GST Portal Struggles with Technical Issues; Taxpayers Demand Deadline Extension Amid Filing Delays

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) portal has been experiencing significant technical issues, making it difficult for taxpayers to file their returns. These problems, particularly with the GSTR-1 filing process, have led to widespread frustration, with many users unable to complete their filings on time. In response to the ongoing glitches, the GST Network (GSTN) has acknowledged the situation and reached out to the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) to request an extension for the December 2024 filing deadline.

The deadline for filing returns for the December 2024 tax period is set for January 11, with January 13 being the deadline for Quarterly Return Monthly Payment (QRMP) filers. However, taxpayers have been facing issues with generating GSTR-1 summaries and submitting them on the portal. These ongoing technical glitches have prompted several updates from the GSTN, which has posted on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) to inform users about the problem and assure them that the technical team is working on a resolution.

In one such post, GSTN acknowledged the issue and assured users that efforts were underway to resolve the technical difficulties promptly. The message read, “GSTN hereby acknowledges the issue being faced regarding GSTR-1 summary generation and its filing. Our team is actively addressing the issue and is working to resolve it as soon as possible. We appreciate your understanding and patience.

However, despite this update, many taxpayers continued to face difficulties with the portal even on Friday, leading to a follow-up message from GSTN. This time, the network highlighted that there could be an extension of the filing deadline in light of the ongoing technical difficulties. It confirmed that an incident report had been sent to CBIC, requesting consideration for an extension of the deadline due to the disruptions.

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Dear Taxpayers!📢

GST portal is currently experiencing technical issues and is under maintenance. We expect the portal to be operational by 12:00 noon. CBIC is being sent an incident report to consider extension in filing date.

Thank you for your understanding and patience!

— GST Tech (@Infosys_GSTN) January 10, 2025

However, even after these assurances, taxpayers continued to struggle with the portal. Ajit Patel, a user, posted a screenshot showing that the portal was still not working by noon on January 10, despite the promise that the issues would be resolved earlier. Another user, Vinay, expressed his frustration, commenting that while taxpayers have to deal with penalties for delayed filings, the portal frequently experiences technical issues that delay the filing process.

He sarcastically pointed out that taxpayers are expected to follow the rules, regardless of the glitches on the system.

Several other users, including CA Arvind Sharma, raised concerns about the possibility of a late fee waiver in light of the issues caused by the portal’s technical glitches. Given that many users rely on the GST portal to meet strict filing deadlines, the inability to access the platform has left them in a difficult position, unsure of whether they will face penalties or be granted relief.

Bharat Arora, another social media user, made a wry comment, emphasizing the paradox faced by taxpayers. He remarked, “A taxpayer with limited resources should file a return on time. But the GST portal can glitch anytime.” This remark underlined the frustration many taxpayers feel, as they struggle to comply with tax requirements while facing repeated technical failures on the government portal.

As of 12:54 PM on January 10, the GST portal displayed a message informing users about scheduled downtime for maintenance. The message, which was visible to anyone attempting to visit the site, read: “Scheduled Downtime! We are enhancing the services on the site. The services will not be available from 10th Jan’25 12:00 AM to 10th Jan’25 03:00 PM.

Kindly come back later! In case of any queries, please call us at 1800-103-4786. We appreciate your cooperation and patience.” This notice added to the confusion and stress of taxpayers, who were already struggling with the system’s functionality.

While many users understand that technical issues can arise, the repeated nature of the glitches has created a sense of unease among taxpayers. They are left wondering whether they will be penalized for something that is beyond their control. The situation has also led to broader discussions about the reliability and efficiency of the GST portal, with many questioning why such issues continue to persist despite several years of operation.

The situation has sparked a larger debate about the need for a more robust and user-friendly platform for filing GST returns. As the technical issues persist, the hope is that the government will respond to the concerns of taxpayers by granting an extension and implementing long-term solutions to ensure that such glitches do not continue to disrupt the filing process in the future.

For now, taxpayers will have to wait and see whether the CBIC will grant an extension, as they continue to grapple with an unreliable system that has yet to provide a seamless experience.

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