Ministry of Finance has issued Office Order No. 03/2025, marking a significant step in operationalizing the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) by detailing the allocation of benches and appointed members across India. This article breaks down the structure, jurisdictional distribution and functional implications of the order, helping taxpayers and professionals understand how GST disputes will be handled going forward. Team Prime Accountants breaks it down for you.

Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has issued a formal advisory addressing the pre-deposit payment requirement while filing an appeal before the First Appellate Authority, clarifying how payments made through Form GST DRC-03 can and must be linked to the relevant demand order before the portal will recognise them. This is a practically significant clarification that every taxpayer, CA and GST litigator needs to understand.

The Allahabad High Court, in M/S Raghuvansh Agro Farms Ltd. v. State of U.P. & Others, delivered a landmark judgment under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, quashing assessment and appellate orders issued against the petitioner under Section 74 of the UPGST/CGST Act, 2017. The Court categorically held that proceedings under Section 74 are reserved for cases involving fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts with intent to evade tax only.