ICAI Issues Handbook on Interest, Late Fee and Penalties under GST - December 2025 Edition

The Institute ofChartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has issued the December 2025 Edition of the “Handbook on Interest, Late Fee and Penalties under GST”, providing accounting and finance professionals with an updated reference material on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime .

The GST framework, since its inception in India in 2017 has been dynamic, with regulatory statutory amendments being conducted every year, including changes brought forth by the recommendations of the GST Council meetings conducted periodically.

Released by the GST & Indirect Taxes Committee of ICAI, the latest handbook incorporates within its latest legislative amendments, relevant notifications, circulars and clarifications issued by the Government all the way up to 5th December, 2025.

GST has often been addressed as a one of the most litigated and compliance-sensitive areas under India’s tax framework and this publication by the ICAI seeks to aid chartered accountants, tax professionals and businesses in navigating the GST ecosystem as it becomes increasingly data-driven and compliance-oriented.

The 130-page handbook is structured into three comprehensive chapters that includes Interest, Late Fees, and Penalties under GST.

The interest provisions are explained with particular emphasis on Section 50 of the CGSTAct, 2017 and the computation mechanism under Rule 88B. The handbook details the circumstances leading up to interest liability, including default in payment of tax and other penal provisions regarding wrongful availment and utilisation of input tax credit (ITC) among others.

The section on late fees pertinent to issues that taxpayers may face due to delayed filing of returns, statements and other compliance requirements under GST. This part discusses provisions such as Section 47 of the CGST Act, in tandem with relevant notifications governing late fees, applicable caps and relief measures.

The third portion pertains to penalties. This chapter analyses the penal provisions under GST in the context of non-compliance, misreporting and contraventions of statutory obligations of GST registrants.

This chapter details some important aspects of penalty, including that admitting liability to pay tax does not amount to admission of wrongdoing that can attract penalty in all cases. That is, penalty proceedings are independent of tax demand.

All chapters give a detailed overview of the relevant sections and also contain questions and answers of the most commonly recurring instances that are governed by each section as well.

ICAI President CA Charanjot Singh Nanda has penned a foreword where he notes that GST steadily matured through strong policy interventions, gaining resilience and adaptability over time and that the handbook offers timely and practical guidance on the GST regime 

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