GSTN has issued an Advisory dated 28/08/2025 stating that a system enhancement has been carried out to facilitate the filing of order based refunds under the category “Assessment/ Enforcement/ Appeal/ Revision/ Any Other Order” (ASSORD). This enhancement has been introduced to address limitations previously faced by taxpayers in claiming refunds against specific demand orders.
Previous Functionality
Under the earlier system, refund applications under ASSORD were permitted only when:
i) The cumulative balance of the Demand ID was negative.
ii) The status of the Demand ID was marked as “Refund Due”.
Due to this restriction, refunds could not be claimed even if individual components (minor heads) reflected negative balances, provided the overall Demand ID balance was zero or positive. Numerous representations had been received from taxpayers and tax officers highlighting this issue.
System Changes Implemented
In response to the above, the following modifications have been incorporated into the GST portal:
i) Refunds are now permitted irrespective of the status of the Demand ID.
ii) Refunds may be claimed even when the cumulative balance is zero or positive, provided any minor head reflects a negative balance.
iii) In Form RFD-01, only negative balances shall be auto-populated. Refunds against positive balances shall not be permitted.
iv) The system shall suggest the most recent demand order number linked to the negative balance. This may include order-in-original, rectification order, or appellate order.
v) Tooltips have been provided near the Order Number and Demand ID fields to assist taxpayers in entering accurate details.
Additional Support
A detailed user manual and FAQs are proposed to be released shortly by the GSTN. Taxpayers encountering discrepancies or technical issues may raise a ticket with the GST helpdesk for resolution in due course.