Published 13 October 2026
When a GST demand is confirmed, the portal shows a one-page FORM GST DRC-07 with a table of tax, interest and penalty and a date for payment. Behind it there should be an order, signed by the officer, that sets out the facts and reasons. Sometimes the two disagree. Sometimes only one is available. The date on which the order was issued or communicated then matters, because three clocks start from it. One runs for paying at a reduced penalty, one for asking for rectification, and one for appealing. They do not run together.
This guide covers the order under section 73, 74 or 74A, the DRC-07 summary, rectification under section 161 with its DRC-08 summary, and the time for appeal under section 107. The appeal itself, and the pre-deposit, are in Appeals and Pre-Deposit.
The order and its summary
The order is made under section 73(9), 74(9) or 74A(6), “after considering the representation, if any, made by the person chargeable with tax”. Section 75 sets its content:
- “the proper officer, in his order, shall set out the relevant facts and the basis of his decision” (sub-section (6));
- the amount “shall not be in excess of the amount specified in the notice and no demand shall be confirmed on the grounds other than the grounds specified in the notice” (sub-section (7));
- interest “shall be payable whether or not specified in the order” (sub-section (9)).
Rule 142(5) requires that “a summary of the order … shall be uploaded electronically in FORM GST DRC-07”, specifying the amount of tax, interest and penalty payable. Under rule 142(6), “the order referred to in sub-rule (5) shall be treated as the Notice for recovery”.
DRC-07 states the order number and date, the financial year and tax period, the issues, and the sections under which the demand is created. It gives a demand table by Act, period and place of supply. It closes: “You are hereby directed to make the payment by <Date> failing which proceedings shall be initiated against you to recover the outstanding dues.”
The portal’s FAQ says that when an order is issued the person receives “two documents i.e. Order and summary of the order in Form GST DRC-07”. An order dropping the proceedings is issued instead where the reply is accepted or the amount has been paid.
CBIC’s Instruction No. 04/2023-GST of 23 November 2023 directed officers to upload DRC-07 for every order. It recorded that orders served “manually only” without the summary “may also impact further proceedings of appeal and/ or recovery”.
When the order and DRC-07 do not match
The courts have drawn a line between a summary uploaded late and a summary with no order behind it.
M/s Godavari Commodities Ltd v State of Jharkhand (Jharkhand High Court, Division Bench, W.P.(T) Nos. 3908 and 3909 of 2020, 18 April 2022; read on Indian Kanoon, not found on gst.bharattax.net). The person received a DRC-01A, then only a DRC-01 summary with no show cause notice and no date for a reply or hearing. Then came a DRC-07 that gave the order date as 11 September 2020. No order was communicated. In court the State produced an order dated 13 August 2020. The order-sheet did not mention it, and no explanation was given for the different date. The Court held that “a summary of show-cause notice as issued in Form GST DRC-01 … cannot substitute the requirement of a proper show-cause notice”. It found no hearing had been given under section 75(4). It quashed the summaries of notice, the order and the DRC-07 summaries. The State was left free to start afresh.
M/s Aparna Collection v Union of India (Delhi High Court, W.P.© 3449/2026 and 3501/2026, 5 October 2026). In one petition, the order-in-original was dated 29 January 2025 and the DRC-07 21 February 2025. The petitioner argued that the later date made the order time-barred under section 74(10). The Court followed its earlier decision in Rishi Enterprises v Additional Commissioner, Central Tax, Delhi North (W.P.© 4374/2025, 20 August 2025), which it quoted. Section 74(10) “merely requires the order and not the DRC-07 to be mandatorily issued within the period of limitation”. DRC-07 “is merely a summary of the order issued”. The quoted passage adds that DRC-07 “ought to ideally accompany the order or should be uploaded within a reasonable time, as without the DRC-07, no appeal can be filed and no demand can be enforced”.
The two lines are consistent. An order issued in time is not invalidated by a later summary. A summary cannot stand in for an order or a notice that was never made.
Paying after the order
| Regime | Reduced settlement after the order | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Section 73 | None. Tax, interest and the penalty as ordered. | Section 73(9) |
| Section 74 | Tax, interest and 50 per cent penalty “within thirty days of communication of the order” | Section 74(11) |
| Section 74A, non-fraud | None | Section 74A(5)(i) and (6) |
| Section 74A, fraud or suppression | Tax, interest and 50 per cent penalty “within sixty days of communication of the order” | Section 74A(9)(iii) |
Under the reduced settlements, “all proceedings in respect of the said notice shall be deemed to be concluded”.
Section 78 gives three months “from the date of service of such order” before recovery proceedings start. The proviso allows the officer, “for reasons to be recorded in writing”, to require payment within a shorter period. Recovery is covered in Recovery, and Paying in Instalments.
Payment against the order is made against the demand in the electronic liability register. An amount already paid through DRC-03 is not automatically set against the demand. It is linked by filing DRC-03A under rule 142(2B), unless a DRC-05 concluded the proceedings for that payment. The procedure is in Before a Notice: DRC-01A and Paying Voluntarily.
Rectification: section 161
Section 161 allows any authority that has passed an order, notice or other document to “rectify any error which is apparent on the face of record”. It may do so:
- “on its own motion”; or
- “where such error is brought to its notice by any officer … or by the affected person within a period of three months from the date of issue of such decision or order”.
Three provisos follow:
- no rectification “after a period of six months from the date of issue”;
- the six-month limit does not apply where the rectification “is purely in the nature of correction of a clerical or arithmetical error, arising from any accidental slip or omission”;
- “where such rectification adversely affects any person, the principles of natural justice shall be followed”.
