This circular provides clarification on the designation of proper officers and the distribution of powers for issuance of show cause notices (SCNs) and passing of orders under sections 73 and 74 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, and the corresponding provisions of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

It clarifies that Superintendents of Central Tax are also empowered to issue SCNs and pass orders under section 74 of the CGST Act, in addition to their existing powers under section 73. Accordingly, the earlier assignment of these functions exclusively to Deputy or Assistant Commissioners under section 74 is withdrawn. As a result, all officers up to the rank of Additional or Joint Commissioner of Central Tax are designated as proper officers for proceedings under sections 73 and 74 of both the CGST Act and the IGST Act.

To ensure optimal distribution of work, the circular prescribes monetary limits for different levels of officers. Superintendents are empowered to handle cases involving central tax up to ₹10 lakh and integrated tax up to ₹20 lakh. Deputy or Assistant Commissioners may deal with cases above these limits and up to ₹1 crore for central tax and ₹2 crore for integrated tax. Additional or Joint Commissioners are authorized to handle cases exceeding these limits without any upper ceiling.

The circular further provides that officers of Audit Commissionerates and the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) may only issue SCNs, while adjudication will be done by the competent officer of the Executive Commissionerate having jurisdiction over the noticee. Special provisions are laid down for cases involving multiple Commissionerates and high-value demands, as well as for consolidation of similar issues to ensure adjudication by the authority competent to decide the highest demand.