GST appeal filing date governed by online submission; delayed hard-copy filing cannot defeat a timely appeal.

An appeal filed electronically in FORM GST APL-01 within limitation cannot be rejected merely because the hard copy was submitted later when the impugned order was uploaded on the common portal. Rule 108(3) treats the provisional acknowledgement date as the date of filing in such cases, while the self-certified copy requirement applies only when the order is not portal-uploaded. The Madras HC held that the hard-copy requirement is procedural and cannot defeat a timely online appeal. The rejection was unsustainable, the impugned order was set aside, and the appellate authority was directed to hear the appeal on merits.

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Issues: Whether the appeal filed on the GST portal within the prescribed period of limitation could be rejected for want of timely submission of the hard copy of the appeal, and whether such rejection was sustainable under Rule 108 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017.

Analysis: The appeal was filed online in FORM GST APL-01 within time. Rule 108(3) provides that where the order appealed against is uploaded on the common portal, the provisional acknowledgement date is treated as the date of filing of appeal, and the requirement of filing a self-certified copy arises only where the order is not uploaded on the portal. The hard copy requirement was held to be procedural, and non-compliance with it could not defeat a timely online filing.

Conclusion: The rejection of the appeal on the ground of delayed submission of the hard copy was unsustainable. The impugned order was set aside and the appellate authority was directed to receive and decide the appeal on merits.

Ratio Decidendi: Where an appeal under the GST regime is filed electronically within limitation and the impugned order is uploaded on the common portal, the date of online filing governs and the subsequent hard-copy requirement is only procedural.

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