NEWS UPDATE

GST - GSTN informs that portal for uploading application seeking advance ruling to be ready only in Jan 2018; alternatively, facility for filing manual applications to be available from 20 Oct- HC questions authority for postponement

Published: Sep 22, 2017

By TIOL News Service

NEW DELHI, SEPT 22, 2017:

S.no.

Issues

Feedback/Input

1.

By what date, the facility of filing Advance Ruling application is likely to be made available on GST Portal?

Tentatively by 15th January, 2018.

2.

In case it is decided to accept the forms manually, is there any mechanism available on the GSTN portal whereby applicants including an unregistered applicant can make payment of prescribe fees of R.5000/-

For the intervening period a functionality is being developed to dispose of the advance ruling application manually with a facility to deposit prescribe fee under the law through GST portal for all applicants including unregistered persons. This facility will be available w.e.f. 20th October 2017 on the GST Portal.

The above is the content of an e-mail dated 15th September 2017 written to the Additional Commissioner (Policy) of GNCT of Delhi by the Vice President-Services of the Goods and Services Tax Network ('GSTN') and wherein the queries raised by the former by a letter dated 11th September 2017 have been answered.

This email was shown to the High Court by the Petitioner highlighting the tardy progress made in the matter of filing applications and seeking the decision of the Advance Ruling authority.

The High Court observed -

++ What is clear from the above response is that the web portal for uploading an application seeking an advance ruling is not going to be ready till 15th January 2018. As an alternative, the GSTN has decided to accept all such applications, including applications from 'unregistered persons', manually with the facility to deposit the prescribed fees through the GST Portal.

At the same time, the High Court noted -

"3. …, it is not clear under what authority of law, the GSTN has decided to postpone the availability of this alternative system of filing the applications seeking advance ruling manually till 20th October 2017 when the provisions of law are already in force. Neither the counsel for GNCTD nor the counsel for the Union of India UOI is able to provide an answer."

The High Court directed issuance of notice to the GSTN by all modes (including Dasti), returnable on 27th September 2017.

(See 2017-TIOL-19-HC-DEL-GST)

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