A client called me last week. "We filed everything correctly," he said. His export refund had been sitting for 4 months. I asked to see the application. 10 minutes in, we found it. One digit in the shipping bill number didn't match the export data in GSTR-1. That's it. That's what stalled the refund. He'd assumed the refund was automatic once the goods left India. It isn't, and understanding why changes how you file the next one. Export refunds run on two differen... ... ...

The Hon'ble Orissa High Court in M/s. Rashmi Agency Versus Deputy Commissioner CT & GST Circle, Cuttack-I City and others. - 2026 (7) TMI 75 - ORISSA HIGH COURT set aside the order refusing to consider the refund application filed under Section 54 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 ("the CGST Act") and held that the refund flowing from an appellate order cannot be withheld by invoking Section 54(11) of the CGST Act read with Rule 92(2) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 20... ... ...

The Capacity in Which a Director Acts Makes the Difference The taxability of remuneration paid by a company to its directors often leads to disputes because a director may occupy more than one legal capacity. A person may sit on the Board as a director and, at the same time, serve the company as an employee. The tax consequence cannot therefore be determined merely by the designation "director". What matters is the real character of the relationship in which the remuneration is paid. The r... ... ...

Understanding NRI Status: The Foundation NRI taxation in India hinges on residential status under Section 6 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. An individual is an NRI if they: • Spend <182 days in India during the financial year (FY), or • Spend <60 days in India in the FY and <365 days in the preceding 4 years (with exceptions for seafarers/citizens on foreign ships). Critical nuance: The Finance Act 2020 reduced the threshold to 120 days for NRIs with India-sourced income >Rs... ... ...

The Hon'ble Orissa High Court in M/s. Sri Balaji Metallics Private Limited, Sundergarh Versus Commissioner of CT & GST, Cuttack and others - 2026 (3) TMI 828 - ORISSA HIGH COURT dismissed the writ petition filed against the rejection of a time-barred appeal, thereby holding that where the Assessee itself declared in Form GST APL-01 that the Order-in-Original was communicated to it on the very date of its passing, such declaration constitutes deemed communication of the order triggering the perio... ... ...

A Return Mismatch Raises a Question; It Does Not Answer It The ongoing litigation over discrepancies between the Input Tax Credit claimed in Form GSTR-3B and the credit appearing in Form GSTR-2A raises a fundamental question about GST adjudication. Can an electronic mismatch alone establish wrongful availment of ITC, or does it merely warrant the Department to undertake further enquiry? This distinction is significant, particularly for the earlier years of GST, when the statutory framework go... ... ...

Sole proprietary concern - separate arraignment for cheque dishonour - Vicarious criminal liability under the Negotiable Instruments Act Maintainability of a cheque-dishonour complaint against the proprietor where the cheque was issued in the trade name of a sole proprietary concern not separately arraigned - HELD THAT: - The statutory vicarious-liability mechanism applies where the drawer is an entity distinct from the natural persons sought to be made liable for its affairs. A sole propriet... ... ...

Deposit pending appeal against conviction for cheque dishonour - Section 148 deposit confined to drawer of cheque Applicability of the mandatory pre-deposit condition under Section 148 of the Negotiable Instruments Act to an erstwhile director who was not the signatory or drawer of the company's cheque - HELD THAT: - Section 148 applies to an appeal by the drawer against conviction under Section 138. The petitioner, arraigned as an accused in the capacity of a director, was not the signat... ... ...

Withholding of gratuity during pendency of judicial proceedings - Interpretation of "departmental or judicial proceedings" Release of gratuity after exoneration in departmental proceedings while judicial proceedings arising from the same allegations remain pending - HELD THAT: - Rule 69(1)(c) of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 operates as a statutory embargo on payment of gratuity during the pendency of either departmental or judicial proceedings. The ordinary disjunctive mea... ... ...

Penalty for contravention in inter-State transportation of goods - Sufficient cause and intention to evade tax for levy of penalty Penalty for contravention in inter-State transportation of goods - Sufficient cause for levy of penalty - Levy of penalty for temporary unloading of imported tin ingots during their inter-State movement from Gujarat to Pondicherry - HELD THAT: - Penalty under Section 53 is not automatic and may be levied only where no sufficient cause is shown. Following the earli... ... ...

