GST Refund Dispute Resolved: Notification No.13/2022 Interpreted to Support Taxpayer Rights and Restore Pending Applications

HC of Madras addressed GST refund challenges, setting aside rejection orders based on Notification No.13/2022. The court directed refund payments and restoration of applications, extending limitation benefit to Tamil Nadu assessees. Writ petitions were disposed of without costs, providing relief to taxpayers previously denied refunds due to procedural limitations.

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Issues involved: Challenge to orders rejecting refund under CGST Act and TNGST Act, applicability of Notification No.13/2022 by Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, extension of benefit to assesses in Tamil Nadu.

Summary:

The High Court of Madras addressed the challenge presented in the writ petitions regarding the rejection of refund under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, along with the appellate orders upholding such rejections. The petitions filed by Mr. Narayanan highlighted the rejection based on limitation and non-availability of certain documents, while those filed by Mr. Shanmugam were rejected solely on the grounds of limitation.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs issued Notification No.13/2022 - Central Tax on 05.07.2022, excluding the time period between 01.03.2020 - 28.02.2022 for the computation of limitation for seeking refunds under Sections 54 or 55 of the enactments. Although this notification was initially applicable to Central GST authorities and GST authorities in Union Territories, the learned Additional Government Pleader, Mr. C. Harsha Raj, representing the State, confirmed the extension of this benefit to assesses in Tamil Nadu as well through written instructions dated 05.04.2023.

Consequently, the orders in the writ petitions filed by Mr. Shanmugam (W.P.Nos. 3515 & 3519 of 2022) were set aside, with a directive for refund payment within six weeks. Similarly, the orders challenged in the petitions filed by Mr. Narayanan (W.P.Nos. 14939, 14943, 14945, 14949, 2833 of 2022) were also set aside, restoring the refund applications to the assessing authority's file. The petitioner was instructed to appear before the authority on a specified date to address all aspects of the claim, except those covered by Notification No.13/2022.

In conclusion, the writ petitions were disposed of in accordance with the above order, with no costs incurred, and the connected miscellaneous petitions were closed.

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