Uploading GST show cause notices or demand orders on the common GST portal is a legally valid mode of service under Section 169(1)(d) of the CGST/SGST Act, 2017

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Uploading GST show cause notices or demand orders on the common GST portal is a legally valid mode of service under Section 169(1)(d) of the CGST/SGST Act, 2017 - The Kerala High Court


The Kerala High Court has held that uploading GST show cause notices or demand orders on the common GST portal is a legally valid mode of service under Section 169(1)(d) of the CGST/SGST Act, 2017. In the case of T.K. Navas v. Commissioner of GST, the petitioner argued that service via portal alone failed to satisfy natural justice requirements. The court, however, noted that Section 169 lists portal based delivery alongside other modes—and relying on the precedent set in Sunil Kumar K. v. State Tax Officer–I, Kottarakkara, concluded that such electronic service is legally sufficient.


Moreover, the judgment emphasizes that taxpayers are responsible for monitoring the portal, and failure to access uploaded notices does not negate service. While one lamping recent decisions (e.g., Madras HC) stress that portal-only service may be insufficient if it leads to ex parte orders without any alternative attempt at notice, Kerala’s ruling confirms that, so long as one of the modes under Section 169 is used properly, it constitutes valid service. 


This aligns with a broader trend of shifting responsibility toward electronic vigilance in GST compliance.

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