Revisional interference with concurrent factual findings - Reassessment of suppressed sales turnover from omitted purchase turnover - Penalty and interest on reassessed turnover Reassessment of suppressed sales turnover from omitted purchase turnover - Revisional interference with concurrent factual findings - Validity of reassessment and estimation of sales turnover on the basis of discrepancies between purchase turnover in the books of account and the monthly VAT returns. - HELD THAT: - The... ... ...

Refund of an amount deposited as ad-hoc "security paid under protest" - also seeks payment of interest at the rate of 6% or any other appropriate rate HELD THAT:- The writ petition was closed and disposed of with liberty to the petitioner to approach the Court regarding interest and the pending assessment and reassessment proceedings.... ... ...

Classification of rechargeable portable lamps - Extended limitation in tariff-classification disputes - Penalty for incorrect classification in absence of suppression Classification of rechargeable portable lamps - Classification of rechargeable lanterns, emergency lamps and study lamps as portable electric lamps under CETH 8513 1090 or as table lamps under CETH 9405 2010 - HELD THAT: - Heading 8513 covers portable electric lamps having a self-contained source of electricity. The impugned lam... ... ...

Penalty on distributors for manufacturer's excise-duty default - Distributor's obligation to verify payment of excise duty Penalty on the distributors for dealing in goods allegedly cleared by the manufacturer without payment of excise duty under Rule 26 of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 - HELD THAT: - The finding that the distributors were owners of the manufacturer was not established by the investigation referred to in the show-cause notice, and adjustment of payments against rent ... ... ...

Interest on delayed refund under section 11BB - Refund application and subsequent reminder Statutory interest on refund allowed in appellate proceedings-whether payable after three months from the original refund application or from the subsequent communication following the appellate order - HELD THAT: - Interest under section 11BB becomes payable upon expiry of three months from receipt of the application under section 11B, if the refund remains unpaid; the deeming provision concerning an a... ... ...

Appealability of Tribunal's Rule 41 directions - Inherent powers of Tribunal to implement final orders - Refund of tax paid under mistake of law - Interest on delayed refund from original application - Compensatory interest on mistaken tax payment Appealability of Tribunal's Rule 41 directions - Maintainability of an appeal under Section 35G against a procedural direction issued under Rule 41 of the CESTAT (Procedure) Rules, 1982 - HELD THAT: - An appeal under Section 35G lies only ag... ... ...

Business Support Service - Translation of documents - Other transaction processing Classification of document-translation services as Business Support Services - HELD THAT: - The expression "other transaction processing" takes its colour from the specified support services preceding it. Translation of documents from one language to another, undertaken independently at clients' request, neither promotes nor supports the clients' business and is not Business Support Service. The Trib... ... ...

Cenvat credit on input services used for construction of taxable rented premises - Nexus between input services and renting of immovable property service Whether the appellant is eligible to avail cenvat credit on the input services used in the construction of services of the commercial complex which are ultimately being rented out on which service tax is being discharged on the taxable category of 'Renting of Immovable Property Service'? - HELD THAT: - We find that this issue is no longer re... ... ...

Extended limitation for service tax demand - Suppression of facts Validity of invoking the extended period for service tax demand on reimbursements received by a registered clearing and forwarding agent - HELD THAT: - The appellant was registered, discharged service tax and filed ST-3 returns. The reimbursement particulars had been recorded in its accounts, and the taxability of such reimbursements was under litigation at different levels and the issue came to be resolved in the case of Union... ... ...

Taxability of free home delivery of ready-to-eat food - Service tax liability under the category of 'outdoor catering services' for the period from 2011-12 to 2015-16 - Demand invoking extended period of limitation Taxability of free home delivery of ready-to-eat food - Outdoor catering service - Appellant receives orders for delivery of food at customer's location which is confined to preparation of food at the Appellant's location and delivering of food at the customer's... ... ...