The GST Demand Limitation Map: Sections 73, 74 and 74A

GST Demand Limitation Map explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.

Limitation is the first thing to check on any notice and the last thing to check on any order. This is the whole map in one place.

Up to FY 2023-24: s.73 — notice 2 years 9 months, order 3 years, from the annual return due date. s.74 — notice 4 years 6 months, order 5 years. From FY 2024-25: s.74A — notice 42 months from the annual return due date or the erroneous refund; order 12 months from the notice, extendable by 6. Missing the order deadline means the proceedings are deemed concluded under s.75(10). Periods of stay (s.75(1)) and of pending appeals on an issue decided against revenue (s.75(11)) are excluded.

The provisions by period

Sections 73 and 74, as their headings now read, are confined to periods up to FY 2023-24. Section 74A applies from FY 2024-25 by its own sub-section (12).

A multi-year notice therefore frequently needs two provisions, and the split should be checked.

The dates, year by year

The anchor is the due date for furnishing the annual return under s.44 for the year.

\ Extended due dates for those years, and \\* extensions of the s.73 limitation granted by notification for FY 2017-18 to 2019-20 and subsequently, must be checked against the specific notification for each year before any limitation argument is taken. Several of these periods were extended under s.168A.

Always verify against the notification for the year in question. Annual return due dates were extended repeatedly for the early years, and s.168A extensions were issued for limitation itself.

Erroneous refunds run on their own clock

For an erroneous refund, limitation runs from the date of the erroneous refund, not from the annual return due date:

• s.73(10) — three years from the date of erroneous refund for the order;
• s.74(10) — five years from the date of erroneous refund;
• s.74A(2) — forty-two months from the date of erroneous refund for the notice.

So each refund sanctioned carries its own limitation date, and a refund sanctioned in April expires before one sanctioned the following March in the same financial year. Erroneous refund recovery →

What extends the period

Section 75(1) — stay. Where the service of notice or issuance of order is stayed by a court or the Appellate Tribunal, the period of the stay is excluded in computing the periods in s.73(2) and (10), s.74(2) and (10), or s.74A(2) and (7).

Section 75(11) — a pending appeal on the same issue. Where an issue has been decided against the revenue by an Appellate Authority, Tribunal or High Court in other proceedings, and a further appeal is pending, the period between the decisions is excluded in computing the period in s.73(10), s.74(10) or s.74A(7) where proceedings were initiated by a show cause notice.

Section 75(3) — orders on remand. Where an order is required to be issued in pursuance of the direction of the Appellate Authority, Tribunal or a court, it shall be issued within two years from communication of the direction. This is a fresh period, not an extension of the original one.

Section 168A. The Government may, on the Council's recommendations, extend time limits by notification in respect of actions that cannot be completed due to force majeure. The extensions for the COVID-affected years were issued under this power, and any limitation argument for FY 2017-18 to FY 2020-21 must be tested against them.

What happens when the deadline is missed

Section 75(10), as substituted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024: the adjudication proceedings shall be deemed to be concluded if the order is not issued within the period provided in s.73(10), s.74(10) or s.74A(7).

"Deemed to be concluded." The demand does not survive. No order can be passed afterwards, and no recovery follows.

That makes the diary entries decisive:

• date of the notice — for the s.74A order clock;
• date of any extension order under the proviso to s.74A(7), and whether it was made before expiry by an officer of the required rank;
• dates and duration of any stay, for the s.75(1) exclusion;
• date of communication of any appellate direction, for the two years in s.75(3).

Checking limitation on a notice: the sequence

1. Identify the period each demand relates to, year by year.
2. Pick the provision — s.73 or s.74 up to FY 2023-24, s.74A from FY 2024-25.
3. Find the annual return due date for the year, as extended by notification.
4. Compute the notice and order deadlines.
5. Check s.168A extensions for the year.
6. Check for a statement under s.73(3), s.74(3) or s.74A(3) — and whether the grounds are the same as the earlier notice, which s.74A(4) requires.
7. Check the ₹1,000 floor in the proviso to s.74A(1), applied per financial year.
8. Plead the computation, year by year, in the reply. Answering a DRC-01 →

Key takeaways

• Up to FY 2023-24: s.73 — 2y9m / 3y; s.74 — 4y6m / 5y, from the annual return due date.
• From FY 2024-25: s.74A — notice 42 months; order 12 months from the notice, +6.
• Erroneous refunds run from the date of the refund, not the year end.
• Section 75(1) excludes periods of stay; s.75(11) excludes periods of a pending appeal on an issue decided against revenue.
• Section 75(3) gives two years for an order on an appellate direction.
• Missing the order deadline means the proceedings are deemed concluded under s.75(10).

Read next

• Section 74A: 42 Months, 12 Months, and the ₹1,000 Floor
• Answering a DRC-01: Building the Reply
• Section 75(7): No Demand Beyond the Notice
• Section 128A and Rule 164: The SPL Forms, Step by Step

Disclaimer: Positions stated as on 5 September 2026, based on the CGST Act as amended to 31 March 2026 (ICAI Bare Law, 12th edition). The dates tabulated are computed from the statutory periods; annual return due dates and limitation periods for FY 2017-18 to FY 2020-21 were extended by notification, including under section 168A, and must be verified against the notification for the year concerned before any limitation position is taken.