CBIC Notifies Officer-Wise Monetary Limits For Tax Determination & Penalty Proceedings Under GST Regime
Rajnandini Dutta
22 Nov 2025 4:00 PM IST
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has issued Circular No. 254/11/2025-GST dated 27 October 2025, clarifying the assignment of “proper officers” for issuing show cause notices (SCNs) and passing orders under Sections 74A, 75(2) and 122 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The Board noted that until now, no specific officers had been...
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has issued Circular No. 254/11/2025-GST dated 27 October 2025, clarifying the assignment of “proper officers” for issuing show cause notices (SCNs) and passing orders under Sections 74A, 75(2) and 122 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
The Board noted that until now, no specific officers had been designated for;
- tax determination under Section 74A,
- re-assessment under Section 75(2) where charges of fraud are not upheld in appeal,
- penalty-only proceedings under Section 122,
- and issuance of DRC-01A pre-notice intimation under Rule 142(1A).
The circular eliminates any ambiguity by prescribing the rank of officers empowered to adjudicate matters under these provisions.
According to the circular, Superintendents, Deputy/Assistant Commissioners, and Joint/Additional Commissioners have been assigned as proper officers depending on the monetary value involved in the proceedings.
The jurisdiction will be determined based on the combined amount of CGST + IGST + cess, rather than the individual components of tax.
The circular further clarifies that where a Court, Tribunal or Appellate Authority holds that fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression is not established in a notice issued under Section 74, the same adjudicating authority must re-determine tax under Section 73, in accordance with Section 75(2).
For tax demand cases under Section 74A of CGST Act, the circular prescribes that matters up to ₹20 lakh will be handled by the Superintendent, matters above ₹20 lakh and up to ₹2 crore will be handled by the Deputy/Assistant Commissioner, and matters exceeding ₹2 crore will fall under the jurisdiction of the Additional/Joint Commissioner.
The same monetary thresholds apply for penalty-only proceedings under Section 122 of CGST Act
It is also clarified that when a penalty-only show cause notice under Section 122 covers both CGST and IGST, the officer's jurisdiction will be decided only on the combined penalty amount, not on the separate CGST and IGST figures. So even if one of them individually exceeds the limit of a lower officer, the total combined penalty alone will decide which rank of officer is competent to handle the case.
The clarification is to streamline departmental adjudication by eliminating ambiguity over jurisdiction, preventing issuance of notices by officers lacking statutory authority, and ensuring uniformity across field formations.