GSTN Advisory on Issuance of Notices/Orders without Digital Signatures of Issuing Authorities

The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has issued an advisory on the Issuance of Notices/Orders without Digital Signatures of Issuing Authorities.

The Advisory Read as Follows:

Doubts have been created regarding the validity of documents issued by the tax officers on the common portal viz. Show cause Notices, Orders of Assessment, Refund Orders etc. which are not containing the Digital signatures on the pdf document downloaded from the common portal.

In this context, it is important to note that such documents (i.e., SCN/Orders) are generated on the common portal using the officer’s login via Digital Signatures.

Further, these documents being computer generated on the command of the officer, may not require physical signatures of the officer as these documents can be issued by the officer only after logging into the common portal using Digital Signature.

Furthermore, because these documents are computer generated on the officer’s command, physical signatures may not be required, as they can only be issued by the officer after login into the common portal using Digital Signature.

Thus, all these documents in JSON format containing the order details along with the issuing officer details are stored in the GST system with the digital signature of the issuing officer.

The validity of the document in question vis-à-vis who and for what purpose these documents have been issued can also be verified by the taxpayer pre-login as well as after login from the GST common portal by navigating to the following path.

Login to www.gst.gov.in –> Dashboard –> Services –> User Services –> Verify RFN

All communications from the officers to the taxpayer/ any other person initiated through the system can also be verified pre-login through the link.

It is further mentioned that all the critical actions on the part of officers are performed through digital signature authentication of the officer concerned who is authorised to take that action. These actions are:

1. Issue of any notice in any module.

2. Issue of any order in any module.

3. Issue of any refund order.