Section 103 limits the reach of an advance ruling. It binds the applicant and the officers dealing with the applicant — no one else — and only so long as the law and facts are unchanged.
Key points
- Under section 103(1) of the CGST Act, 2017 an advance ruling of the Authority or Appellate Authority is binding only on the applicant, and on the concerned and jurisdictional officers in respect of the applicant.
- A ruling of the National Appellate Authority binds the applicants and all registered persons with the same PAN, and their officers (section 103(1A)).
- A ruling ceases to bind if the law, facts or circumstances on which it was based change (section 103(2)).
- Rulings have persuasive value for others but are not precedents; they can be challenged by writ petition (Columbia Sportswear, Supreme Court, 2012).
The provisions
103(1)–(2)Binding effect
Statutory text
(1) The advance ruling pronounced by the Authority or the Appellate Authority under this Chapter shall be binding only-
(a) on the applicant who had sought it in respect of any matter referred to in sub section (2) of section 97 for advance ruling;
(b) on the concerned officer or the jurisdictional officer in respect of the applicant.
1[(1A) The Advance Ruling pronounced by the National Appellate Authority under this Chapter shall be binding on-
(a) the applicants, being distinct persons, who had sought the ruling under sub-section (1) of section 101B and all registered persons having the same Permanent Account Number issued under the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961.);
(b) the concerned officers and the jurisdictional officers in respect of the applicants referred to in clause (a) and the registered persons having the same Permanent Account Number issued under the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961).]
(2) The advance ruling referred to in sub-section (1) 2[and sub-section (1A)] shall be binding unless the law, facts or circumstances supporting the original advance ruling have changed.
*Enforced w.e.f. 1st July, 2017.
1. Inserted by s.107 of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2019 (23 of 2019). This amendment shall be effective from a date to be notified.
2. Inserted by s.107 of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2019 (23 of 2019). This amendment shall be effective from a date to be notified.
Sub-section (1A) on National Appellate Authority rulings was inserted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2019 and is recorded by CBIC as effective from a date to be notified.
Case on this provision
Columbia Sportswear Co v Director of Income Tax, Bangalore
(2012) 11 SCC 224 · 30.07.2012 · Supreme Court, 3 Judges (S.H. Kapadia CJI, A.K. Patnaik, Swatanter Kumar JJ.)
- Facts
- A foreign company obtained an advance ruling from the income-tax Authority for Advance Rulings on whether its Indian liaison office created a permanent establishment, and challenged it directly in the Supreme Court under Article 136.
- Held
- An advance ruling, though binding and final under the Act, is subject to judicial review: it may be challenged under Articles 226 and 227 before the High Court, and the Supreme Court should ordinarily not entertain such challenges directly. The High Court should hear such petitions expeditiously.
- Since then
- The reasoning applies to GST advance rulings, which are likewise final under the Act with no further statutory appeal; High Courts entertain writ petitions against rulings of the Appellate Authorities.
- Here
- A GST advance ruling binds only the parties in section 103, and an aggrieved applicant or the department may seek judicial review in the High Court.
Statutory text as published on the CBIC tax information portal, as on 03.10.2026; the numbered notes record each amendment. Official source
Common questions
- Is a GST advance ruling binding on other taxpayers?
- No. Under section 103 of the CGST Act it binds only the applicant and the officers dealing with it, and only while the law and facts are unchanged.
Commentary and case notes checked against the judgments and CBIC sources on 04.10.2026.
What it means
Because a ruling binds only the applicant, the same question may be decided differently for another taxpayer, or for the same business's registration in another State. A later judgment of a High Court or the Supreme Court on the point is a change in the "law" that ends the ruling's binding effect.