--- title: "GST refund rejected in RFD-06: check the order, then decide on an appeal" seoTitle: "GST refund rejected in RFD-06: check and appeal" description: "Check whether the officer followed the notice, reply and hearing steps before rejecting your refund, see what recent High Court rulings say, and appeal within three months." seoDescription: "GST refund rejected or reduced in RFD-06? Check the notice, reply time, hearing and grounds against recent High Court rulings, then appeal in APL-01 in time." topic: "After a rejection" published: 2026-10-22 checked: 2026-10-22 order: 37 updated: 2026-10-23 --- **Before rejecting all or part of a refund, the officer must issue a notice in RFD-08 with reasons, allow 15 days to reply in RFD-09 and give you an opportunity to be heard. If you disagree with the final order in RFD-06, you can appeal to the Appellate Authority within three months of the order being communicated.** [CGST Rules, rule 92(3)](https://taxinformation.cbic.gov.in/content/html/tax_repository/gst/rules/cgst_rules/active/chapter10/rule92_v1.00.html); [CGST Act, section 107(1)](https://www.indiacode.nic.in/indiacode/bitstream/123456789/15689/1/A2017-12.pdf#page=85). This guide is for a refund of accumulated input tax credit (ITC) on exports of services under LUT that has been rejected or reduced. If you have a deficiency memo (RFD-03) or a notice (RFD-08) that you have not yet answered, start with the [RFD-03 and RFD-08 guide](/guides/gst-refund-deficiency-memo-rfd-03/). ## Gather the record first Download from the portal and keep together: - the RFD-08 notice, with its date of receipt; - your RFD-09 reply and its acknowledgement; - every hearing notice, and any request you made to change a hearing date; - the RFD-06 order, with the date it was communicated to you; - the application, Statement 3, Annexure B and the documents you filed with it. The appeal deadline runs from the date the order was communicated, so record that date first. ## Check the order against the notice Rule 92(3) sets the steps: a notice stating why the officer considers the claim inadmissible, 15 days to reply, consideration of the reply, and a hearing before any rejection. High Courts have set aside refund rejections that missed one of these steps. | Check | What courts have said | | ---------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Does the RFD-08 state real reasons? | The Gujarat High Court set aside rejections where the notices gave the ground only as "other": a vague notice cannot support the order, and a hearing does not cure it. [ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, 24 November 2021](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/113623744/) | | Were you allowed 15 days to reply? | The Bombay High Court held a notice allowing seven days contrary to rule 92(3), and quashed the rejection. [Golden Cryo, 12 March 2026](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/129483710/) | | Were you heard, including on a request to move the hearing? | The Bombay High Court quashed a rejection of an ITeS exporter's claim passed without a hearing after the company asked to reschedule because of heavy rain. [Infinx Services, 16 April 2026](https://www.livelawbiz.com/pdf_upload/2026/04/22/infinix-services-pvt-ltd-bhc-669293.pdf) | | Does the decision rest only on grounds in the notice? | The Calcutta High Court set aside a rejection of an LUT export refund after the appellate stage added grounds that were not in the notice: the notice "forms the foundational basis of the entire proceeding". [Tirupati Vancom, 22 September 2026](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/196126500/) | | Was the claim rejected as time-barred through a deficiency memo? | The Madras High Court held that a deficiency memo cannot be issued on the ground that the application is time-barred; to reject a claim, the officer must issue a notice under rule 92(3). [L.S. Pacific Wood Tech, 1 September 2026](https://www.livelawbiz.com/pdf_upload/2026/10/07/lspacific-wood-tech-704914.pdf) | | Does the order give a finding on each ground? | The Bombay High Court sent back a rejection that recorded no specific finding, for a reasoned order. [Apollo India Services, 29 April 2026](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/71771006/) | In each of these cases the court set the order aside and sent the claim back for a fresh decision after a proper notice and hearing. None of them decided that the refund itself was payable. A procedural defect gets the claim reconsidered; the merits still have to be shown. Abhishek Raja Ram summarised the [Calcutta](https://x.com/abhishekrajaram/status/2111116465332224439) and [Madras](https://x.com/abhishekrajaram/status/2104119853473005711) rulings on X. ## Appeal to the Appellate Authority An appeal against an RFD-06 order goes to the Appellate Authority: - **Form:** file FORM GST APL-01 electronically with the relevant documents. The appeal counts as filed when the final acknowledgement is issued. [CGST Rules, rule 108](https://taxinformation.cbic.gov.in/content/html/tax_repository/gst/rules/cgst_rules/active/chapter13/rule108_v1.00.html). - **Time limit:** three months from the date the order was communicated. The Appellate Authority can allow one further month if you show sufficient cause for the delay. [Section 107(1) and (4)](https://www.indiacode.nic.in/indiacode/bitstream/123456789/15689/1/A2017-12.pdf#page=85). - **Pre-deposit:** section 107(6) requires payment of any admitted amount and 10% of the tax in dispute before an appeal. Have your adviser confirm what, if anything, applies to a refund rejection. - **Protection against a lower refund:** the Appellate Authority cannot pass an order reducing the refund unless you have had a reasonable opportunity to show cause against it. [Section 107(11), first proviso](https://www.indiacode.nic.in/indiacode/bitstream/123456789/15689/1/A2017-12.pdf#page=86). If the Appellate Authority's order also goes against you, a further appeal lies to the GST Appellate Tribunal under [section 112](https://www.indiacode.nic.in/indiacode/bitstream/123456789/15689/1/A2017-12.pdf#page=92). Several of the rulings above came from writ petitions to a High Court instead; whether that route suits a case is a question for your lawyer. ## Decide what to do with the rejected credit For an amount rejected under rule 92, the debited ITC can be re-credited through PMT-03 only after the appeal is finally rejected or after you give a written undertaking not to appeal. Decide on the appeal before you sign an undertaking. The [RFD-03 and RFD-08 guide](/guides/gst-refund-deficiency-memo-rfd-03/#5-check-what-happened-to-the-debited-credit) explains the re-credit. If the order was correct and the claim itself was wrong, a fresh claim for the period depends on the two-year time limit in section 54(1) and on what the order decided. Have that reviewed before you file again. A refund that is later paid after an appeal can carry interest; see [interest on a delayed GST refund](/guides/interest-on-delayed-gst-refund/). If the appeal succeeds, the refund is not paid automatically. You file a fresh RFD-01 for the amount allowed. See [getting the refund paid after the appeal is allowed](/guides/gst-refund-after-appeal-allowed/).