What rectification is not. It corrects an error apparent on the record. It does not reopen the merits. In Kapil Raj Anand v GST Officer, Ward 109, Delhi (Delhi High Court, W.P.© 7339/2024, 8 September 2026; read on Indian Kanoon, not found on gst.bharattax.net), the digitally signed portal order for 2018-19 said the proceedings were “dropped”. Its own annexure upheld the demand on one of four issues and quantified it. The officer’s corrigendum, 45 days later, corrected the recital. The Court held that section 161 “cannot be used to reconsider the merits or to create, under the guise of rectification, an adjudication which had not earlier been made”. This corrigendum made the portal order conform to the decision actually recorded, so it fell within section 161. Because it neither withdrew any relief nor enlarged the demand, the third proviso did not require a hearing. The Court directed the department to upload DRC-07 and DRC-08 if they were not already available. It allowed an appeal within four weeks of their availability.
No prescribed application form. Section 161 prescribes no form for an affected person’s request. Rule 142(7) concerns the officer’s side. Where an order is rectified, “or where an order uploaded on the system has been withdrawn”, the officer uploads “a summary of the rectification order or of the withdrawal order” in FORM GST DRC-08. DRC-08 shows the original order number and date, the rectification order number and date, and an “ARN, if applied for rectification”. It carries the demand as rectified. Its withdrawal option is framed for orders under section 129.
Portal steps. The GST portal provides an application facility. Its manual and FAQs on “Filing Application for Rectification of Order” describe the following:
- Open the case under View Notices and Orders, go to the ORDERS tab, and use the “Request for Rectification” link against the order.
- Generate the reference number, select a reason from the list, and state the grounds. Attach documents, verify, and file with DSC or EVC.
- An ARN is issued, and the case shows “Rectification application filed”.
- If the rectification would adversely affect the person, the officer issues a notice and may fix a personal hearing. The FAQ allows up to three adjournments.
- The outcome is a rectified order, with DRC-08 and an updated liability register, or a “Rejection of application for rectification”.
The portal’s FAQ adds two statements of its own. The application must be made “within a period of three months, from the date of issue of such order”. And “if appeal is filed against assessment order, then application of rectification of Order, against that order, cannot be filed”. The first follows section 161. The second is the portal’s rule. Section 161 does not say it.
The clock for appeal
Section 107(1) gives three months “from the date on which the said decision or order is communicated”. Under section 107(4), the Appellate Authority may allow “a further period of one month” if the appellant “was prevented by sufficient cause”.
Section 107 contains no provision excluding the time taken by a rectification application. Where a rectification order changes the demand, the DRC-08 carries the demand as rectified.
Pre-deposit. Under section 107(6), no appeal may be filed unless the appellant has paid two amounts. The first is the admitted amount in full. The second is “a sum equal to ten per cent. of the remaining amount of tax in dispute … subject to a maximum of twenty crore rupees”. From 1 October 2025, a proviso covers orders demanding penalty without any tax: the appeal requires “ten per cent. of the said penalty”. Under section 107(7), payment of the pre-deposit stays recovery of the balance. The detail, and the APL-01 and APL-02 procedure, are in the appeals guide linked above.
After an appeal. Where the Appellate Authority, the Tribunal or a court holds that fraud or suppression is not established, the consequences differ by regime. Under section 75(2), a section 74 demand is redetermined “as if the notice were issued under sub-section (1) of section 73”. Under section 75(2A), a section 74A penalty falls to the non-fraud rate. An order to be passed on remand must issue “within two years from the date of communication of the said direction” under section 75(3).
What to have ready
| Item | Where it comes from |
|---|---|
| The order with all annexures, and DRC-07 | Portal, ORDERS tab |
| The date the order was issued and the date it was communicated (portal, email or post) | Portal; section 169 service records |
| The notice, the DRC-06 reply and hearing records, to compare with the order | Portal |
| DRC-03 payments made earlier on the same issues | Portal; DRC-03 Register |
| Electronic liability register entries for the demand | Portal |
| Any error apparent on the record, with the document that shows it | The order and the record |
Who signs
The order is signed by the proper officer. DRC-07 and DRC-08 are uploaded by the officer. A rectification application, DRC-03, DRC-03A and APL-01 are filed by the authorised signatory with DSC or EVC.
Rights and duties at each step
- On the order. The person is entitled to an order with facts and reasons, within the notice, and to its DRC-07. He must pay within three months of service, or within any shorter period the officer sets for recorded reasons, unless an appeal stays recovery.
- On an error. He may point out an error apparent on the record within three months of the date of issue. Any rectification that affects him adversely must follow natural justice.
- On appeal. He may appeal within three months of communication, extendable by one month for sufficient cause, on paying the pre-deposit.
What can still be put right
- An arithmetical or clerical slip can be rectified at any time.
- An error apparent on the record can be rectified within six months of the date of issue.
- A payment made through DRC-03 can be linked to the demand through DRC-03A.
- A fraud-case demand can be settled at 50 per cent penalty within thirty or sixty days of communication.
- Disputes on merits go to appeal.
The steps in order
- Download the order, its annexures and DRC-07. Check that they agree, and note the dates of issue and communication.
- Compare the order with the notice and the reply: the amount, the grounds, the reasons, and whether the hearing was given.
- In a fraud case, decide whether to pay at 50 per cent penalty within thirty days (section 74) or sixty days (section 74A).
- If there is an error apparent on the record, apply for rectification within three months of the date of issue, keeping the appeal deadline in view.
- File DRC-03A for any earlier DRC-03 payment on the same issues.
- If appealing, pay the admitted amount and the pre-deposit, and file APL-01 within three months of communication.
The next guide covers recovery of a confirmed demand under sections 78 and 79, and payment in instalments under section 80.