REFUND

A GST refund is a process by which registered taxpayers can claim a reversal of excess taxes paid or unutilised Input Tax Credit (ITC) from the government. Under Section 54 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, applications must be filed online within two years from the relevant date, and the refund amount must exceed ₹1,000. 

Types of GST Refunds

Taxpayers can claim refunds under multiple scenarios, including: 

• Excess Cash Balance: Leftover funds in the Electronic Cash Ledger.

• Export of Goods/Services: Making zero-rated supplies either under a Bond/LUT (without paying tax) or by paying IGST.

• Inverted Duty Structure: ITC accumulated when the tax rate on raw inputs is higher than the tax rate on final finished goods.

• SEZ Supplies: Goods or services supplied to Special Economic Zone (SEZ) units or developers.

• Deemed Exports: Supplies considered as exports where tax is paid up-front.

Processing Timeline & Document Flow

Form                                     Purpose                                 Action / Timeline

RFD-01 Main Refund Application Filed by the taxpayer on the portal.

RFD-02 Official Acknowledgement Issued by the tax officer within 15 

days if the form is complete.

RFD-03 Deficiency Memo Issued within 15 days if 

information is missing; triggers an

auto-credit of debited funds back 

to your ledger so you can file a

fresh application.

RFD-04 Provisional Refund Grants 90% of the zero-rated

supply claim upfront within 7 days

of acknowledgement.

RFD-05 / RFD-06   Payment Order & Sanction Final approval order (RFD-06) and

disbursement notice (RFD-05)

sent to the bank within 60 days

of application.

RFD-01W Application Withdrawal Can be submitted by the taxpayer

only before the RFD-02

acknowledgement is issued.