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Start by identifying exactly what the GST authority issued: a refund-objection notice, a final refund-rejection order, or a tax demand or show-cause notice. The document determines your next step and deadline. Then check whether the overseas recipient is a branch or head office of the same legal person as the Indian supplier, or a separately incorporated entity. Under India’s IGST Act, services between establishments of the same person generally do not qualify as exports, even if payment comes from abroad.
First, identify the communication and the deadline
Download the full notice or order from the GST portal and read the document itself, not just the portal status. Record the form number, issuing authority, tax period, amount, date and method of communication, and the specific relief or response requested.
| What you received | What it means | Immediate response |
|---|---|---|
| Form GST RFD-08 | A notice proposing to reject all or part of a refund claim. | Reply in Form GST RFD-09 within 15 days of receiving the notice. The refund rules also require a reasonable opportunity to be heard before rejection. |
| Final refund-rejection order | The authority has decided the refund claim; this is different from an RFD-08 proposal. | Assess an appeal under section 107 of the CGST Act. The general first-appeal period is three months from communication of the order; the Appellate Authority may allow up to one further month for sufficient cause. |
| Demand or show-cause notice | The authority may be seeking tax or another remedy rather than deciding only a refund claim. | Follow the response instructions and deadline in that notice. Do not assume the refund-objection or appeal timetable applies. |
The RFD-08 procedure and refund decision process appear in the CBIC refund rules. The appeal period is set out in section 107 of the CGST Act. Check the actual communication and current rules promptly: the applicable route depends on the document and procedural stage.
Why an overseas branch may not count as an export recipient
Under section 2(6) of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (IGST Act), a service is an export only if it meets five cumulative conditions:
- The supplier is located in India.
- The recipient is located outside India.
- The place of supply is outside India.
- Payment is received in convertible foreign exchange or in Indian rupees wherever permitted by the Reserve Bank of India.
- The supplier and recipient are not merely establishments of a distinct person under Explanation 1 to section 8.
That final condition can be decisive. Section 8 treats a person’s establishment in India and another establishment outside India as distinct persons for IGST purposes. It also treats a person operating through a branch, agency, or representative office in a territory as having an establishment there. As a result, an Indian office and the same legal person’s overseas branch or head office generally cannot treat their services to each other as exports under this definition. Foreign-currency payment alone does not change that result. See the official IGST Act text, including sections 2(6) and 8.
CBIC gives a banking-sector illustration: services by an Indian bank or an Indian branch of a foreign bank to its offshore branch or head office are described as inter-State supplies between distinct establishments, rather than exports, subject to the FAQ’s stated context. That example is specifically about banking; the statute, not the sectoral FAQ, controls other cases. CBIC Sectoral FAQ, question 54.
Check whether the overseas counterparty is a branch or a separate company
Do not rely on a group name, invoice description, or the fact that both offices belong to a multinational group. The relevant question is whether the Indian supplier and foreign recipient are establishments of the same legal person or distinct incorporated entities. A separately incorporated Indian subsidiary supplying a foreign group company is not interchangeable with an Indian branch supplying its own foreign head office; the transaction still needs analysis under the actual facts and applicable law.
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Build a response around the authority’s actual reason
Address the ground stated in the notice or order, not just the conclusion that the supply is not an export. Determine whether the authority disputes the identity of the recipient, the distinct-establishment condition, the place of supply, payment, the nature of the service, or supporting documents. Because the export definition has cumulative conditions, evidence for one condition does not by itself resolve a dispute about another.
Establish the legal relationship
- Collect incorporation and registration records for the Indian and overseas entities or offices.
- Prepare an entity and establishment chart that shows which legal person owns or operates each office.
- Gather relevant tax registrations, branch records, agreements, and records identifying the contracting parties.
- Reconcile those records with the names and roles shown on invoices and in the authority’s communication.
Connect the evidence to the service and export conditions
- Include service agreements, statements of work, invoices, work product, and records of where and how the service was performed.
- Provide correspondence showing who requested the service and who received or used it.
- Include payment and remittance evidence, together with relevant accounting entries.
- Explain how the evidence supports the supplier, recipient, place of supply, payment, and entity-relationship elements that are actually disputed.
This is a practical evidence-gathering approach, not an official exhaustive checklist. Preserve the notice or order, portal filing receipts, attachments, and any hearing record. In a reply, make each factual assertion traceable to a document and answer each stated ground directly.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Use the procedure that matches your stage
If you received an RFD-08 notice
Submit the RFD-09 response within the period shown in the refund rules, address the proposed grounds, and retain proof of filing and attachments. If a hearing is offered or requested, keep a record of the opportunity and what was submitted. Under the refund rules, a refund application must not be rejected without a reasonable opportunity of being heard. CBIC CGST refund rules.
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Review the final order for its findings, appeal instructions, and communication date. Section 107 generally allows three months from communication to appeal to the Appellate Authority, with a possible further month for sufficient cause. Filing requirements are addressed in the CBIC appeal rules. Confirm the current requirements and the appropriate forum against the order rather than relying on a portal label.
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If the authority issued a demand or another notice
Use the response route and deadline stated in that communication. A demand proceeding may raise issues beyond refund eligibility, so have the notice and underlying records reviewed together. Do not use the refund-response process as a substitute unless the document actually invokes it.
Get case-specific advice before filing
An Indian GST practitioner or tax lawyer can check the legal identity of the parties, the service and place-of-supply facts, the applicable version of the law, and the correct forum and deadline. This is particularly important where the foreign office’s legal status is unclear or a final order has already been communicated. The statutory result turns on the actual entities and transaction, not simply on the parties’ location or the currency used for payment.
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