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Section 27 of the CGST Act, 2017

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GST›CGST Act, 2017›Chapter VI, Registration

At a glance

Bars, duties and time limits

27(1)Registration lasts for the application period or ninety days from its effective date, whichever is earlier; taxable supplies may begin only after certificate issuance.
27(2)The registration application requires advance tax equal to estimated liability for the requested period; an extension requires an additional deposit for its estimated liability.

Procedure, powers and definitions

27(1) provisoOn sufficient cause, the proper officer may extend the ninety-day period by no more than a further ninety days.
27(3)Deposits enter the electronic cash ledger and are used under section 49.
27The law does not settle sufficient cause, the method of estimating liability or the consequences when actual liability exceeds the estimate.

Section 27 limits casual and non-resident taxable persons’ registration periods and requires advance tax deposits. Taxable supplies must await the certificate. The proper officer may extend the ordinary period on sufficient cause, with an additional estimated-tax deposit for the extension. Deposits enter the cash ledger and follow section 49 utilisation. The section commenced on 22 June 2017.^[1]

Quick facts

Section 27, CGST Act, 2017

Special provisions relating to casual taxable person and non-resident taxable person

Provision
Act	Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017
Chapter	VI, Registration
Section title	Special provisions relating to casual taxable person and non-resident taxable person
Amendments
Last amendment	22 June 2017: the whole section: enforcement; the source carries no other marker, so no part of section 27 has been amended, and nothing in it is retrospective or awaiting notification (—)
Amendments	1 footnote in the CBIC text (table)
Related provisions
Rules	Rule 13, Rule 15 of the CGST Rules, 2017
Sections	2, 25, 49
Structure 27(1) first limbFor how long the certificate of registration is valid the proviso to 27(1)Extension of the ninety-day period 27(1) second limbTaxable supplies only after the certificate is issued 27(2)The advance deposit of tax the proviso to 27(2)The additional deposit where an extension is sought 27(3)The deposit in the electronic cash ledger
Source
Law text	CBIC tax information portal, served on 17 September 2026^[1]
Questions reviewed	Prashant Prakash, 22 September 2026

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 27, verbatim (show)

* Section 27. Special provisions relating to casual taxable person and non-resident taxable person.-

(1) The certificate of registration issued to a casual taxable person or a non-resident taxable person shall be valid for the period specified in the application for registration or ninety days from the effective date of registration, whichever is earlier and such person shall make taxable supplies only after the issuance of the certificate of registration:

Provided that the proper officer may, on sufficient cause being shown by the said taxable person, extend the said period of ninety days by a further period not exceeding ninety days.

(2) A casual taxable person or a non-resident taxable person shall, at the time of submission of application for registration under sub-section (1) of section 25, make an advance deposit of tax in an amount equivalent to the estimated tax liability of such person for the period for which the registration is sought:

Provided that where any extension of time is sought under sub-section (1), such taxable person shall deposit an additional amount of tax equivalent to the estimated tax liability of such person for the period for which the extension is sought.

(3) The amount deposited under sub-section (2) shall be credited to the electronic cash ledger of such person and shall be utilised in the manner provided under section 49.

* Enforced w.e.f. 22nd June, 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.

Scope the section as a whole

Questions to answer on the file2 questions

Is a casual taxable person or a non-resident taxable person?
What is in question about that person?

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For how long the certificate of registration is valid 27(1) first limb

Questions to answer on the file5 questions

Has a certificate of registration been issued to the person?
What period of validity was specified in the application for registration?
What is the effective date of registration?
On what date did the act take place?
Which of the two limits expires earlier: the period specified in the application for registration or ninety days from the effective date of registration?

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Extension of the ninety-day period the proviso to 27(1)

Questions to answer on the file4 questions

Has the person sought an extension of the ninety-day period from the proper officer?
Is the cause shown by the person sufficient cause within the proviso?
Has the proper officer extended the period?
What further period has the proper officer allowed?

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Taxable supplies only after the certificate is issued 27(1) second limb

Questions to answer on the file3 questions

Has the person made taxable supplies?
What is the date of issuance of the certificate of registration?
On what date was the earliest taxable supply made?

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The advance deposit of tax 27(2)

Questions to answer on the file4 questions

Has an application for registration under sub-section (1) of section 25 been submitted?
What is the estimated tax liability for the period for which registration is sought?
What advance deposit of tax has been made?
Was the deposit made at the time of submission of the application for registration?

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The additional deposit where an extension is sought the proviso to 27(2)

Questions to answer on the file2 questions

What is the estimated tax liability for the period for which the extension is sought?
What additional amount of tax has been deposited for the period of extension?

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The deposit in the electronic cash ledger 27(3)

Questions to answer on the file2 questions

Has the amount deposited been credited to the electronic cash ledger of the person?
Has the amount in the electronic cash ledger been utilised in the manner provided under section 49?

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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]

Amendments to section 27 as footnoted in the CBIC text
Note	Provision	Change	Instrument	Effective from
	the whole section	enforcement; the source carries no other marker, so no part of section 27 has been amended, and nothing in it is retrospective or awaiting notification	—	22.06.2017

Provisions connected to Section 27
Provision	Connection	Words that tie them
Section 2	this provision defined by Section 2 clauses (20) and (77)	27(1) "issued to a casual taxable person or a non-resident taxable person", both expressions being defined in section 2
Section 25	27(2) requires Section 25	27(2) "at the time of submission of application for registration under sub-section (1) of section 25"
Section 49	27(3) requires Section 49	27(3) "shall be utilised in the manner provided under section 49"

Circulars and notifications

Circulars and notifications in the CBIC repository that cite this section, newest first, by number, date and subject. A listing here does not say what an instrument decides; read the instrument.

Circulars (4)

Number	Date	Subject
Circular No. 223/17/2024-GST	10 July 2024	Amendment in circular no. 1/1//2017 in respect of Proper officer for provisions relating to Registration and Composition levy under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 or the rules made thereunder.
Circular No. 88/07/2019-GST	1 February 2019	Seeks to make amendments in the earlier issued circulars in wake of amendments in the CGST Act, 2017 (which shall come into force w.e.f. 01.02.2019).
Circular No. 71/45/2018-GST	26 October 2018	Clarification on issues pertaining to registration as a casual taxable person & recovery of excess Input Tax Credit distributed by an Input Service distributor
Circular No. 1/01/2017-GST	26 June 2017	Proper officer for provisions relating to Registration and Composition levy under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 or the rules made thereunder-Reg.

Notifications (2)

Number	Date	Subject
Notification No. 10/2017-Central Tax	28 June 2017	Seeks to amend CGST Rules notification no 3/2017-Central Tax dt 19.06.2017 amended by a later instrument
Notification No. 03/2017-Central Tax	19 June 2017	Notifying the CGST Rules, 2017 on registration and composition levy amended by a later instrument

Unsettled questions

The words of section 27 do not answer these questions. Where one decides a matter on the file, the answer depends on the position taken on it.

What is sufficient cause for extending the ninety-day period? The proviso requires it to be shown and gives no test of what will do.
On what basis is the estimated tax liability arrived at, and what follows where the liability actually arising exceeds the estimate? The sub-section fixes the deposit by reference to an estimate it nowhere describes.

See also

Section 25 of the CGST Act, 2017: procedure for registration
Section 49 of the CGST Act, 2017: payment of tax, interest, penalty and other amounts
Rule 15 of the CGST Rules, 2017: extension in period of operation by casual taxable person and non-resident taxable person

References

Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. "Section 27. Special provisions relating to casual taxable person and non-resident taxable person". 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 27 on the CBIC tax information portal