The Tamil Nadu Commercial Taxes Department has introduced virtual personal hearings and an automated random allocation system for GST refund applications, effective from July 9.
The initiative is aimed at simplifying tax compliance, enhancing transparency, and improving the efficiency of GST administration for the state’s 12.4 lakh registered GST taxpayers.
Across all 338 State Tax Circles and 15 appellate offices, the new facilities will be available. The same decision has been taken after a departmental analysis conducted by T. Lokesh Tamizhselvan, Tamil Nadu’s Minister for Commercial Taxes and Registration.
Taxpayers in the new system obtaining GST scrutiny notices can attend a personal hearing virtually if they are not able to appear in person because of unavoidable situations or distance.
Earlier, taxpayers were mandated to visit jurisdictional tax offices for these hearings. In nearly 58,000 cases, the department has already issued scrutiny notices. The virtual hearing facility is for enhancing accessibility, reducing the cost of travel, and upholding the norms of natural justice.
The department, in the other amendment, has launched an automated electronic allocation system for GST refund claims. Rather than manual assignment, refund applications will now be provided randomly to jurisdictional officers within a division, which assures transparency, consistency, and quicker processing.
The decision could benefit exporters and businesses with accumulated Input Tax Credit (ITC), supporting improve their cash flow. In the last fiscal year, the department sanctioned nearly Rs 5000 crore in GST refunds. Most refund claims are pertinent to the ITC usage arising from zero-rated exports and inverted duty structures.
Industry bodies have welcomed the amendment. CII Tamil Nadu mentioned that automated allocation shall remove manual intervention, enhance transparency, and reinforce taxpayer confidence in the refund process.
S. Chandramohan, Director and Group President – Corporate Affairs at TAFE, stated that virtual hearings shall lessen the requirement for physical appearances and support quicker GST assessments.
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Taxpayers must continue to have a chance to file additional documents post-hearing before assessments are finalised, he recommended.
Chandramohan added that only 15–20% of Tamil Nadu taxpayers fall under the State GST administration; for the new refund procedure, the eligible ones can receive refunds quickly, enhancing their working capital position.
