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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteThere is no single GST show-cause notice (SCN) deadline. The correct limitation period depends first on the financial year, then on the section cited in the notice, the type of demand, and whether the department alleges fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts. Sections 73 and 74 generally govern periods up to financial year (FY) 2023-24; section 74A applies to FY 2024-25 onward under the 2024 amendments.
Also separate two dates: the deadline for issuing the SCN and the later deadline for passing the adjudication order. A notice can be invalid even when an order would otherwise be within time if the notice was not issued early enough. Stays, statutory exclusions and valid extensions can change the computation, so an individual case requires the actual notice, tax period, refund date (if relevant), and procedural orders.
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Quick reference: which GST limitation route applies?
| Statutory route | Tax periods | Adjudication-order deadline | SCN deadline | When it is used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section 73 | Up to FY 2023-24 | Within three years from the due date for the annual return for the relevant FY, or within three years from the date of an erroneous refund | At least three months before the section 73(10) order deadline | Non-fraud cases: tax not paid or short-paid, wrong input-tax-credit (ITC) availment or utilisation, or an erroneous refund, without fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression to evade tax |
| Section 74 | Up to FY 2023-24 | Within five years from the due date for the annual return for the relevant FY, or within five years from the date of an erroneous refund | At least six months before the section 74(10) order deadline | Cases in which fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts to evade tax is alleged |
| Section 74A | FY 2024-25 onward | Generally within twelve months from issuance of the notice; a competent authority may extend this by up to six months in the statutory circumstances and before the period expires | Within forty-two months from the annual-return due date for the relevant FY, or from the date of an erroneous refund | Applies regardless of the reason for non-payment, short payment, erroneous refund or wrongly availed or utilised ITC; penalty treatment distinguishes fraud from other cases |
The figures in this table are statutory periods in the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024. Matching State or Union Territory GST provisions, commencement notifications and later amendments must be checked for the jurisdiction involved.
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The 2024 amendments did not replace the historic provisions for every period. For a liability relating to FY 2023-24 or an earlier year, the notice should normally be tested under section 73 or section 74, depending on the allegation. For FY 2024-25 and later periods, section 74A is the framework for determination of tax, interest and penalty.
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Do not decide the section from the date printed on the notice alone. A notice issued in 2026 could concern an older FY and therefore still use section 73 or 74. Read the tax period, the provision invoked, the allegations and the period for which tax or ITC is said to be due.
How the limitation clock starts
Ordinary tax, short payment and ITC demands
For ordinary demands, the relevant statutory anchor is the due date for furnishing the annual return for that financial year. The limitation period runs from that due date, not automatically from the transaction date, the date of an audit objection or the date on which the department first asks for records.
Erroneous refunds
Where the issue is an erroneous refund, the statute uses the date on which the refund was made as the starting point. That is a different computation from an annual-return-based demand. Confirm that the notice actually concerns an erroneous refund before applying this rule; a refund-related dispute can involve other issues with different facts.
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The exact last day can depend on the annual-return due date applicable to the FY, the refund date, the section cited, service or issuance of the notice, a court or statutory stay, and any lawful extension. Treat a three-year, five-year or forty-two-month description as a framework, not as a final date for filing an objection.
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Notice deadline versus adjudication-order deadline
These are separate limitation questions. Under sections 73 and 74, the officer must issue the SCN a specified number of months before the outer deadline for the order. The order therefore cannot be rescued merely because the SCN was eventually issued within the longer period. Check both the issue date of the notice and the date on which the order was or must be passed.
Section 74A is structured differently: the statute gives a window ending forty-two months from the specified annual-return or erroneous-refund starting point for issuing the notice, then generally allows twelve months from notice issuance to pass the order. The competent authority’s possible extension of the order period is conditional, limited to six months and must be granted before the original order period expires.
Section 73: non-fraud proceedings for older periods
Section 73 covers periods up to FY 2023-24 where the department alleges tax not paid or short-paid, wrong ITC or an erroneous refund but does not establish fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts to evade tax. The order limitation is the three-year route shown in the table, measured from the applicable annual-return due date or erroneous-refund date. The SCN must precede that order deadline by at least three months.
Read the notice’s factual allegations carefully. Calling a discrepancy “suppression” does not by itself prove the ingredients required for the fraud route. The notice should identify the conduct relied on, the tax period, the amount and the statutory basis so the recipient can test both merits and limitation.
Section 74: fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression allegations
Section 74 is the longer historic route for periods up to FY 2023-24 when the department alleges fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts to evade tax. Its order deadline is the five-year route in the table, and the SCN must be issued at least six months before that deadline.
The longer period is not automatic. The allegation must be legally sustainable and connected to evasion. If an appellate authority later concludes that fraud or suppression was not established, section 75(2) and the guidance in CBIC Circular 185/17/2022-GST may affect whether the matter is treated under section 73 instead. That circular addresses particular timing scenarios; its examples should not be generalized to every section 74 notice.
