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GST officers do not have one unlimited “inspection or search” power. Under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (CGST Act), the authority, threshold and permitted action depend on the statutory route being used. A section 67 inspection or search is different from checking goods in transit under section 68, accessing business records under section 71, issuing summons under section 70 or making an arrest under section 69.
For a live visit, identify the officers, ask which section they are acting under, note any written authorization and forms, cooperate without obstructing lawful action, and obtain an itemized record of anything taken or sealed. This is general information on the central framework, not a determination that a particular visit was lawful. State GST laws generally follow the central structure, but local notifications and procedures can differ.
The short answer: authority depends on the section being used
The CGST Act gives officers several separate powers. The fact that officials arrive at a business does not, by itself, give them every power in the Act. The practical questions are:
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- Who authorized the action, and is written authorization required?
- What threshold must be met: “reasons to believe,” relevance to proceedings, or production of prescribed documents?
- May the officer inspect, demand, seize, retain, prohibit dealings with goods, seal premises, issue a summons or arrest someone?
- What record, order, receipt or later notice must follow?
The central statute and rules reviewed for this explanation are dated 30 September 2020 and 1 June 2021. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) index also lists later instructions. Check the current consolidated law, notifications and the authority named in your notice before relying on any detail in a live matter.
Section 67: inspection, search and seizure
When an inspection may be authorized
Section 67(1) applies when a proper officer not below the rank of Joint Commissioner has reasons to believe that a taxable person has done, or is suspected of doing, conduct covered by the section. The listed situations include suppressing a transaction relating to supply or stock, claiming excess input tax credit, or contravening the Act or Rules to evade tax. The provision also covers specified suspected evasion involving a transporter, a warehouse or godown operator, or another place.
The Joint Commissioner-or-above officer may authorize another central-tax officer in writing to inspect the relevant place. Therefore, the officer who arrives may be of a lower rank, but the written authorization and the statutory basis still matter. The CBIC’s 2017 explanatory flier describes the safeguard this way: “Inspection, Search or Seizure can only be carried out when an officer, of the rank of Joint Commissioner or above, has reasons to believe the existence of such exceptional circumstances.” The Act controls if a summary and the current statutory text differ.
When a search and seizure may occur
Section 67(2) sets a distinct threshold. A proper officer not below Joint Commissioner rank must have reasons to believe that goods liable to confiscation, or documents, books or things useful or relevant to proceedings, are secreted in a place. The officer may conduct the search and seizure personally or authorize another central-tax officer in writing.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchThis is not the same test as simply wanting to inspect a business. The stated belief must concern goods liable to confiscation or relevant material that is secreted in a place. A search authorization should therefore be read together with the statutory section and the place identified in it; the mere presence of a form does not prove that the underlying grounds were satisfied.
What can be seized
Section 67(2) covers goods liable to confiscation and documents, books or things useful or relevant to proceedings. A computer, phone or laptop is not automatically seizable just because it is electronic. It may be treated as a relevant “thing” where the statutory conditions are met and the device or its contents are connected to the inquiry. Ask for every item to be described in the seizure record, including identifying details such as make, model, serial number or storage medium where applicable.
If goods cannot practicably be seized, the officer may prohibit the owner or custodian from removing or dealing with them without permission. This is a prohibition, not a transfer of ownership. The prohibition should be documented so the affected person knows which goods are covered and what conduct is restricted.
Forms used under the CGST Rules
The CGST Rules identify three forms that readers may encounter:
| Form | Use | What it does not establish by itself |
|---|---|---|
| GST INS-01 | Authorization for inspection, search or seizure | Its existence alone does not prove that the statutory reasons-to-believe threshold was met. |
| GST INS-02 | Seizure order | It does not turn unrelated or irrelevant property into seizable material. |
| GST INS-03 | Prohibition order where goods cannot practicably be seized | It does not permit dealing with goods outside the order or without the required permission. |
Record the form number, date, issuing officer, place covered and the property listed. Keep copies or photographs where lawfully permitted, and ask how a copy will be supplied if officers retain the original.
Rank #3
Retention, return and access when entry is denied
Section 67(3) limits retention of seized documents, books or things to the time necessary for examination, inquiry or proceedings. Material covered by that subsection that is not relied upon for a notice must be returned within 30 days after the notice is issued. Retention is therefore not an unlimited right to keep every record indefinitely.
Section 67(4) permits an authorized officer, in the statutory circumstances and where access is denied, to seal or break open premises or receptacles, including electronic devices. Describe this narrowly: it is tied to the section’s authorization and circumstances, not a general power to damage property whenever an officer is refused immediate access. Do not physically obstruct officers; document what happened and obtain legal advice promptly.
Other GST powers that are often confused with a search
Section 71: access to registered business premises
Under section 71, an officer authorized by a proper officer not below Joint Commissioner rank may access a registered person’s place of business for audit, scrutiny, verification and checks. The officer may inspect specified books, documents, computers, programs, software and other available things.
The stated purpose is business verification and related checks. A section 71 access visit should not automatically be described as a section 67 search or seizure. Ask the officer to identify the section and the scope of the access. If the officer later seeks to seize material, the separate statutory basis for that action should be clear.
Rank #4
Section 68: inspection of goods in movement
Section 68 concerns a conveyance that has been intercepted. The proper officer may require prescribed documents and devices, and the person in charge must produce them and allow inspection of the goods. This is a transit-check power, not a warrant to search every business premise connected with the vehicle.
