Procedure of Filing an Appeal Before the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT): A Complete Guide

I. Overview of Filing Procedure

An appeal before the GSTAT must be filed online through the GSTAT Por­tal using the pre­scribed Form, com­ply­ing with the rules and guide­lines spec­i­fied under the GSTAT pro­ce­dur­al rules.

The key steps and details to be includ­ed are out­lined below:

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II. Content and Format of Appeal

1. Cause Title

• The head­ing of every appeal must state:

“In the Goods and Ser­vices Tax Appel­late Tribunal”.

• It must also men­tion the pro­ceed­ings or the author­i­ty’s order being appealed against.

2. Paragraph Structure

• Appeals must be divid­ed into con­sec­u­tive­ly num­bered para­graphs.
• Each para­graph should deal with a sep­a­rate fact, alle­ga­tion, or point of law.

3. Party Details

• At the begin­ning of the appeal, set out:
  • Full name
  • Parent­age
  • GST Iden­ti­fi­ca­tion Num­ber (GSTIN)
  • Descrip­tion (e.g., Tax­pay­er, Com­mis­sion­er, etc.)
  • Com­plete address
• These details are pro­vid­ed once and are not repeat­ed in sub­se­quent proceedings.

4. Party Numbering

• Par­ties must be num­bered consecutively.
• In case of death dur­ing the appeal, legal heirs should be added using sub-num­bers (e.g., 2(a), 2(b)).

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III. Filing Single or Multiple Appeals

1. Single Appeal Rule

• One appeal is suf­fi­cient even if mul­ti­ple show cause notices, refund claims, or demands are addressed in the impugned order.

2. Exception

• If the impugned order relates to mul­ti­ple orders-in-orig­i­nal, sep­a­rate appeals must be filed for each orig­i­nal order.
• Sep­a­rate appeals must also be filed by each aggriev­ed per­son; joint appeals are not per­mit­ted.

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IV. Presentation and Registration

1. Date of Presentation

• The Reg­is­trar endors­es the date of pre­sen­ta­tion on each appeal filed manually.
• The endorse­ment must be signed by the Reg­is­trar or the autho­rized officer.

2. Registration of Appeals

• Upon admis­sion, appeals are num­bered and entered into the rel­e­vant register.

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V. Contents of the Appeal Form

• Grounds of appeal must be:
  • Con­cise
  • Divid­ed under dis­tinct heads
  • Num­bered consecutively
  • Typed in dou­ble spac­ing on A4-size paper.
• Appeals must be paged, indexed, and firm­ly tagged with accom­pa­ny­ing documents.

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VI. Accompanying Documents

Each Form of Appeal must be accom­pa­nied by:

• Cer­ti­fied copy of the impugned order.
• Copy of the orig­i­nal adju­di­cat­ing author­i­ty’s order (if under appeal/revision).
• All relied upon doc­u­ments.

Note:

• If direct­ed by the Com­mis­sion­er, an attest­ed copy is accept­able instead of a cer­ti­fied one.
• Doc­u­ments must be clear, leg­i­ble, prop­er­ly pag­i­nat­ed, and indexed.

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VII. Online Filing and Final Acknowledgement

• A cer­ti­fied copy and pre­scribed fee must be sub­mit­ted online.
• GSTAT Por­tal issues a final acknowl­edg­ment after suc­cess­ful filing.

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VIII. Dealing with Defective Appeals

• If defects are found dur­ing scrutiny:
  • Doc­u­ments are returned for rectification.
  • Rec­ti­fi­ca­tion must hap­pen with­in 7 work­ing days or a max­i­mum of 30 days if extended.
• If defects remain unrectified: 
  • The appeal may be reject­ed after a hearing.

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IX. Translation Requirements

• Non-Eng­lish doc­u­ments must be filed with a cer­ti­fied Eng­lish trans­la­tion.
• Pro­ceed­ings will not be list­ed for hear­ing until all doc­u­ments are avail­able in English.

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X. Authorization Requirements

• If an appeal is filed by an autho­rized representative: 
  • A true copy of the autho­riza­tion let­ter must accom­pa­ny the appeal.
• The Reg­is­trar may request fur­ther ver­i­fi­ca­tion at any stage.

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XI. Filing Interlocutory Applications

Inter­locu­to­ry Appli­ca­tions include:

• Appli­ca­tions for stay, con­do­na­tion of delay, ear­ly hear­ing, rec­ti­fi­ca­tion, etc.
• Must be in GSTAT Form-01 with:
  • Full sup­port­ing information
  • An affi­davit affirm­ing the facts.

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XII. Post-Filing Procedures

1. Calling Records

• After admit­ting an appeal, the Tri­bunal may call for orig­i­nal records from low­er authorities.

2. Filing Cross-Objections and Replies

• Respon­dents can file:
  • Reply sub­mis­sions with­in one month of receipt.
  • Cross-objec­tions using the pre­scribed format.
• Appli­cants may file a rejoin­der after respon­dents’ replies, with permission.

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XIII. Other Procedural Matters

• Ex-Parte Amend­ments: Minor cler­i­cal errors can be cor­rect­ed with­out notice before respon­dent appearance.
• Fil­ing of Dam­aged Doc­u­ments: Spe­cial endorse­ment is required if a torn or dam­aged doc­u­ment is filed.
• Addi­tion­al Grounds: New grounds not stat­ed in the orig­i­nal appeal can only be tak­en with Tribunal’s permission.
• Rejec­tion or Amend­ment: The Reg­is­trar may reject appeals if pro­ce­dur­al defects are not cured.
• Sep­a­rate Appeals: Each aggriev­ed per­son must file sep­a­rate­ly even if the order affects mul­ti­ple parties.
• Doc­u­ment Endorse­ment: Copies must be served prompt­ly to the oppo­site par­ty and the Commissioner.