As of 5 October 2026, GST arrest powers have not been removed. The GST Council is expected to consider the proposal at its 7 October meeting, but any change would require legislative action. Refund reforms are a separate matter: some risk-based provisional refund measures were recommended for operation from 1 November 2025, while other refund provisions described in January 2026 were still awaiting a notified effective date.
Can GST officers arrest taxpayers now?
Under the current-law description in The Indian Express’s 4 October 2026 report, Section 69 of the Central GST Act allows the Commissioner, when there are recorded “reasons to believe” that a person committed specified offences, to authorise a central tax officer to arrest that person. The report identifies fake invoices and fraudulent input tax credit as examples, and says the reasons must be supported by credible material and recorded in writing.
Arrest is a criminal-enforcement power; it is distinct from recovering tax or imposing monetary consequences. The report says non-compliance can separately result in tax recovery under the Act, interest under Section 50 and penalties under Section 122.
What arrest-provision change is the Council expected to consider?
The Indian Express reported that the Council was expected to discuss decriminalising offences and removing GST arrest provisions at its 7 October 2026 meeting. The report cites unnamed people familiar with the matter and says a final Council decision would be followed by legislative changes. Until a decision, legislation and commencement details are confirmed, this remains a proposal—not a change to the law.
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India Today’s 4 October report also describes possible changes to prosecution thresholds and offence categories, court authorisation for arrests, and continued recovery of tax, interest and penalties. These are source-attributed possibilities, not confirmed legal provisions. The Indian Express says intentional fraud could still be prosecuted and arrests could occur through the criminal code; that too is the report’s account of the proposal, not a settled rule.
Reported enforcement figures
The Indian Express reported 72,393 GST offence cases and 887 arrests by central GST formations during 2021–22 to 2024–25. It says arrests by state authorities are additional, so these figures are not a complete all-India count.
Will GST refunds get faster?
Refund facilitation is a separate reform track from the arrest proposal. At its 56th meeting in September 2025, the GST Council recommended risk-based provisional sanction of 90% of eligible refund claims for zero-rated supplies, subject to system risk identification and evaluation. Cases selected for detailed scrutiny and notified categories were excluded from provisional sanction. The stated operational date was 1 November 2025.
For inverted duty structure claims, the Council recommended 90% provisional sanction as well. The official release said central tax field formations would be directed to grant a provisional refund equal to 90% of the claimed amount, using risk identification and evaluation, from 1 November 2025 pending the required amendment to the CGST Act. These are conditional measures, not a guarantee that every claim will be paid promptly.
The Council also recommended removing the threshold for refunds arising from exports made with payment of tax, particularly to help small exporters using courier and postal modes. This recommendation is distinct from the later proposal concerning refunds below ₹1,000.
Refund status and timing
| Measure | Status and scope | Timing stated |
|---|---|---|
| 90% provisional refunds for zero-rated supplies | 56th GST Council meeting recommendation; risk-based, with scrutiny and notified-category exceptions | Operational date stated as 1 November 2025 |
| 90% provisional refunds for inverted duty structure claims | 56th meeting recommendation; risk-based and pending the required CGST Act amendment | Operational date stated as 1 November 2025 |
| Removal of the threshold for refunds on exports made with payment of tax | 56th meeting recommendation, including support for small courier and postal exporters | No separate effective date stated in the press release |
| 90% provisional inverted-duty refunds and refunds below ₹1,000 for specified exports | Finance Bill 2026 provisions as described by the GST Council Secretariat; commencement awaited | Effective date to be notified in coordination with States, according to the January 2026 newsletter |
The final row reflects the GST Council Secretariat’s January 2026 newsletter, which described the changes as Finance Bill provisions and said they would take effect from a date to be notified. Without that notification or a later authoritative update, they should not be treated as effective.
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What happens after the 7 October meeting?
The meeting’s outcome alone would not establish that arrest powers have changed. Readers should look for the Council’s official recommendation, the subsequent legislative text, and its commencement details. Until those steps are confirmed, the existing Section 69 framework remains the relevant description of arrest authority. The refund measures have their own status and timelines; they do not depend on the arrest proposal.
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