Sangeetha Prathap

The Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) has withdrawn the requirement of staggered or phase-wise filing of second appeals under the GST law, thereby permitting unrestricted e-filing of appeals before the Tribunal. The decision was taken after the Tribunal reviewed the technical capacity of its e-filing portal and found that the earlier transitional restrictions were no longer necessary.

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The order was issued on December 16, 2025, by Justice Sanjaya Kumar Mishra, President, GST Appellate Tribunal, in exercise of powers conferred under Rule 123 of the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (Procedure) Rules, 2025. By this order, GSTAT revoked its earlier order dated September 24, 2025, which had mandated staggered filing of appeals under Section 112 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, read with the corresponding State and Union Territory GST Acts.

Under the earlier arrangement introduced in September 2025, taxpayers were required to file second appeals against orders passed under Sections 107 and 108 of the CGST Act in a phased manner, as per a table appended to that order. The staggered filing protocol had been put in place as a temporary measure following the operationalisation of the GSTAT appeal e-filing portal, with the objective of managing system load during the initial phase.

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In the latest order, the Tribunal recorded that, upon assessment of the current capabilities and performance of the e-filing system, it was considered appropriate to dispense with the staggered filing protocol. The order noted that removal of the phased restrictions would promote unhindered access to justice while continuing to preserve system efficiency. Accordingly, GSTAT decided to allow appeals to be filed without any date-based or phase-wise limitation.

The Tribunal further clarified that the revocation of the September 24, 2025 order would take effect from December 18, 2025. It was also specifically stated that the withdrawal of the staggered filing requirement would not affect the validity of any appeals already lodged in accordance with the earlier order prior to that date.

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The order emphasised that the revocation was without prejudice to the powers of the Appellate Tribunal under Section 112 of the CGST Act, 2017. Copies of the order were directed to be circulated to the Department of Revenue and relevant officials, and to be uploaded on the GSTAT appeal portal for information of all stakeholders. With this development, taxpayers and practitioners can now file GST second appeals before GSTAT through the e-filing portal without any procedural restrictions based on filing schedules, marking a significant step towards smoother and more accessible appellate proceedings under the GST regime.

Order Number: 315/2025