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Section 54(7) & Section 56 Interest Clock

GST Refund Status & Timeline Tracker

Enter your ARN date to compute the statutory deadlines for acknowledgement, provisional sanction, final order, and statutory 6% delay interest.

Statutory Progress Milestones

01

RFD-02 Acknowledgement / RFD-03 Deficiency Memo

Within 15 Days

The proper officer must verify completeness and either issue an acknowledgement (RFD-02) or a deficiency memo (RFD-03) within 15 days of ARN receipt (Rule 90(2)).

02

RFD-04 Provisional Refund (90% Claim)

Within 7 Days of RFD-02

For zero-rated exports, 90% of the claimed amount must be provisionally sanctioned within 7 days of acknowledgement under Section 54(6).

03

RFD-06 Final Sanction Order & RFD-05 Payment Advice

Within 60 Days (Strict Deadline)

Statutory deadline under Section 54(7) for issuing final sanction order and payment disbursement advice to your validated bank account.

04

Section 56 Statutory 6% Interest Starts

Day 61 Onward

If the department fails to credit your refund within 60 days of the ARN date, interest automatically accrues at 6% p.a. until the payment is credited.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the maximum statutory time limit for the GST department to sanction a refund?
Under Section 54(7) of the CGST Act, the proper officer must issue the final sanction order in Form GST RFD-06 within 60 days from the date of receipt of the complete refund application (ARN date).
What happens if the proper officer does not issue Form RFD-02 within 15 days?
Under Rule 90(2) of the CGST Rules, if no deficiency memo (RFD-03) is issued within 15 days of ARN receipt, an acknowledgement in Form GST RFD-02 is deemed to be issued, establishing application completeness.
When does statutory interest start under Section 56 of the CGST Act?
Under Section 56 of the CGST Act, if a refund is not sanctioned within 60 days from the date of receipt of the application, interest at the rate of 6% per annum is payable from the 61st day until the actual date of credit.
What is a deficiency memo (Form GST RFD-03) and how does it affect the timeline?
Under Rule 90(3), if the application has omissions or missing documents, the officer issues RFD-03. A deficiency memo requires submitting a fresh refund application with a new ARN, resetting the 60-day statutory clock.
Which refund categories are eligible for provisional 90% sanction under RFD-04?
Under Section 54(6), only zero-rated export supplies of goods and services under Letter of Undertaking (LUT) are eligible for provisional sanction of 90% within 7 days of RFD-02. Inverted duty and cash ledger refunds are not eligible for provisional sanction.
What should you do if you receive a Show Cause Notice in Form GST RFD-08?
If the tax officer proposes to reject your refund in full or in part, they issue RFD-08. You must submit a written reply in Form GST RFD-09 within 15 days of notice receipt, along with supporting reconciliations and invoices.
How is the sanctioned refund disbursed to the taxpayer bank account?
Upon issuing RFD-06, the officer generates a payment order advice in Form GST RFD-05. The amount is directly credited via PFMS to the validated primary bank account registered on the GST portal.
Can GST refund interest be claimed if delay occurred due to portal technical errors?
Yes. Multiple High Court rulings have held that statutory interest under Section 56 is mandatory once 60 days expire from the original complete application date, regardless of internal administrative or technical delays.
What is the timeline difference between LUT export refund and IGST payment refund?
Refund under LUT requires filing Form RFD-01 on the GST portal followed by officer scrutiny. Export with payment of IGST is automated: your shipping bill acts as refund claim, and ICEGATE processes payment automatically upon GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B matching.
Does this refund tracker access GST portal credentials or store ARN information?
No. This timeline tracker is an offline client-side calculator based strictly on statutory dates under Section 54 and Section 56. No taxpayer data, ARN, or GSTIN information is transmitted or stored.