https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=791066 Late fee for non-filing of an ST-3 return was not sustainable for the first half of the financial year where the assessee was within the threshold exemption limit, because the return under Section 70 of the Finance Act, 1994 read with Rule 7C of the Service Tax Rules, 1994 was required only from a person liable to pay service tax. The late fee for 1 April 2016 to 30 September 2016 was therefore set aside. However, penalty under Section 78 was upheld once the demand was confirmed by invoking the extended period of limitation, and the remaining late fee for the later return period was also sustained because the assessee remained registered and the return was still required. en-us Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0530 Wed, 06 May 2026 08:32:02 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=791066 Late fee for non-filing of an ST-3 return was not sustainable for the first half of the financial year where the assessee was within the threshold exemption limit, because the return under Section 70 of the Finance Act, 1994 read with Rule 7C of the Service Tax Rules, 1994 was required only from a person liable to pay service tax. The late fee for 1 April 2016 to 30 September 2016 was therefore set aside. However, penalty under Section 78 was upheld once the demand was confirmed by invoking the extended period of limitation, and the remaining late fee for the later return period was also sustained because the assessee remained registered and the return was still required. Case-Laws Service Tax Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=791066