Overview
Refunds are the department's debt to you, and both statutes say so with interest: income-tax refunds carry Section 244A interest for every month of delay, and GST refunds (exports, inverted duty structure, excess cash ledger) must be processed in 60 days, after which 6% interest runs automatically. In practice refunds stall on adjustments against disputed old demands, endless 'deficiency memos', or silence. The remedies escalate cleanly: rectification and grievance (CPGRAMS/portal), the jurisdictional officer, and — for refunds held without lawful reason — writ petitions, where High Courts order release with interest and sometimes costs.
Key Provisions — Income-tax Act + CGST Act, 1961 / 2017
- Section 244A — interest on income-tax refunds from the first day of the assessment year (or payment date) till grant.
- Adjustment of refunds against old demands (Section 245) requires prior intimation and a chance to respond — silent adjustments are challengeable.
- GST Section 54 — 60-day processing; provisional 90% for exporters; Section 56 interest on delay.
- Deficiency memos must be issued within 15 days and only once per application in the proper course — serial memos are a stalling pattern courts dislike.
What You Can Get
How We Handle It
Refund Autopsy
Where exactly it is stuck — adjustment, memo, verification, or plain silence.
Rectify & Respond
245 responses, memo replies, and rectification applications done right.
Grievance Escalation
Portal grievances and jurisdictional-officer representations with deadlines.
Writ if Needed
High Court petition for refunds held without lawful cause — with interest and costs.
Frequently Asked Questions
My refund was adjusted against a demand I never knew existed — can I get it back?
If the Section 245 intimation-and-response step was skipped, yes — the adjustment is procedurally bad. And the underlying old demand itself is often a rectifiable error from a decade-old mismatch.
My export GST refunds are 8 months stuck 'under verification' — normal?
No. Sixty days is the law; 'verification' is not an indefinite state. Interest is already running, and a firm representation followed by writ pressure releases these routinely.
Legal Connect connects you with independent tax advocates; we are not a law firm and this page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Notice deadlines are short — call +91 22 6555 3444 early.