The Ministry of Finance has officially empowered the Principal Bench of the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) in New Delhi to start hearing GST-related appeals — a significant step toward resolving the large backlog of tax disputes across the country.
The Department of Revenue issued Notification No. 18/2024 – Central Tax on May 7, authorising the Principal Bench of the GST Appellate Tribunal to hear appeals filed by taxpayers and tax authorities under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017.
Importantly, this authorisation is backdated to April 1, 2026, meaning appeals can be considered effective from that date.
Since GST was introduced in 2017, taxpayers disputing tax demands had no functional appellate tribunal to approach, forcing them to go directly to High Courts, which added to judicial burden and delayed resolution.
The activation of the GSTAT Principal Bench now gives businesses and individuals a dedicated, specialised forum to challenge GST orders — faster and at lower cost than High Court litigation.
In simple terms, if a business disagrees with a GST tax demand or order, they can now appeal before the GST Appellate Tribunal in New Delhi instead of rushing to the High Court.