0234

Gujarat High Court

Comsol Energy Private Limited

Refund of IGST paid on ocean freight under RCM is allowed with 6% interest stating that the statutory time limit u/s 54 of the CGST Act does not apply to refunds of duty paid under mistake of law in view of section 17 of limitation Act and Article 265 of the Constitution of India.

2020(11)LCX0093

Sikkim  High Court

Sun Pharma Laboratories Limited

Appellant authority to grant an opportunity to petitioner as to why refund should be allowed .

2020(09)LCX0058

Madras High Court

Tvl. Transtonnelstroy Afcons Joint venture

Restriction u/r 89(5) for refund of ITC of input services is not violatig article 14 of constitution.

2020(07)LCX0014

Delhi High Court

Medical Burea

Matter remanded for denial of refund of ITC under Section 54(3) CGST for goods exported through Foreign Post Offices

2020(07)LCX0013

Delhi High Court

Ess Aar Automotive Pvt. Ltd.

Payment of interest in accordance with Section 56 and Rule 94 as well as para 34 of Circular No.125/44/2019-GST dated 18th November, 2019

2020(03)LCX0144

Gujarat High Court

Britannia Industries Limited

SEZ entitled to claim refund of the IGST lying in the Electronic Credit Ledger as there is no specific supplier who can claim the refund under the provisions of the CGST Act and the CGST Rules as ITC is distributed by the ISD

2020(11)LCX0095

Punjab and Haryana High Court

Vinod Oil and General Mills

HC directs to process refund application which was on hold due to unavoidable reasons.

2019(03)LCX0031

Kerala high Court

Gireesh Babu Alambadan

Directed to take a decision on request for refund of CGST and SGST where paid in place of IGST within a period of one week

2019(03)LCX0026

Punjab High Court

Datawind Innovations Pvt. Ltd.

Competent Authority directed to take action on refund applications but no action has so far been taken

2018(05)LCX0035

Gujarat High Court

Garden Silk Mills Ltd

Refund claim after removing all deficiencies rejected only on the ground that the fresh application was not filed is unsustainable

2018(06)LCX0057

Delhi High Court

Bharti Airtel Ltd.

 

2018(06)LCX0056

Gujarat High Court

Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Difficulties faced in receiving refunds of the GST upon export even in absence of any error or mismatch in the dealer's application for the refund and the accompanying documents

2018(09)LCX0030

Gujarat High Court

Siddharth Ganpatraj Chowdhury

Challenge that Rule 89(5) of the CGST Rules, 2017 as amended to the extent it denies grant of refund of unutilized tax credit in respect of tax paid on input services is ultra vires to the Constitution of India and provisions of the CGST Act, 2017 has been stayed

2018(10)LCX0036

Bombay High Court

Star Rays

Modifications to be carried out in GSTR-1 & 3B for claiming refund of export stuck due to technical difficulties

2018(09)LCX0012

Kerala high Court

Green Natural Extracts Pvt. Ltd

Nodal Officer will facilitate uploading FORM GST TRAN-1, without reference to the time-frame which was not filed earlier due to technical glitches

ADVANCE RULING

Particulars Crux
2019(05)LCX0111(AAR)

Goa

Chowgule & Co Pvt. Ltd

The applicant is liable to pay IGST on import of iron ore. The applicant is eligible to avail the input tax credit towards payment of IGST under Section 16 of the IGST Act.  The applicant is not eligible for refund of unutilized input tax credit on export of goods or services as per the second proviso to Sub Section 3 of Section 54 of the CGST Act.
2019(04)LCX0154(AAR)

Maharashtra

Daewoo-TPL JV

Both the Notifications Notification No 21/2018 – Central Tax (Rate) dated April 18, 2018 and Notification No. 26/2018-Central Tax dated 13.06.2018 21 do apply to the Applicant which prescribe the method for carrying out provisions of Section 54 (3) of the CGST Act, 2017 and therefore do not allow refund of ITC availed on input services (and remaining unutilized) in whole or part thereof, in view of the definition of ‘input’ contained in the sub-section (59) of Section 2 of the GST Act, 2017 and the definition of ‘Net ITC’ contained in the Notification No. 26/2018-Central Tax dated 13.06.2018.