GST Amnesty Scheme — Current Status & Relief Options (2026)
Section 128A GST amnesty (interest & penalty waiver for FY 2017-18 to 2019-20) — current status, who still benefits, and every relief route open in 2026: Section 73 closure, late-fee caps, appeal strategies. CA-led assessment in 24 hours.
Quick answer: As of July 2026, the flagship Section 128A interest-and-penalty waiver for FY 2017-18 to 2019-20 has closed for fresh payments. Remaining options: residual Section 128A cases, appellate remedies with pre-deposit, and rectification. If you hold an old demand, a case-specific strategy matters more than waiting for the next scheme.
"Is there a GST amnesty scheme open right now?" is one of the most-asked questions we receive — usually from businesses that have just received a demand notice for the early GST years. The honest answer as of July 2026: the flagship Section 128A waiver scheme for FY 2017-18 to 2019-20 has closed for fresh payment, but several statutory relief routes remain permanently available, and past applicants still have live proceedings we can defend. This page lays out the complete current picture — no outdated promises.
Section 128A Waiver — What It Was, Where It Stands
Inserted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024 following the 53rd GST Council meeting, Section 128A waived interest and penalty (not tax) on Section 73 demands for FY 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20, provided the full tax was paid by the notified date — 31 March 2025 for most cases (with a later date for redetermined Section 74 cases). Applications were filed in Forms SPL-01/SPL-02.
| Scenario in July 2026 | Your position |
|---|---|
| You paid tax by 31 Mar 2025 and filed SPL-01/02 | Track the order (SPL-05 acceptance / SPL-07 rejection). Rejections can be appealed — we handle these. |
| You received SPL-07 (rejection) | Appeal window and restoration of original appeal rights need immediate review — do not let the original demand revive unchallenged. |
| You never applied and the window is closed | Section 128A relief is gone, but the routes below still apply. |
Relief Routes Still Open in 2026 — Permanent Provisions
1. Section 73(5)/(8) — pre-notice and 30-day closures (non-fraud cases)
For any period, if you pay tax + interest before the show-cause notice, no penalty is payable and no notice is issued. Pay within 30 days of the SCN and the penalty is again nil, with proceedings deemed concluded. This is a standing "amnesty" written into the Act itself — the key is acting before adjudication.
2. Section 74(5)/(8)/(11) — graded settlement even in fraud cases
Pay before notice: penalty capped at 15% of tax. Within 30 days of notice: 25%. Within 30 days of the order: 50%. Each payment closes the proceeding.
3. Late-fee caps for pending returns (permanent, Notification 07/2023 line)
- GSTR-3B / GSTR-1: late fee capped at ₹500 per return for nil returns and ₹2,000–₹10,000 slabs by turnover for others.
- GSTR-9 annual returns: capped late fee regimes by turnover slab; GSTR-9C now self-certified.
- GSTR-10 final return: capped at ₹1,000 where filed pursuant to the standing concession.
4. Section 62 best-judgment assessment withdrawal
Assessed under Section 62 for non-filing? Filing the actual return within 60 days of the assessment order (extendable by another 60 days with late fee) makes the best-judgment order automatically withdrawn — interest and late fee survive, but the inflated assessed demand disappears.
5. Revocation of cancelled registrations
The 90-day revocation window under Section 30 (see our cancellation & revocation service) is a standing cure for registrations cancelled for non-filing.
What a Realistic "Amnesty Strategy" Looks Like Now
- Exposure map (48 hours): we pull your portal ledgers, notices and return status across all GSTINs and quantify tax, interest, late fee and penalty by year and section.
- Bucket the liabilities: (a) pay-and-close under 73(5)/74(5); (b) contest — limitation, ITC eligibility, computation errors; (c) regularise — pending returns with capped late fees; (d) 128A legacy — pending SPL orders or appealable rejections.
- Sequence payments through DRC-03 with correct cause-of-payment mapping — a wrongly-mapped DRC-03 does not stop the notice.
- Watch the Council: GST Council announcements periodically create new windows (the 128A scheme itself arrived seven years after the underlying defaults). We track every Council meeting; clients on our compliance calendar get same-day alerts if a new scheme opens.
Do not wait for the "next amnesty": interest accrues at 18% p.a. every day you wait, and limitation for FY 2020-21 onwards demands is still running — the department is issuing these notices now. A structured 73(5) closure today is almost always cheaper than a hoped-for scheme in two years.
Worked Example — Waiting vs Acting
A Chennai trader has an un-noticed GSTR-3B shortfall of ₹8,00,000 for FY 2022-23 (non-fraud, cash-payable). Acting now (July 2026): tax ₹8,00,000 + interest at 18% for roughly three years ≈ ₹4,32,000, penalty nil under Section 73(5) because payment precedes any notice — total ≈ ₹12.3 lakh, proceedings never begin. Waiting for a hoped-for amnesty: the SCN arrives in 2027, interest keeps running (≈ ₹5.8 lakh by then), penalty of 10% (₹80,000) attaches if paid after 30 days of the notice, and if the officer alleges suppression the exposure jumps to 100% penalty — total ₹15.5–23 lakh, plus two to three years of proceedings. Even a future scheme that waives interest and penalty entirely would only bring him back to roughly where voluntary payment puts him today — with years of risk in between.
