Section 146 of CGST Act, 2017 - Common Portal
Section 146 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 empowers the Government, on the recommendations of the GST Council, to notify the Common Goods and Services Tax Electronic Portal for core GST functions including registration, tax payment, return filing, integrated tax computation and settlement, electronic way bills, and other prescribed functions.
Updated: 15 September 2026
Text of Section 146 - Common Portal
Section 146. The Government may, on the recommendations of the Council, notify the Common Goods and Services Tax Electronic Portal for facilitating registration, payment of tax, furnishing of returns, computation and settlement of integrated tax, electronic way bill and for carrying out such other functions and for such purposes as may be prescribed.
The current statutory text can also be checked in the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 on India Code.
Meaning and scope of Section 146
Section 146 is the statutory enabling provision for the GST electronic common portal. It does not itself prescribe the detailed procedure for every online GST activity. Instead, it authorises the Government to notify the electronic portal and permits the portal to be used for functions specified in the Act, the CGST Rules, notifications and other applicable GST provisions.
| Expression | Meaning in Section 146 |
|---|---|
| Government | The Government acting under the CGST Act and exercising the power conferred by Section 146. |
| Council | The Goods and Services Tax Council referred to under the constitutional and statutory GST framework. |
| Common Portal | The notified Common Goods and Services Tax Electronic Portal used for GST-related electronic functions. |
| Prescribed | Prescribed by rules made under the CGST Act. |
Notification of the GST Common Portal
In exercise of the power under Section 146, the Central Government issued Notification No. 4/2017-Central Tax dated 19 June 2017, notifying www.gst.gov.in as the Common Goods and Services Tax Electronic Portal. The notification is listed on the CBIC Central Tax Notifications page.
Practical point: The GST Portal is the principal electronic interface for taxpayer services under GST. The precise procedure, form, eligibility condition, due date or legal consequence for a transaction should be checked under the relevant provision, rule, notification, circular and portal advisory applicable to that transaction.
Functions facilitated through the Common Portal
Section 146 expressly refers to several categories of electronic GST functions. These include:
- Registration: electronic registration and related taxpayer services.
- Payment of tax: electronic generation of challans and payment-related functions.
- Furnishing of returns: electronic filing and management of GST returns and statements.
- Integrated tax: computation and settlement functions concerning integrated tax.
- Electronic way bill: electronic functions connected with the e-way bill system as provided under the GST framework.
- Other prescribed functions: additional functions assigned under the CGST Rules and other applicable GST provisions.
For taxpayer services and current portal functionality, refer to the official GST Portal and the GST Portal Help and Taxpayer Manuals.
Why Section 146 is important
GST administration is substantially electronic. Section 146 supplies the statutory basis for notifying the common electronic portal through which specified GST compliance functions are carried out. It therefore connects the substantive requirements of the CGST Act with the electronic procedures used by taxpayers and tax authorities.
For example, official GST guidance confirms that return filing and payment workflows are carried out through the GST Portal. Taxpayers should preserve acknowledgements, application reference numbers, challans, filed returns and other electronic records generated by the portal where relevant to their compliance or proceedings.
Related provisions of the CGST Act
Section 146 appears in Chapter XXI - Miscellaneous of the CGST Act, 2017. Nearby provisions include Section 143 - Job Work Procedure, Section 144 - Presumption as to Documents in Certain Cases, Section 145 - Admissibility of Micro Films, Facsimile Copies and Computer Printouts, Section 147 - Deemed Exports, Section 148 - Special Procedure for Certain Processes, and Section 149 - GST Compliance Rating.