Important Keyword: Notification No. 15/2021 – Central Tax, CGST Fourth Amendment Rules 2021, GST refund amendments, RFD-07, RFD-01W, GST revocation, e-way bill compliance, Notification No. 15/2021, Central Tax, GST refund rules, CGST Amendment, GST registration revocation, GST compliance, GST forms RFD-07 RFD-01W,
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[F. No. CBEC-20/06/04/2020-GST]
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
(Department of Revenue)
Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
New Delhi, the 18th May, 2021
Notification No. 15 /2021 – Central Tax: Seeks to make fourth amendment (2021) to CGST Rules, 2017.
[To be published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (i)]
G.S.R……(E). - In exercise of the powers conferred by section 164 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (12 of 2017), the Central Government, on the recommendations of the Council, hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017, namely: -
(1). Short title and commencement. - (a) These rules may be called the Central Goods and Services Tax (Fourth Amendment) Rules, 2021.
(b) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.
(2). In the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017, -
(i). in rule 23, in sub-rule (1), after the words “date of the service of the order of cancellation of registration”, the words and figures “or within such time period as extended by the Additional Commissioner or the Joint Commissioner or the Commissioner, as the case may be, in exercise of the powers provided under the proviso to sub-section (1) of section 30,” shall be inserted;
(ii). in rule 90, -
(a). in sub-rule (3), the following proviso shall be inserted, -
“Provided that the time period, from the date of filing of the refund claim in FORM GST RFD-01 till the date of communication of the deficiencies in FORM GST RFD-03 by the proper officer, shall be excluded from the period of two years as specified under sub-section (1) of Section 54, in respect of any such fresh refund claim filed by the applicant after rectification of the deficiencies.";
(b). after sub-rule (4), the following sub-rules shall be inserted, namely: -
“(5) The applicant may, at any time before issuance of provisional refund sanction order in FORM GST RFD-04 or final refund sanction order in FORM GST RFD-06 or payment order in FORM GST RFD-05 or refund withhold order in FORM GST RFD-07 or notice in FORM GST RFD-08, in respect of any refund application filed in FORM GST RFD-01, withdraw the said application for refund by filing an application in FORM GST RFD-01W.
(6) On submission of application for withdrawal of refund in FORM GST RFD-01W, any amount debited by the applicant from electronic credit ledger or electronic cash ledger, as the case may be, while filing application for refund in FORM GST RFD-01, shall be credited back to the ledger from which such debit was made.”;
(iii). in rule 92, -
(a). in sub-rule (1), the proviso shall be omitted;
(b). in sub-rule (2), -
- for the word and letter “Part B”, the word and letter “Part A” shall be substituted;
- the following proviso shall be inserted, namely: -
“Provided that where the proper officer or the Commissioner is satisfied that the refund is no longer liable to be withheld, he may pass an order for release of withheld refund in Part B of FORM GST RFD- 07.”;
(iv). in rule 96, -
- in sub-rule (6), for the word and letter “Part B”, the word and letter “Part A” shall be substituted;
- in sub-rule (7), for the words, letters and figures, “after passing an order in FORM GST RFD-06”, the words, letters and figures, “by passing an order in FORM GST RFD-06 after passing an order for release of withheld refund in Part B of FORM GST RFD-07” shall be substituted;
(v) in FORM GST REG-21, under the sub-heading “Instructions for submission of application for revocation of cancellation of registration”, in the first bullet point “after the words “date of service of the order of cancellation of registration”, the words and figures “or within such time period as extended by the Additional Commissioner or the Joint Commissioner or Commissioner, as the case may be, in exercise of the powers provided under proviso to sub- section (1) of section 30,” shall be inserted;
(vi). in rule 138E, for the words “in respect of a registered person, whether as a supplier or a recipient, who, —” the words „‟in respect of any outward movement of goods of a registered person, who, —” shall be substituted.
(vii). for FORM GST RFD-07, the following FORM shall be substituted, namely: -
“FORM GST RFD-07
[See rules 92(2) & 96(6)]
Reference No.