Section 74A for FY 2024-25 onward
Section 74A, inserted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024, consolidates the determination framework for FY 2024-25 and later years. It applies whether the department alleges fraud or a non-fraud error. The difference between those situations appears in the penalty provisions, not in separate three-year and five-year notice windows.
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For the notice, section 74A(2) states that the proper officer shall issue it “within forty-two months” from the due date for furnishing the annual return for the relevant FY or from the date of an erroneous refund. For the order, section 74A generally allows twelve months from issuance of the notice. A competent authority can extend that order period by up to six months only in the statutory circumstances and before the original period expires.
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Do not use older CBIC FAQs that describe only the three-year and five-year sections 73 and 74 as a complete answer for FY 2024-25 onward. Those FAQs explain the historic provisions and must be read with section 74A and any current notifications or amendments.
How to calculate a notice’s limitation position
- Identify the financial year. Record the FY to which each tax, ITC or refund allegation relates. Separate years should be calculated separately.
- Read the statutory section. Confirm whether the notice invokes section 73, section 74 or section 74A. If the section and allegations do not match, flag that issue for professional review.
- Classify the demand. Decide whether it concerns ordinary non-payment, short payment, ITC, or an erroneous refund. Use the annual-return due date for the former group and the refund date for the latter.
- Find the correct starting date. Obtain the applicable annual-return due date or the documented refund date from the GST records, rather than relying on a generic year-end date.
- Calculate the outer notice and order dates. Apply the section’s statutory period and, for sections 73 and 74, work backward from the order deadline by the required notice lead time. For section 74A, calculate the forty-two-month notice window and the separate order period from the actual notice date.
- Check procedural adjustments. Look for a court stay, a statutory exclusion of time, an extension order, or a notification affecting the period. Record the dates covered and whether the authority acted before a deadline expired.
- Compare the result with the documents. Preserve the SCN, proof of service, annexures, audit correspondence, refund order, annual-return filing evidence and every extension or stay order. Limitation often turns on document dates.
What deadline applies to your reply?
The periods above regulate the department’s power to issue an SCN or pass an adjudication order. They are not a universal deadline for the recipient’s reply. Use the response date stated in the actual notice and the procedural rules applicable to that proceeding. If the notice is active, seek advice promptly rather than waiting for the limitation analysis to be completed.
A reply should address both substance and jurisdiction: reconcile the tax or ITC figures, explain the documentary record, challenge unsupported fraud allegations where appropriate, and set out the limitation computation with the relevant starting date. Missing the reply date can create avoidable procedural risk even when a limitation objection may exist.
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Stays, exclusions and extensions
The CGST Act contains rules that can exclude periods when service or issuance of proceedings is stayed. A stay does not automatically validate every late notice; identify the exact order, the period excluded and the provision under which the exclusion operates.
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Section 74A’s possible extension concerns the time for passing the order after notice issuance. It is not a blanket extension of the forty-two-month period for issuing the notice. The authority must satisfy the statutory conditions and act before the original order period expires.
Common mistakes that produce wrong answers
- Using the notice date as the starting point. For ordinary demands, the annual-return due date is generally central; for erroneous refunds, use the refund date.
- Counting only years. The section 73 and 74 rules also require a minimum lead time between notice and order, while section 74A has a separate notice and order structure.
- Applying section 74A to an older year. The FY, not the year in which the officer acts, determines the main framework.
- Treating a fraud label as conclusive. The allegation must be legally established; CBIC Circular 185/17/2022-GST deals with consequences when it is not.
- Ignoring erroneous-refund treatment. A refund-date calculation can differ materially from an annual-return calculation.
- Relying on an old FAQ without checking amendments. Historic CBIC explanations do not contain the complete FY 2024-25 onward answer.
- Assuming a reply deadline from the limitation period. The recipient’s response date is the one printed in the notice and governed by applicable procedure.
How to compare two notices or limitation arguments
Compare like with like. Use five axes: the FY and section; non-fraud versus fraud allegations; tax or ITC demand versus erroneous refund; notice deadline versus adjudication-order deadline; and any stay, exclusion or valid extension. Two notices both described as “three-year” cases may still have different last days if their annual-return due dates differ. Likewise, a five-year description does not answer whether the six-month notice lead time was met.
What to verify before relying on a limitation objection
- The exact section and subsection printed in the SCN.
- The FY or refund date covered by each demand.
- The annual-return due date used by the officer and evidence supporting it.
- The date of issuance and legally effective service of the notice.
- The statutory deadline for the order and the date of any order already passed.
- All court stays, government extensions, exclusion provisions and commencement notifications.
- The matching State or Union Territory GST enactment where the proceeding is not solely under the central law.
- Whether later amendments or administrative directions changed the applicable computation.
Bottom line
For periods up to FY 2023-24, test section 73’s non-fraud route or section 74’s fraud route, using the annual-return due date or erroneous-refund date and checking the required notice lead time before the order deadline. For FY 2024-25 onward, section 74A sets a forty-two-month notice window and generally a twelve-month order period after notice, with a tightly limited possible extension. Because stays, exclusions, service and jurisdiction can change the result, a live SCN should be reviewed against the actual documents by a GST tax adviser or indirect-tax lawyer.
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