Commissioner allows appeal after refund claim rejection due to missing DRC-03 and debit entry documentation

The Commissioner (Appeals) CGST, Jaipur allowed an appeal against rejection of refund claim. The appellant had filed refund claim for IGST Rs. 85,787/- and penalty of equivalent amount following an allowed appeal. The original refund was rejected as appellant failed to submit DRC-03 copy and make debit entry from Electronic Cash Ledger. However, appellant later submitted required documents including debit entry, which the adjudicating authority failed to consider. The appeal was disposed with direction to verify documents and process refund claim under Section 54 CGST Act, 2017.

---

---

Issues:
1. Filing of appeal under Section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
2. Rejection of refund claim by the adjudicating authority.

Analysis:
1. Filing of Appeal:
The appellant filed an appeal under Section 107 of the CGST Act, 2017 against the Order-in-Original dated 5-8-2020 passed by the Assistant Commissioner. The main issue was whether the appeal was filed within the prescribed time limit. The appellant filed the appeal on 16-11-2020, 11 days beyond the three-month period. The Additional Commissioner accepted the appeal based on Section 107(4) of the Act, which allows for a further period of one month in case of sufficient cause for delay.

2. Rejection of Refund Claim:
The adjudicating authority rejected the refund claim of the appellant amounting to Rs. 1,71,574 under Section 54 of the CGST Act, 2017. The rejection was based on the absence of any debit made by the appellant from the Cash Ledger for the tax and penalty amount. The appellant had initially not made a debit entry in the GSTN portal due to lack of awareness about the refund process. However, after being informed by the department, the appellant debited the amount through DRC-03 and submitted the necessary documents. The Additional Commissioner found that the adjudicating authority had not properly examined the issue and rejected the claim without considering all documents.

In conclusion, the appeal was disposed of with a direction to verify the facts submitted by the appellant and process the refund claim in accordance with the provisions of the CGST Act, 2017. The appellant was instructed to cooperate with the department. The decision was based on the principle of natural justice and ensuring proper consideration of all relevant facts.

---