A GST notice is a question — answer it well, and in time
ASMT-10, DRC-01, REG-03, GSTR-3A — every notice has a form it must be answered in and a clock already running. We read the notice, gather the evidence, draft the reply, and follow it through. What we never do is let a deadline pass in silence.
Typical reply within minutes during office hours.
Why people choose us over any agent
No hidden charges, ever: our fee and the government fee are quoted separately, in writing, before you pay a rupee. If a cheaper official route fits your case, we tell you.
That honesty is why most new clients come from referrals.
Silence is the only reply that always loses
Most GST notices are not accusations — they are questions. A mismatch between your GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B, a document the officer could not read, a return that did not arrive. Answered properly and on time, a large share of notices end quietly. Unanswered, every one of them escalates: rejected applications, best-judgement assessments, confirmed demands with interest and penalty, cancelled registrations.
The system has a structural trap built in: notices are served on the GST portal and to your registered email and mobile. If those contact details are stale — or nobody logs in — the notice legally exists whether you saw it or not, and the clock runs anyway. (If your registered contacts are outdated, fix them now through a quick amendment; it is the cheapest notice-insurance there is.)
Deadlines are the whole game. Reply windows range from 7 working days (registration queries, cancellation notices) to 30 days (scrutiny and demand notices). These are short, they start from service of the notice — not from when you happened to read it — and missing them usually converts an answerable question into an adverse order. If you have a notice in hand, count the days today.
The notices we see most, decoded
Every GST notice carries a form code that tells you exactly what it is and how it must be answered:
| Notice | What it means | Reply — form & window |
|---|---|---|
| REG-03 | Officer wants clarification or documents on a registration or amendment application | REG-04 within 7 working days |
| REG-17 | Show-cause: department proposes to cancel your registration | REG-18 within 7 working days |
| GSTR-3A | A return (GSTR-1/3B/4/8) has not been filed | File the pending return within 15 days |
| ASMT-10 | Scrutiny (Section 61): discrepancies found in your returns | ASMT-11 within 30 days (extendable ~15 days) |
| DRC-01A | Pre-notice intimation of tax the officer has ascertained | Pay via DRC-03, or contest in Part B |
| DRC-01 | Show-cause notice for a tax demand (Sec 73/74; Sec 74A from FY 2024-25) | DRC-06 within 30 days |
| CMP-05 | Your composition-scheme eligibility is being questioned | CMP-06 within 15 days |
| RFD-08 | Proposed rejection of your refund claim | RFD-09 within 15 days |
The pattern to notice: registration-side notices give you a week; assessment-side notices give you a month. Either way, the useful work — reconciliations, documents, drafting — takes days, not hours, so the earlier the notice reaches us, the stronger the reply. For a plain-language walkthrough of each type, see our knowledge article GST notices explained.
Demand notices — DRC-01, and the shift to Section 74A
A DRC-01 is the formal show-cause notice that a demand proceeding has begun: the department states the tax it believes you owe, with interest and proposed penalty. Historically these ran under Section 73 (non-fraud cases) or Section 74 (fraud, wilful misstatement, suppression). For periods from FY 2024-25 onwards, Section 74A applies instead, unifying the time limits for both categories while keeping higher penalties for fraud cases.
Two things matter enormously in a demand case:
- Timing of payment. In a Section 73 (non-fraud) matter, paying the tax with interest before the show-cause notice — or within 30 days of it — means no penalty. Where the demand is actually correct, early acceptance is often the cheapest exit, and we will tell you so plainly rather than bill you for a fight you should not have.
- Quality of the reply. Where the demand is wrong — and mismatch-driven demands often are, wholly or partly — the DRC-06 reply must dismantle it line by line: reconciliations, invoices, ledgers, and the legal grounds, filed within the 30-day window.
Often the right answer is a mix: accept what is genuinely due, contest what is not, and document both. That judgement call is precisely where professional help earns its fee.
How we respond: analysis → documentation → drafted reply → follow-through
- Analysis. Send the notice on WhatsApp the day it arrives. We identify the type, the section, the exact allegation and the true deadline — and check the portal for anything else pending against your GSTIN. You get a plain-language explanation of what is actually being asked, and a fixed quote before we begin.
- Documentation. We assemble what the reply needs: return reconciliations (GSTR-1 vs 3B, books vs returns), invoices, e-way bills, agreements, payment proofs. Weak replies fail here — assertions without annexures rarely persuade anyone.
- Drafted reply. The response is drafted in the correct statutory form — REG-04, REG-18, ASMT-11, DRC-06, CMP-06 or RFD-09 — addressing each point the officer raised, factually and without theatrics. You review and approve it before filing.
- Follow-through. Filing is not the finish line. We track the proceeding on the portal, respond to any further query, and hand you the closure — an accepted reply, a dropped proceeding, or an order — with a clear note on what, if anything, comes next.
If the underlying cause is a filing backlog, we fix that too — pending returns are cleared through our return filing service, and where non-filing has already triggered cancellation proceedings, the cancellation and revocation page covers that road. You can verify every notice and its status yourself after logging in at www.gst.gov.in; the underlying law sits at cbic-gst.gov.in.
What we can promise — and what nobody honestly can
Outcomes rest with the officer. We are not the adjudicating authority, and no consultant is. Anyone who guarantees that your notice "will be dropped" is selling certainty they do not own. What we promise is the part that is actually controllable: the notice read correctly, every document that helps you found and annexed, a reply filed in the right form within the deadline, and honest advice when accepting a demand is cheaper than contesting it. In our experience that controllable part decides most routine notices.
When you do NOT need us. A GSTR-3A where you simply forgot a nil return? File it yourself on the portal and the matter usually ends — we will confirm that in one WhatsApp message, free. And if your matter has moved past the departmental stage into appeals or litigation, a GST practitioner's desk is not the right forum: we say so early and help you brief a tax advocate properly instead of holding the file. For ongoing GST representation work, our specialist practice runs at GujaratGST.in.
The bottom line
You now know the process, the documents and the pitfalls. What we add is nine years of doing this daily — and a fixed price for taking the whole job off your desk. The quote is free; the time you save is yours.
GST notices — common questions
I received a GST notice. What should I do first?
What is an ASMT-10 notice?
What is a DRC-01 show-cause notice?
What is REG-03 and why did I get it for a new registration?
What happens if I ignore a GST notice completely?
Can paying early reduce or remove the penalty?
What is a GSTR-3A notice?
How do I even know if I have a notice?
Can you guarantee the notice will be dropped?
What do you charge for a notice reply?
My deadline is tomorrow or already passed. Is it too late?
Do I need a lawyer or is a GST practitioner enough?
Got a notice? The clock is already running
WhatsApp a photo or PDF of the notice now. We tell you what it means, what the deadline is, and a fixed quote for the reply — before any work begins.