Text
The text below is the section as served by the CBIC tax information portal on 17 September 2026, with the portal's own amendment footnote markers (shown as small numerals before a bracket) and its footnotes.[1] The Act as published in the Gazette of India is the legal source.
Section 133, verbatim (show)
* Section 133. Liability of officers and certain other persons.-
(1) Where any person engaged in connection with the collection of statistics under section 151 or compilation or computerisation thereof or if any officer of central tax having access to information specified under sub-section (1) of section 150, or if any person engaged in connection with the provision of service on the common portal or the agent of common portal, wilfully discloses any information or the contents of any return furnished under this Act or rules made thereunder otherwise than in execution of his duties under the said sections or for the purposes of prosecution for an offence under this Act or under any other Act for the time being in force, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to twenty-five thousand rupees, or with both.
(2) Any person-
(a) who is a Government servant shall not be prosecuted for any offence under this section except with the previous sanction of the Government;
(b) who is not a Government servant shall not be prosecuted for any offence under this section except with the previous sanction of the Commissioner. * Enforced w.e.f . 1st July, 2017.
Questions to answer on the file
Questions a reviewer answers from the engagement file, grouped by the part of the section they come from. They describe what the section asks; they do not decide it.
Disclosure conditions 133(1)
Questions to answer on the file8 questions
Court sentence upper bounds 133(1)
Questions to answer on the file4 questions
Previous sanction 133(2)(a)–(b)
Questions to answer on the file3 questions
Amendment history
The CBIC text carries 1 footnote. The table gives each in the source's own terms. Effective dates are as the footnotes state them.[1]
| Note | Effective from |
|---|---|
| 01.07.2017 |
Relationship with other provisions
| Provision | Connection | Words that tie them |
|---|---|---|
| Section 151 | 133(1) requires Section 151 | 133(1) "collection of statistics under section 151" |
| Section 150 | 133(1) requires Section 150 | 133(1) "information specified under sub-section (1) of section 150" |
| Section 158A | 133 overridden by Section 158A | 158A(1) "Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 133, 152 and 158" |
Circulars and notifications
No circular or notification in the CBIC repository is recorded as citing this section.
Unsettled questions
The words of section 133 do not answer these questions. Where one decides a matter on the file, the answer depends on the position taken on it.
- What establishes wilful disclosure under section 133(1)? The section supplies no evidentiary test; judicial determination is reserved.
- Does the statistics wording of section 133(1) reach information work under substituted section 151?
See also
- Section 158A of the CGST Act, 2017: consent based sharing of information furnished by taxable person
- Section 151 of the CGST Act, 2017: power to call for information
References
- Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. "Section 133. Liability of officers and certain other persons". Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, CBIC tax information portal, with amendment footnotes 1 to 1. Retrieved 17 September 2026.
External links
- CGST Act, 2017, Section 133 on the CBIC tax information portal