Mandatory e-filing, hybrid hearing part of rules for GST appellate tribunals
Centre notifies GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) rules mandating e-filing and hybrid hearings for faster GST dispute resolution. New guidelines streamline appeals, ensure time-bound case disposal, and boost taxpayer confidence with 31 state benches and a principal bench in Delhi.
To operationalise the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), the Centre on Friday notified the GSTAT (Procedure) Rules, which provide for mandatory e-filing of applications and conducting hearings in a hybrid mode.
The rules also provide that any urgent matter filed by an applicant before 12:00 noon shall be listed before the appellate tribunal on the following working day, if the application is complete in all respects.
In exceptional cases, the application may be received after 12:00 noon but before 3:00 pm for listing on the following day, with the specific permission of the appellate tribunal or the president.
The benches of GSTAT, a crucial body for resolving GST-related disputes, would sit from 10:30 am to 01:30 pm and from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm, subject to any order made by the president.
The administrative offices of the appellate tribunal will remain open on all working days from 9:30 am to 6.00 pm, according to the rules.
“With 15 structured chapters, the rules detail the procedures for institution and admission of appeals, conduct of hearings, electronic filing, and disposal of cases in a time-bound and efficient manner,” said Sandeep Sehgal, partner (tax), AKM Global.
From mandatory e-filing and hybrid hearings to defined timelines, the rules reflect a clear intent to streamline dispute resolution and reduce procedural delays, said Saurabh Agarwal, tax partner, EY.
This is a major step forward in strengthening taxpayer confidence and modernising India’s indirect tax litigation framework, Agarwal said.
In May last year, the government appointed Justice (Retd) Sanjaya Kumar Mishra as the first president of the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT).
Mishra was a former Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court and selected by a Search-cum-Selection Committee headed by the Chief Justice of India.
The GSTAT is the appellate authority established under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, to hear various appeals under the said act and the respective state/union territories GST Acts against the orders of the first appellate authority.
It consists of a principal bench and various state benches. As per the approval of the GST Council, the government has notified the principal bench, to be located in New Delhi, and 31 state benches at various locations across the country. The process for the appointment of judicial members and technical members is already in progress.
The tribunal will ensure swift, fair, judicious and effective resolution to GST disputes, besides significantly reducing the burden on higher courts.