Taxpayers have expressed concerns about the legitimacy of documents like show cause notices, assessment orders, and refund orders. These documents, available on the tax portal, often don’t display visible digital signatures. This has caused confusion about whether they are officially valid.
An advisory issued on September 25th, 2024, addresses these concerns. It clarifies that documents created on the GST portal don’t need visible digital signatures. Instead, tax officers issue these documents after logging in with their digital signature. So, even though the PDF might not show a signature, the system stores the documents securely, ensuring their validity.
How to Verify Document Validity
The advisory explains that taxpayers can verify their documents online, both before and after logging into the GST portal.
To verify your documents:
- Post-login: Go to the GST portal, select Dashboard → Services → User Services → Verify RFN.
- Pre-login: Visit https://services.gst.gov.in/services/verifyRfn to confirm the document’s authenticity.
This simple process allows you to check any communication from the tax authorities and confirm it’s genuine.
Digital Signatures for Key Actions
Although a document might not show a visible signature, officers can only issue notices, orders, or refunds after logging in with their digital signature. This step ensures that every action is authenticated and traceable to the responsible officer.
The main actions requiring digital signatures are:
- Issuing any notice.
- Issuing any order.
- Issuing any refund order.
This system ensures the documents are valid, even if a physical signature is missing.
Conclusion
In summary, the advisory clarifies that tax documents issued without visible digital signatures are still valid. The GST system secures and authenticates these documents. Taxpayers can easily verify them online, reducing confusion and ensuring they are dealing with legitimate notices.
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This article is only a knowledge-sharing initiative and is based on the Relevant Provisions as applicable and as per the information existing at the time of the preparation. In no event, RMPS & Co. or the Author or any other persons be liable for any direct and indirect result from this Article or any inadvertent omission of the provisions, update, etc if any.
