Migration of existing taxpayers
Section 139, CGST Act
Straight from CBIC
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Amendment history
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In one line
Section 139 provided for MIGRATION of taxpayers registered under the earlier laws (VAT, service tax, excise) to GST, granting provisional and then final registration.
What this means in practice
The parts that actually decide cases — the things a practitioner checks first.
Spent for new taxpayers; it still matters when a provisional registration from 2017 is questioned or a migration-era GSTIN is under scrutiny.
How this provision is built
The skeleton, clause by clause — useful when a notice cites a specific sub-clause.
The exact words of the law
914 characters, uneditedReproduced from the CBIC text. We explain it above — but you should always be able to read it yourself.
Read the full provision+
(1) On and from the appointed day, every person registered under any of the existing laws and having a valid Permanent Account Number shall be issued a certificate of registration on provisional basis, subject to such conditions and in such form and manner as may be prescribed , which unless replaced by a final certificate of registration under sub-section (2), shall be liable to be cancelled if the conditions so prescribed are not complied with.
(2) The final certificate of registration shall be granted in such form and manner and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed.
(3) The certificate of registration issued to a person under sub-section
(1) shall be deemed to have not been issued if the said registration is cancelled in pursuance of an application filed by such person that he was not liable to registration under section 22 or section 24 .
What changed, and when
The amendment trail, newest first — because the version that applies to your case depends on the period.
2017-07-01 · Commenced
Provision as originally enacted in the CGST Act, 2017 (Act 12 of 2017) and brought into force w.e.f. 01-07-2017.
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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 If you spot anything out of date, tell us and we’ll fix it — this hub is checked daily against CBIC.
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