Section 3 of CGST Act, 2017: Officers under this Act

Section 3 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 forms part of Chapter II, "Administration". It identifies the classes of Central Tax officers that the Government may appoint by notification for administration of the CGST Act.

Current legal position: The statutory text of Section 3 continues to list the classes of Central Tax officers from Principal Chief Commissioner or Principal Director General down to Assistant Commissioner or Assistant Director, together with any other class of officers the Government may consider fit. Officers appointed under the Central Excise Act, 1944 are deemed to be officers appointed under the CGST Act.

Text and meaning of Section 3 - Officers under this Act

The Government shall, by notification, appoint the following classes of officers for the purposes of the CGST Act:

  1. Principal Chief Commissioners of Central Tax or Principal Directors General of Central Tax;
  2. Chief Commissioners of Central Tax or Directors General of Central Tax;
  3. Principal Commissioners of Central Tax or Principal Additional Directors General of Central Tax;
  4. Commissioners of Central Tax or Additional Directors General of Central Tax;
  5. Additional Commissioners of Central Tax or Additional Directors of Central Tax;
  6. Joint Commissioners of Central Tax or Joint Directors of Central Tax;
  7. Deputy Commissioners of Central Tax or Deputy Directors of Central Tax;
  8. Assistant Commissioners of Central Tax or Assistant Directors of Central Tax; and
  9. any other class of officers as the Government may deem fit.

Proviso: Officers appointed under the Central Excise Act, 1944 are deemed to be officers appointed under the provisions of the CGST Act.

What Section 3 means

Section 3 establishes the statutory hierarchy of officers who administer Central GST. The provision itself identifies the classes of officers; their actual appointment, territorial jurisdiction and assignment of functions may depend on notifications, orders and other provisions of the Act.

The phrase "by notification" is important. For the purposes of Section 3, the Government appoints the specified classes of officers through a notification. Jurisdictional notifications therefore need to be read with the Act when identifying the competent Central Tax authority for a particular proceeding.

Section 4 - Appointment of officers

Section 4 of the CGST Act supplements Section 3. It empowers the Board, in addition to officers notified by the Government under Section 3, to appoint persons as officers under the Act. It also permits specified senior officers to be authorised to appoint Central Tax officers below the rank of Assistant Commissioner for administration of the Act.

Section 5 - Powers of officers

Section 5 of the CGST Act deals with exercise of powers and discharge of duties by Central Tax officers, subject to conditions and limitations imposed by the Board. A superior Central Tax officer may exercise powers and discharge duties conferred or imposed on a subordinate officer, subject to the statutory framework.

Proper officer under Section 2(91)

The expression "proper officer" is defined in Section 2(91) of the CGST Act, in relation to any function to be performed under the Act, as the Commissioner or the officer of Central Tax who is assigned that function by the Commissioner in the Board. Therefore, being an officer listed under Section 3 does not, by itself, answer every question of functional jurisdiction; the relevant assignment of function must also be considered where the Act requires action by the "proper officer".

Jurisdiction and notifications

Notification No. 02/2017-Central Tax dated 19 June 2017 notified the jurisdiction of Central Tax officers. The jurisdictional framework has subsequently been amended from time to time. For any live proceeding, the applicable notification and amendments should be checked as on the relevant date rather than relying only on the original 2017 notification.

Section 3 was among the provisions brought into force from 22 June 2017. The current consolidated Act and official GST material should be consulted for statutory verification.

Practical importance of Section 3

Section 3 is relevant whenever the authority, designation or jurisdiction of a Central Tax officer is in issue. In notices, adjudication, audit, investigation, recovery or other GST proceedings, the statutory class of officer, territorial jurisdiction, assignment as proper officer and any applicable delegation or authorisation may all need to be examined together.

Section 2 - Definitions Section 4 - Appointment of Officers Section 5 - Powers of Officers Section 6 - Authorisation of State/UT Tax Officers CGST Act, 2017 - Index GST - Acts, Rules and Updates

Official sources

For authoritative verification, refer to the CGST Act, 2017 on India Code, the CBIC GST Acts page, and the CBIC Central Tax Notifications page.

Updated: 15 September 2026. This article is intended as a legal information guide. For a specific proceeding, verify the Act, applicable notification, assignment order and jurisdiction in force on the relevant date.