Power not to recover Goods and Services Tax not levied or short-levied as a result of general practice.
Section 11A, CGST Act
Straight from CBIC
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Amendment history
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In one line
The Government may direct that GST not levied or short-levied because of a general practice across the trade shall not be recovered for that period. Inserted by the Finance (No.2) Act 2024 – it legitimises an industry-wide practice; it is not an individual waiver, and it does not refund tax already paid.
What this means in practice
The parts that actually decide cases — the things a practitioner checks first.
Inserted by the Finance (No.2) Act 2024. It lets the Government stop recovery where a general practice of non-levy or short-levy prevailed across the trade – and expressly gives no refund of tax already paid, so a taxpayer who complied gains nothing.
The exact words of the law
1,107 characters, uneditedReproduced from the CBIC text. We explain it above — but you should always be able to read it yourself.
Read the full provision+
(a) a practice was, or is, generally prevalent regarding levy of central tax (including non-levy thereof) on any supply of goods or services or both; and
(b) such supplies were, or are, liable to,—
(i) central tax, in cases where according to the said practice, central tax was not, or is not being, levied, or (ii) a higher amount of central tax than what was, or is being, levied, in accordance with the said practice, the Government may, on the recommendation of the Council, by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that the whole of the central tax payable on such supplies, or, as the case may be, the central tax in excess of that payable on such supplies, but for the said practice, shall not be required to be paid in respect of the supplies on which the central tax was not, or is not being levied, or was, or is being, short-levied, in accordance with the said practice.]
High Court cases on this section
Judgments in our index that cite this provision. Being listed does not make a case good law — it may have been appealed or distinguished since. Read it before relying on it.
M/s.Steel Authority of India Limited v. Office of the Commissioner of GST and CE
Read the judgment PDF →
PAWAN KUMAR SHARMA v. THE COMMISSIONER, CENTRAL GOODS AND SERVICES TAX AND CENTRAL EXCISE
Read the judgment PDF →
What changed, and when
The amendment trail, newest first — because the version that applies to your case depends on the period.
2024-08-16 · Insertedbyse
Inserted by section 116 of The Finance Act (No. 2) Act, 2024 No. 15 of 2024 dated 16.08.2024.
Where this comes from
Text reproduced from the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, as available on 2026-09-05. The explanation and practice notes above are GSTZone’s own, written for this hub. If you spot anything out of date, tell us and we’ll fix it — this hub is checked daily against CBIC.
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