Date: <DD/MM/YYYY>
To
________________ (GSTIN/UIN/Temp. ID)
_________________(Name)
_________________(Address)
——————— (ARN)
Part-A
Order for withholding the refund
Refund payable to the taxpayer with respect to ARN specified above are hereby withheld in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (10)/ (11) of section 54 of the CGST Act, 2017. The reasons for withholding are given as under:
| S. No. | Particulars | |
| 1 | ARN | |
| 2 | Amount Claimed in RFD-01 | <Auto-populated> |
| 3 | Amount Inadmissible in RFD-06 | <Auto-populated> |
| 4 | Amount Adjusted in RFD-06 | <Auto-populated> |
| 5 | Amount Withheld | |
| 6. | Reasons for withholding (More than one reason can be selected) | Recoverable dues not paid In view of sub-section 11 of Section 54 On account of fraud (s) of serious nature Others, (specify) |
| 7 | Description of the reasons | (Up to 500 characters, separate file can be attached for detailed reasons) |
| 8 | Record of Personal Hearing | (Up to 500 characters, separate file can be attached for detailed records) |
Part-B
Order for release of withheld refund
This has reference to your refund application <ARN> dated <date> against which the payment of refund amount sanctioned vide order <RFD-06 order no> dated <date> was withheld by this office order <Order Reference No> dated <date>. It has been now found to my satisfaction that the conditions for withholding of refund no longer exist and therefore, the refund amount withheld is hereby allowed to be released as given under:
| S. No. | Particulars | |
| 1 | ARN | |
| 2 | Amount Claimed in RFD-01 | <Auto-populated> |
| 3 | Amount Inadmissible in RFD-06 | <Auto-populated> |
| 4 | Amount Adjusted in RFD-06 | <Auto-populated> |
| 5 | Amount Withheld in RFD-07 A | <Auto-populated> |
| 6 | Amount Released | |
| 7 | Amount to be Paid |
Date:
Place:
Signature (DSC):
Name:
Designation:
Office Address: ”;
(viii). after FORM GST RFD-01 B, the following FORM shall be inserted, namely: -
“FORM GST RFD-01 W
[Refer Rule 90(5)]
Application for Withdrawal of Refund Application
- ARN:
- GSTIN:
- Name of Business (Legal):
- Trade Name, if any:
- Tax Period:
- Amount of Refund Claimed:
- Grounds for Withdrawing Refund Claim:
- Filed the refund application by mistake
- Filed Refund Application under wrong category
- Wrong details mentioned in the refund application
- Others (Please Specify)
- Declaration: I/We <Taxpayer Name> hereby solemnly affirm and declare that the information given herein is true and correct to the best of my/ our knowledge and belief and nothing has been concealed therefrom.
Date:
Place:
Signature of Authorised Signatory
Name
Designation/ Status
(Rajeev Ranjan)
Under Secretary, Government of India
Note: The principal rules were published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (i), vide notification No. 3/2017-Central Tax, dated the 19th June, 2017, published vide number G.S.R. 610 (E), dated the 19th June, 2017 and was last amended vide notification No. 13/2021-Central Tax, dated the 01.05.2021, published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (i), vide number G.S.R. 309(E), dated the 01st May, 2021.
📚 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Notification No. 15/2021 – Central Tax
Q1: What is Notification No. 15/2021 – Central Tax about?
Answer:
This notification, issued on 18th May 2021, introduces the Fourth Amendment to CGST Rules, 2017. It updates provisions related to revocation of registration cancellation, refund claims, refund withholding/release process, and electronic credit/cash ledger adjustments.
Q2: What key change was made to Rule 23 regarding revocation of cancellation of registration?
Answer:
Rule 23(1) now allows extension of time for filing revocation applications, if approved by the Additional Commissioner, Joint Commissioner, or Commissioner under Section 30 of CGST Act.
👉 Need help with GST Registration or Revocation? Visit Online GST Registration.
Q3: How has Rule 90 (refund applications) been amended?
Answer:
The period between filing RFD-01 and receiving deficiency notice RFD-03 is excluded from the two-year refund limit.
Applicants can now withdraw refund applications using FORM GST RFD-01W.
Withdrawn claims will have amounts credited back to the same ledger.
Q4: What new provision was added to Rule 92 about refunds?
Answer:
The officer can now release previously withheld refunds through Part B of FORM GST RFD-07, once conditions no longer exist.
Q5: How does this notification affect Rule 96 on export refunds?
Answer:
Changes clarify that refund release under RFD-07 Part B must precede sanction orders in RFD-06, ensuring smoother processing for exporters.
Q6: What new forms were introduced or modified?
Answer:
Revised FORM GST RFD-07: Contains Part A (withholding refund order) and Part B (release order).
New FORM GST RFD-01W: Allows withdrawal of refund applications filed by mistake or under wrong category.
Q7: How does this notification impact Rule 138E (e-way bill restrictions)?
Answer:
Now worded to specify outward movement of goods of a registered person, making compliance stricter for suppliers.
Q8: What practical relief does this amendment bring to taxpayers?
Answer:
Greater flexibility for revocation of cancelled registrations.
Refund applicants can correct errors by withdrawing applications.
Faster release of withheld refunds.
Avoidance of refund claim lapses due to deficiency notices.
Q9: From when are the amendments effective?
Answer:
They came into effect immediately on 18th May 2021, the date of publication in the Official Gazette.
Q10: Who benefits most from this notification?
Answer:
Businesses seeking refunds under GST.
Exporters claiming IGST refunds.
Taxpayers needing extra time for revocation of cancellation.
Businesses dealing with e-way bill compliance.
👉 For professional GST support, connect with a GST Expert.
Download PDF: Notification No. 15/2021 – Central Tax
More Information: https://taxinformation.cbic.gov.in/
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