CBIC notifies Central Goods and Services Tax (Removal of Difficulties) Order, 2020 [Read Notification]

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on Thursday notified the Central Goods and Services Tax (Removal of Difficulties) Order, 2020.

The Board with the objective of removal of difficulties clarified that for the purpose of calculating the period of thirty days for filing an application for revocation of cancellation of registration under Section 30(1) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 for those registered persons who were served notice under clause (b) or clause (c) of Section 29(2) in the manner as provided in clause (c) or clause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 169 and where cancellation order was passed up to June 12, 2020, the later of the Date of service of the said cancellation order; or 31st day of August 2020 shall be considered.

Section 29 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 provides for cancellation of registration by the proper officer in situations such as a registered person has contravened such provisions of the Act or the rules made thereunder as may be prescribed; or a person paying tax under section 10 has not furnished returns for three consecutive tax periods; or any registered person, other than a person specified in clause (b), has not furnished returns for a continuous period of six months; or any person who has taken voluntary registration under sub-section (3) of section 25 has not commenced business within six months from the date of registration; or registration has been obtained by means of fraud, willful misstatement or suppression of facts.  Provided that the proper officer shall not cancel the registration without giving the person an opportunity of being heard.

“A large number of registrations have been cancelled under sub-section (2) of section 29 of the said Act by the proper officer by serving notices as per clause (c) and clause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 169 of the said Act and the period of thirty days provided for application for revocation of cancellation order in sub-section (1) of section 30 of the said Act, the period for filing appeal under section (1) of section 107 of the said Act and also the period of condoning the delay provided in sub-section (4) of Section 107 of the said Act has elapsed; the registered persons whose registration have been cancelled under clause (b) or clause (c) of sub-section (2) of section 29 of the said Act are unable to get their cancellation of registration revoked despite having fulfilled all the requirements for revocation of cancellation of registration; the said Act being a new Act, these taxpayers could not apply for revocation of cancellation within the specified time period of thirty days from the date of service of the cancellation order, as a result whereof certain difficulties have arisen in giving effects to the provisions of sub- section (1) of section 30 of the said Act,” the notification said.