For a transport check, keep the relevant invoice, e-way documentation and other prescribed records available, and ensure that the person in charge knows how to access required electronic devices. A dispute about a transit document should not be confused with the separate “secreted material” threshold in section 67(2).
Section 70: summons to give evidence or produce material
Section 70(1) states: “The proper officer under this Act shall have power to summon any person whose attendance he considers necessary either to give evidence or to produce a document or any other thing in any inquiry”. A summons may be directed to a person whose attendance is considered necessary, even when that person is not the registered taxpayer.
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The Act treats an inquiry under this provision as a judicial proceeding for the specified penal-code provisions. A summons is not the same as a search authorization: it calls for attendance, evidence or production of material, while section 67 addresses inspection, search and seizure at a place.
CBIC’s index lists Instruction 03/2022-23 dated 17 August 2022 concerning summons. The index confirms the title and date, but not the instruction’s full operational detail. Read the current instruction itself before relying on a procedural claim about summons.
Section 69: arrest
Arrest has its own conditions. The Commissioner must have reasons to believe that a person committed a specified offence under section 132 in the relevant punishability categories and must authorize an officer by order. The Act separately addresses informing the person of the grounds and production before a Magistrate within 24 hours for the covered category.
An inspection, search or seizure does not itself authorize arrest. If officers move from an investigative visit to an arrest, ask for the arrest order and the grounds communicated to the person, and contact qualified GST counsel immediately.
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1. Establish who is present and why
- Ask each officer to identify themselves and note names, designations, department and contact details shown on official identification.
- Ask which CGST Act section is being used and whether the visit is inspection, search, seizure, premises access, transit inspection or summons-related.
- Request to see the written authorization or order and note its number, date, issuing authority and premises covered. For a section 67 action, look for the relevant GST INS-01 authorization.
- Notify the business’s responsible person, tax manager and qualified adviser. Do not delay or obstruct a lawful action while making those notifications.
2. Control records without interfering
- Designate one employee to accompany officers and maintain a contemporaneous log of times, rooms entered, systems accessed and questions asked.
- Preserve accounting data, invoices, inventory records, emails and backups. Do not delete, alter, hide or move material.
- Provide access that the identified statutory power permits. If a request appears broader than the written authority, state the concern calmly and ask that it be recorded.
- Do not sign a statement, inventory or acknowledgment without reading it. If a correction is needed, write it on the document before signing or state that you cannot verify an inaccurate entry.
3. Track anything taken, copied or sealed
- Obtain an itemized seizure order or inventory for documents, books, devices, goods and other things.
- For electronic equipment, record device identifiers, condition, accessories, storage media and any stated method of copying or imaging data.
- Record rooms, cabinets, vehicles or receptacles that are sealed, and obtain the seal or prohibition details.
- Keep copies of forms, receipts and panchnama or inventory documents supplied during the action, subject to the procedure officers follow.
4. Follow up after the visit
- Calendar the date of any summons, response, notice or permission required to deal with prohibited goods.
- Review whether retained material is still needed for examination, inquiry or proceedings.
- If a notice is issued, identify material not relied upon and track the statutory 30-day return period for documents, books or things covered by section 67(3).
- Have a qualified GST practitioner or tax lawyer examine the authorization, reasons recorded where disclosure is available, inventory, statements and subsequent notice.
What officers cannot automatically do
- They cannot treat every visit as a section 67 search. Sections 68, 70 and 71 have different purposes and procedures.
- They cannot rely on a lower-rank visitor’s presence alone as the source of power. Section 67 requires a proper officer not below Joint Commissioner rank to have the statutory reasons to believe; another central-tax officer may act only through written authorization.
- They cannot assume every business record or device is seizable. Section 67(2) requires the goods or material to fall within its stated categories and, for documents, books or things, to be useful or relevant to proceedings and secreted in a place.
- They cannot retain covered material without limit. Retention is tied to examination, inquiry or proceedings, with the 30-day return rule for specified material not relied upon for a notice.
- They cannot infer arrest power from a search. Arrest requires the separate section 69 conditions and authorization.
- They cannot describe an unreviewed CBIC instruction as permission for an action. Instructions are operational guidance; the current Act, Rules and applicable orders govern the legal authority.
Can officers force an on-the-spot tax payment?
A section 67 inspection or search is an investigative power; it is not, by its wording, a blanket authorization to compel an immediate payment merely because officers are present. Tax liability, interest, penalty and recovery normally depend on the applicable statutory process and orders.
CBIC’s index lists Instruction 01/2022-23 dated 25 May 2022 concerning deposits during search, inspection or investigation. Because the instruction’s full text and any later replacement were not established here, do not assume that an officer’s demand, a deposit request or a payment method is automatically mandatory or automatically unlawful. Ask for the written statutory basis, obtain an official receipt, record whether the amount is described as a deposit or payment, and seek qualified advice before consenting to an unfamiliar arrangement. Never offer cash or destroy records to end a visit.
Questions to document in any dispute
For a later review, preserve the officer identities, the section cited, authorization and form numbers, premises covered, items taken or prohibited, statements signed, seals applied, notices issued and dates for return or response. Note any refusal to provide a copy and the explanation given. These facts allow an adviser to compare the action with the correct statutory route without assuming that every procedural issue has the same remedy.
State GST authorities may apply corresponding provisions under state legislation, and local notifications or operating instructions can affect implementation. Verify the law in the jurisdiction named in the notice and use the current CBIC or state tax department publication for any instruction whose date or text has changed.
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