Notices/Orders uploaded to GSTN Portal not require Digital signatures of the officer

Advisory on issuance of Notices/Orders without digital signatures by GST authorities. Notices/Orders uploaded to GSTN Portal not require Digital signatures of the officer on pdf formats

GSTN has issued an advisory on the issue of Notices/Orders without digital signatures by GST authorities which creates doubt regarding the validity of documents issued by the GST officers on the common portal viz. Show cause Notices, Order of Assessment, Refund Orders etc. which are not containing the Digital signatures on the pdf. document downloaded from the common portal.

In this context, GSTN has stated that documents uploaded to GSTN Portal (i.e. SCN/Orders) are generated on the common portal from the login of the officer, who logs in through Digital Signatures. Further, these documents being computer generated on the command of the officer, may not require physical signatures of the officer as these documents can be issued by the officer only after logging into the common portal using Digital Signature.  All these documents in JSON format containing the order details along with the issuing officer details are stored in the GST system with the digital signature of the issuing officer.

Further, GSTN has stated that validity of such notices/orders vis-à-vis who and for what purpose these  documents have been issued can also be verified by the taxpayer pre-login as well as after login from the GST common portal by navigating to the following path:

Post-login: www.gst.gov.in–>Dashboard–>Services–>User Services–>Verify RFN

All communications from the officers to the taxpayer/ any other person initiated through the system can also be verified pre-login through the link https://services.gst.gov.in/services/verifyRfn . It is further mentioned that all the critical actions on the part of officers are performed through digital signature authentication of the officer concerned who is authorised for taking that action, such as:

1. Issue of any notice in any module
2. Issue of any order in any module
3. Issue of any refund order

• Non issue of notice u/s 143(2) for even belated ITR filed u/s 148 makes assessment void ab initio
• Calculation of functional disability depends on victim’s earning capacity in open market – SC
• Appeal against ITAT shall lie only before High Court within whose jurisdiction AO is situated
• SC recommends action against Customs Officer who relied upon AI generated fake case laws
• Non- payment of cost imposed can’t trigger automatic confirmation of an invalid exparte assessment.