1. Introduction

It has been brought to the notice of GSTN that taxpayers are facing difficulty in filing appeals on the GST portal in cases where the adjudication order reflects "NIL" demand. This situation arises because the taxpayer had already made voluntary payment of the tax, interest, and penalty before the issuance of the adjudication order. Consequently, the demand in the order is NIL, and the portal does not allow filing of an appeal against such orders.

2. System Behaviour

Currently, the GST portal's appeal filing system requires a non-zero demand amount to proceed with the appeal filing process. In cases where the adjudication order shows a NIL demand (because the taxpayer voluntarily paid before the order was issued), the system does not permit the appeal to be filed, thereby causing inconvenience to the aggrieved taxpayer.

3. Nature of Issue

The core issue is that even though the demand in the adjudication order is NIL (due to prior voluntary payment), the taxpayer may still be aggrieved by:

• The findings recorded in the order against them.
• Any penalties imposed in the order.
• Interest demands that may have been confirmed.
• Other directions issued in the order which the taxpayer disputes.

The right to appeal is a statutory right and should not be denied merely because the demand amount reflects as NIL on account of prior voluntary payment.

4. Alternate Solution

Till a system-level fix is deployed, taxpayers who wish to file an appeal in such cases are advised to adopt the following alternate process:

1. Login to the GST Portal and navigate to Services > User Services > My Applications.
2. Select Application Type as Appeal to Appellate Authority and click on New Application.
3. Fill in the details of the order against which appeal is being filed and proceed with the submission even where the pre-deposit amount is NIL.
4. Attach a copy of the adjudication order and any supporting documents as required.
5. Submit the application using DSC / EVC as applicable.

GSTN is working on a permanent fix for this issue and will update taxpayers once the same is available on the portal. Taxpayers are advised to ensure timely filing of appeals within the prescribed limitation period, irrespective of the technical issue.

For any further queries or clarifications, taxpayers may contact the GST Helpdesk at 1800-103-4786 or raise a grievance on the GST portal.