Judicial Precedents for where constructive delivery was held to be enough satisfaction under S 16(2)(b) of CGST Act, 2017 to claim ITC

[Gautam Godhwani]

By virtue of Section 16(2)(b) wherein entitlement of ITC by a registered person is established only when he has received goods and services or both.

What is construed as ‘received’ has not been defined under the GST Law – whether physical delivery of such goods is required or a symbolic or constructive delivery by transfer of title and thereby transfer of risks and rewards of ownership shall also suffice.

It would be highly appreciated wherein the cases for the latter condition could be given - AKA ITC being allowed from the moment risk in goods has been passed or constructive delivery has taken place instead of actual delivery being the requisite norm, be it of this regime or the previous one.

These would be on the lines of S 19, S 20 and S 26 of SOGA.

One such case is of Automative Components Technology India Private Limited - 2020 (3) TMI 242 - AUTHORITY FOR ADVANCE RULING, TAMILNADU in AAR Tamil Nadu Order No. 05/ARA/2020 dated 31.01.2020. Another could be the case of the four member bench of Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Duni Chand Rataria vs. Bhuwalka Brothers Ltd.: 1954 (12) TMI 19 - SUPREME COURT has interpreted that delivery to mean and include “constructive delivery” as well.

Thanks and Regards,

Gautam.

AI Summary

Constructive delivery: transfer of documents of title can satisfy 'receipt' for input tax credit where facts and evidence support it.
Whether a registered person may claim input tax credit under Section 16(2)(b) when goods are not physically received depends on the explanation to that clause, which deems goods as received where delivery occurs to a recipient or any other person on the direction of the registered person or where documents of title are transferred. The explanation therefore permits recognition of possession or control via transfer of documents of title, enabling constructive delivery to satisfy the receipt requirement for ITC in specified situations, subject to evidential proof and potential administrative challenge.