Types of GST Notices and How Long You Have to Reply

The common types of GST notices are the return reminder (GSTR-3A), the mismatch intimations (DRC-01B and DRC-01C), the scrutiny notice (ASMT-10), the registration cancellation notice (REG-17), the audit notice (ADT-01), the summons, and the show cause notice (DRC-01). Reply time runs from seven days to 30 days or more, depending on the form.

Why does the department send so many kinds of notice?

GST runs on self-assessment. You work out your own tax and file your own returns, and nobody checks them before you file. Notices are how the system checks afterwards. Some are sent by the portal automatically when two of your own returns disagree. Others are sent by an officer who has looked at your file. The first kind is usually settled in a day. The second kind deserves more care, because what you write becomes part of a record.

Most notices reach you on the portal under Services, User Services, View Notices and Orders, with a copy by email. Emails get missed, so look at the portal once a week.

The common notices and their time limits

What happens if you miss the date?

• GSTR-3A. The officer can assess your tax on his best judgment and issue an order in ASMT-13, without a second reminder. If you file the pending return within 60 days of that order, the order is treated as withdrawn. A further 60 days is allowed with an extra late fee of Rs 100 a day.
• DRC-01B. You cannot file GSTR-1 for the next period, and the unpaid amount can be recovered.
• DRC-01C. The excess credit can be demanded through a show cause notice.
• ASMT-10. The officer may move to audit, inspection or a demand notice. If your explanation is accepted, you get a closure in ASMT-12.
• REG-17. The registration can be cancelled, and you cannot sell as a registered person without it. See how to revoke a cancelled registration.
• Summons. Attendance is a legal duty. Do not skip it.

Show cause notices: section 73 or section 74A?

The demand notice is the serious one. Which section it quotes depends on the year. For periods up to 2023-24, section 73 covers cases without fraud. For 2024-25 onward, section 74A covers both fraud and non-fraud cases, and the officer must issue the notice within 42 months from the due date of that year's annual return and the order within 12 months after that.

The law gives you a clear exit in non-fraud cases. Pay the tax with interest before the notice and no notice is issued. Pay within 30 days of a section 73 notice, or within 60 days of a section 74A notice, and there is no penalty and the proceedings close. If it goes to an order, the penalty is 10 percent of the tax or Rs 10,000, whichever is higher.

A worked example

You receive a DRC-01 under section 74A for 2024-25. It says you paid Rs 40,000 less tax because some sales were missed, with no allegation of fraud. You check your books and agree.

If you pay Rs 40,000 plus interest within 60 days of the notice, you pay no penalty and the case ends. If you wait for the order, the penalty is the higher of 10 percent of Rs 40,000, which is Rs 4,000, and Rs 10,000. So the delay costs you Rs 10,000 more, on top of extra interest. If you disagree with the notice, you file a reply in DRC-06 with your reconciliation and documents by the date in the notice instead.

What has changed recently

• Cancellation for not filing. Notification 05/2026-Central Tax dated 26 October 2026 rewrote rule 21 from 1 November 2026. In the copy we read, a monthly filer who has not filed returns for six months in a row, or a quarterly filer who has missed two tax periods, becomes liable to cancellation.
• From 1 April 2027. The same notification replaces the suspension and cancellation rules (21A and 22) and the DRC-01 form from that date. The seven working days for a REG-17 reply stay the same.
• Proposed, not yet law. The GST Council on 8 October 2026 recommended that no show cause notice be issued for less than Rs 10,000, and that the Rs 10,000 minimum penalty be removed. These need an amendment to the Act.

The usual mistake

Sellers often treat every notice alike. They either panic and pay a system intimation that only needed a two-line explanation, or they ignore a show cause notice because the earlier ones "went away". Read the form number first. Then check three things: the period, the amount and the date. Never reply by email alone when the form asks for a reply on the portal. For mismatch intimations, our guide to the difference between GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B shows where the gap usually starts.

When should you call a professional?

You can deal with a GSTR-3A yourself by filing the return. A DRC-01B or DRC-01C with one clear cause is also manageable. Take help for ASMT-10, any audit, a summons, and every DRC-01, because the reply sets out your legal position and is hard to change later.

Frequently asked questions

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