How to Check What Is Actually Outstanding Against You
Most businesses under-estimate their open exposure because notices are served only on the portal and email — not by post. Our exposure map pulls: (a) Additional Notices & Orders tab (where most DRC-01/DRC-07s hide), (b) Electronic Liability Register Part-II for created demands, (c) return-filing status across every GSTIN on the PAN, (d) DRC-03 history to confirm earlier payments actually mapped to the right cause, and (e) e-way bill and e-invoice blocking status. Fifteen minutes of portal access from you; a complete liability picture within 48 hours from us.
Fees
| Service | Fee (from) |
|---|---|
| Exposure map — all GSTINs, all years | ₹9,999 |
| DRC-03 closure filings (per period) | ₹5,000 |
| SPL-07 rejection appeal | ₹25,000 |
| Pending-return regularisation | ₹1,500 per return |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is any GST amnesty scheme open right now in 2026?
The Section 128A interest-and-penalty waiver for FY 2017-18 to 2019-20 closed for fresh tax payments on 31 March 2025. As of July 2026 no new blanket amnesty has been notified. However, permanent statutory reliefs remain open: zero/reduced penalty closures under Sections 73(5) and 74(5), capped late fees for pending returns, Section 62 assessment withdrawal, and revocation of cancelled registrations. We track every GST Council meeting and alert clients the day any new scheme opens.
I applied under Section 128A but my application was rejected. What now?
A rejection in Form SPL-07 restores your original dispute — and your appeal rights. You can appeal the rejection itself, or pursue the restored original appeal, depending on which route the rules preserve for your case. Timelines are short and technical; bring us the SPL-07 immediately so the demand does not revive unchallenged.
Can I still avoid penalty on old GST demands without an amnesty scheme?
Yes — this is built into the Act permanently. In non-fraud (Section 73) cases, paying tax plus interest before the show-cause notice means no penalty and no notice; within 30 days of the notice, penalty is again nil. Even in fraud (Section 74) cases, penalty is capped at 15% before notice, 25% within 30 days of notice, and 50% within 30 days of the order.
What late fee will I pay if I file my pending GST returns now?
Late fees are capped: nil returns cost ₹500 per GSTR-3B/GSTR-1 (₹250 CGST + ₹250 SGST), and non-nil returns are capped by turnover slabs. Annual return (GSTR-9) late fees are similarly slabbed. Interest at 18% p.a. applies only on the cash-paid tax component. We compute the exact cost per return before you commit, so there are no surprises.
I was assessed under Section 62 because I didn't file returns. Is that demand final?
No. If you file the actual return within 60 days of the Section 62 assessment order (extendable by a further 60 days on payment of additional late fee), the best-judgment assessment is deemed withdrawn automatically. Only interest and late fee survive. Past 120 days, the assessed demand becomes recoverable — then the appeal route is the fallback.
Will there be another GST amnesty scheme?
The pattern suggests periodic schemes: late-fee amnesties in 2020, 2021 and 2023, and the Section 128A waiver in 2024-25. The GST Council could notify another — typically tied to dispute-reduction drives. But waiting is expensive: interest accrues at 18% p.a., fresh notices for later years keep arriving, and schemes historically waive penalty/interest, not tax. Regularising strategically now is cheaper in most scenarios we model.
Does the amnesty analysis cover all my GSTINs?
Yes. Our exposure map covers every GSTIN on your PAN — pending returns, open notices, demand orders, ledger balances and cancellation status — because the department's analytics work PAN-wide and a clean GSTIN in one state does not protect a defaulting one in another.
What is DRC-03 and why does the cause-of-payment matter?
DRC-03 is the form for voluntary payment of tax, interest or penalty outside the return cycle. The cause selected (voluntary, SCN, audit, annual return, reconciliation statement) and the correct period/section mapping determine whether the payment legally closes the exposure. A DRC-03 filed against the wrong period or cause does not stop a notice for the actual default — we routinely fix mis-mapped payments through intimation letters before they cause double-demands.
Are interest and late fee also waived if I use Section 73(5) voluntary payment?
No — Section 73(5) closure requires payment of tax plus interest; only the penalty (and the proceeding itself) is avoided. Interest under Section 50 is compensatory and is almost never waived by any provision or scheme. Late fees for pending returns are separate and governed by the capped-fee notifications. Amnesty schemes historically waive interest and penalty but never the tax itself.
Did the Section 128A waiver cover fraud (Section 74) cases?
Not directly — the waiver applied to Section 73 (non-fraud) demands for FY 2017-18 to 2019-20. However, where an appellate authority or court redetermined a Section 74 demand as a Section 73 case under Section 75(2), the redetermined demand became eligible, with a separate payment window of six months from the redetermination order. If you have a Section 74 matter for those years still in appeal, the redetermination pathway remains strategically relevant even now.