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CGST Act Section 140: Transitional arrangements for input tax credit | Finin2min

Section 140 - Transitional arrangements for input tax credit

Chapter XX - Transitional Provisions
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Source control: The text/status on this page is tied to the official source gateway and the Phase 1 legal-review register. Open official source.

Finin2min Summary - Section in 2 Minutes

Provides the detailed gateway for carrying forward eligible CENVAT/VAT and specified stock credits into GST. It is a closed transitional regime governed by statutory conditions, forms, judicial directions and limitation history.

Exact operative text

Paragraph-wise decode

Provides the detailed gateway for carrying forward eligible CENVAT/VAT and specified stock credits into GST. It is a closed transitional regime governed by statutory conditions, forms, judicial directions and limitation history.

Section-Rule-Form-Notification bridge

No direct Rule certified in Phase 1. Check notifications, circulars, forms and corresponding State law.

The mapping is a legal concordance, not a round-robin related-link list. It is limited to instruments certified in this phase.

Practical example

A taxpayer claimed carried-forward credit through TRAN-1 but system evidence shows a filing failure. Eligibility, original return, judicial relief and portal record are tested together.

Professional alert

Transitional credit litigation is highly fact-specific. Preserve original returns, TRAN filings, screenshots, help- desk tickets and court directions.

Section 141 - Transitional provisions relating to job work OPERATIVE STATUTORY TEXT 141. Transitional provisions relating to job work.-(1) Where any inputs received at a place of business had been removed as such or removed after being partially processed to a job worker for further processing, testing, repair, reconditioning or any other purpose in accordance with the provisions of existing law prior to the appointed day and such inputs are returned to the said place on or after the appointed day, no tax shall be payable if such inputs, after completion of the job work or otherwise, are returned to the said place within six months from the appointed day:

Provided that the period of six months may, on sufficient cause being shown, be extended by the Commissioner for a further period not exceeding two months:

Provided further that if such inputs are not returned within the period specified in this sub-section, the input tax credit shall be liable to be recovered in accordance with the provisions of clause (a) of sub-section (8) of section 142.

(2) Where any semi-finished goods had been removed from the place of business to any other premises for carrying out certain manufacturing processes in accordance with the provisions of existing law prior to the appointed day and such goods (hereafter in this section referred to as "the said goods") are returned to the said place on or after the appointed day, no tax shall be payable, if the said goods, after undergoing manufacturing processes or otherwise, are returned to the said place within six months from the appointed day:

Provided that the period of six months may, on sufficient cause being shown, be extended by the Commissioner for a further period not exceeding two months:

Provided further that if the said goods are not returned within the period specified in this sub-section, the input tax credit shall be liable to be recovered in accordance with the provisions of clause (a) of sub-section (8) of section 142:

Provided also that the manufacturer may, in accordance with the provisions of the existing law, transfer the said goods to the premises of any registered person for the purpose of supplying therefrom on payment of tax in India or without payment of tax for exports within the period specified in this sub-section.

(3) Where any excisable goods manufactured at a place of business had been removed without payment of duty for carrying out tests or any other process not amounting to manufacture, to any other premises, whether registered or not, in accordance with the provisions of existing law prior to the appointed day and such goods, are returned to the said place on or after the appointed day, no tax shall be payable if the said goods, after undergoing tests or any other process, are returned to the said place within six months from the appointed day:

Provided that the period of six months may, on sufficient cause being shown, be extended by the Commissioner for a further period not exceeding two months:

Provided further that if the said goods are not returned within the period specified in this sub-section, the input tax credit shall be liable to be recovered in accordance with the provisions of clause (a) of sub-section (8) of section 142:

Provided also that the manufacturer may, in accordance with the provisions of the existing law, transfer the said goods from the said other premises on payment of tax in India or without payment of tax for exports within the period specified in this sub-section.

(4) The tax under sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) shall not be payable, only if the manufacturer and the job worker declare the details of the inputs or goods held in stock by the job worker on behalf of the manufacturer on the appointed day in such form and manner and within such time as may be prescribed.

DECODED SIMPLY Protects specified pre-GST inputs, semi-finished goods and capital goods lying with job workers, provided they were returned or supplied within the transitional time and conditions. PRACTICAL EXAMPLE Inputs sent to a job worker before 1 July 2017 were returned after the permitted transitional period. The deemed treatment and existing-law/ GST consequences are quantified. EXCEPTION / PROFESSIONAL ALERT Read the provision with its linked Rules, Gazette commencement, delegation, State GST counterpart and binding judicial interpretation before applying it to a live case.

Implementation checklist

  1. Fix the transaction, taxable period and jurisdiction.
  2. Read every subsection, proviso, explanation and omission marker.
  3. Open the mapped Rule, form, notification and circular.
  4. Test State/UT variation and portal version.
  5. Preserve evidence, approvals, working papers and acknowledgements.
  6. Record the conclusion, assumptions, source date and reviewer.

Evidence and retention checklist

Practical Q&A

What does section 140 regulate?
It regulates transitional arrangements for input tax credit. Read the exact text, conditions, exceptions and transaction date together.
Which subordinate law should be checked?
No direct CGST Rule has been certified in this phase. Notifications, circulars, forms and the corresponding SGST/UTGST layer may also apply.
What evidence should be retained?
Preserve the contract or transaction record, invoice or form, portal acknowledgement, payment/ledger evidence, correspondence, legal working and the official source version used.
Can portal behaviour override the statute?
No. Portal functionality is operational evidence; legal entitlement and liability remain controlled by the Act, Rules, notifications and binding decisions.