GSTAT Thiruvananthapuram Orders IGST Refund to Choice Cashew Industries for Excess Payment Arising from GSTR-3B Column Misreporting
Case Background and Parties
The Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), Thiruvananthapuram Bench, adjudicated three consolidated appeals preferred by M/s. Choice Cashew Industries against the Commissioner of CGST, bearing Appeal Nos. APL/6/TVP/2026, APL/8/TVP/2026, and APL/9/TVP/2026, vide order dated 17/09/2026. The appellant, engaged in the export of cashew kernels, had approached the Tribunal seeking refund of IGST amounts that had effectively been deposited twice with the government—once during the original export months and again in August 2019—owing to a clerical error in the GSTR-3B filing that prevented the automated Customs refund process from being triggered.
Mr. KR Balachandran, Advocate, appeared on behalf of the appellant, while Mr. Suresh S, Authorised Representative, represented the Revenue (Centre).
Factual Matrix: How the Double Payment Occurred
Original Exports and the GSTR-3B Error
During November 2018, December 2018, and February 2019, the appellant exported cashew kernels and discharged IGST at the rate of 5% on such exports. The corresponding shipping bills and export invoices were duly filed with Customs. Crucially, the appellant also correctly reflected all export transactions in the GSTR-1 returns for each of those months.
The error arose at the stage of filing GSTR-3B returns. The export turnover along with the applicable IGST was inadvertently declared under Table 3.1(a)—which is designated for "Outward Taxable Supplies other than Zero-Rated, Nil-Rated and Exempted Supplies"—instead of the correct Table 3.1(b), which captures "Outward Taxable Supplies (Zero-Rated)." The distinction between the two columns is critical, as the Customs EDI system cross-references GSTR-3B data while processing automatic IGST refunds for exporters. Since exports are zero-rated supplies under the GST framework, only amounts declared in Table 3.1(b) trigger the automated refund mechanism.
Because of this misreporting, the Customs automated refund system did not process refunds against the originally paid IGST amounts.
Second Payment Made in August 2019
To resolve the refund blockage, the appellant paid the entire IGST amount once again through the GSTR-3B return for August 2019, this time correctly entering the figures under Table 3.1(b). The total amount re-paid was Rs. 18,27,272/-, comprising:
- Rs. 9,41,390/- pertaining to November 2018
- Rs. 4,55,293/- pertaining to December 2018
- Rs. 4,30,587/- pertaining to February 2019
This second set of payments was duly processed by the Customs automated system, and the corresponding IGST refund of Rs. 18,27,272/- was released to the appellant.
Refund Claims for the Original Payments
Following the recovery of the August 2019 payment, the appellant sought refund of the original IGST amounts paid during November 2018, December 2018, and February 2019, on the ground that these had become excess deposits since the same tax liability had been discharged twice. The refund claims were rejected vide:
- OIO No. 306/2019-20 dated 18-12-2020 (November 2018 — Rs. 9,41,390/-)
- OIO No. 307/2019-20 dated 18-12-2020 (December 2018 — Rs. 4,55,293/-)
- OIO No. 308/2019-20 dated 18-12-2020 (February 2019 — Rs. 4,30,587/-)