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 70, verbatim (show)
Section 70
* Section 70. Power to summon persons to give evidence and produce documents.-
(1) The proper officer under this Act shall have power to summon any person whose attendance he considers necessary either to give evidence or to produce a document or any other thing in any inquiry in the same manner, as provided in the case of a civil court under the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908).
1[(1A) All persons summoned under sub-section (1) shall be bound to attend, either in person or by an authorised representative, as such officer may direct, and the person so appearing shall state the truth during examination or make statements or produce such documents and other things as may be required.]
(2) Every such inquiry referred to in sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be a "judicial proceedings" within the meaning of section 193 and section 228 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).
* Enforced w.e.f. 1st July, 2017.
1. Inserted by section 135 of The Finance Act (No. 2) Act, 2024 No. 15 of 2024 dated 16.08.2024.
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 file1 question
The power to summon 70(1)
Questions to answer on the file6 questions
The obligation of the person summoned 70(1A)
Questions to answer on the file8 questions
The inquiry deemed to be a judicial proceeding 70(2)
Questions to answer on the file2 questions
Amendment history
The CBIC text carries 2 footnotes. The table gives each in the source's own terms. Effective dates are as the footnotes state them.[1]
| Note | Change | Instrument | Effective from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enforced the section. | — | 1st July, 2017 | |
| 1 | Inserted sub-section (1A). | section 135 of The Finance Act (No. 2) Act, 2024, No. 15 of 2024, dated 16.08.2024[2] | the source's footnote gives no effective date for the insertion; the date shown is the date of the amending Act |
Relationship with other provisions
| Provision | Connection | Words that tie them |
|---|---|---|
| Section 2 | this provision defined by Section 2 clause (91) | 70(1) "The proper officer under this Act shall have power to summon", with s.2(91) "in relation to any function to be performed under this Act, means the Commissioner or the officer of the central tax who is assigned that function by the Commissioner in the Board" |
| Section 2 | this provision defined by Section 2 clause (41) | 70(1) "to produce a document or any other thing", with s.2(41) "document includes written or printed record of any sort and electronic record" |
| Section 2, Section 116 | 70(1A) defined by Section 2 clause (15) and Section 116 | 70(1A) "either in person or by an authorised representative", with s.2(15) "authorised representative means the representative as referred to in section 116" |
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 (1)
| Number | Date | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Circular No. 3/03/2017-GST | 5 July 2017 | Proper officer relating to provisions other than Registration and Composition under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017-Reg. |
Notifications (1)
| 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 |
Unsettled questions
The words of section 70 do not answer these questions. Where one decides a matter on the file, the answer depends on the position taken on it.
- What is an "inquiry" for section 70, and what begins one? The power exists only "in any inquiry" and sub-section (2) deems "every such inquiry" a judicial proceeding, but the Act neither defines the word nor says how an inquiry is begun or recorded.
- From what date does sub-section (1A), inserted by section 135 of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024, apply? The source's footnote gives the amending Act and its date of 16.08.2024 and no commencement.
See also
- Section 116 of the CGST Act, 2017: appearance by authorised representative
- Section 136 of the CGST Act, 2017: relevancy of statements under certain circumstances
References
- Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. "Section 70. Power to summon persons to give evidence and produce documents". Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, CBIC tax information portal, with amendment footnotes 1 to 2. Retrieved 17 September 2026.
- The Finance Act (No. 2) Act, 2024. Cited in CBIC footnote 1.
External links
- CGST Act, 2017, Section 70 on the CBIC tax information portal