GST refund status: what each RFD means

GST refund status is the RFD form trail behind your ARN on gst.gov.in. Read the status meaning first, then decide whether to wait, ticket, or file RTI.

When you file Form RFD-01, the portal issues an Application Reference Number. Every later officer action is a named form on that ARN. Do not refresh the dashboard hoping for a sentence in plain English. Map the status to the form, then act.

The GST portal tutorial lists the officer path and the named statuses. Use this table before you call anyone.

What a GST refund ARN is: a unique identifier for one RFD-01 filing. Track that number, not a verbal “my refund”.

CGST Act section 54(7) requires the proper officer to issue the final order within 60 days of a complete application. If a deficiency memo is issued, the time until the memo is excluded and the fresh filing is a new claim. Section 56 interest can apply if the 60-day order is missed. There is no automatic deemed sanction. Silence is not payment. You still have to escalate.

1. Open https://www.gst.gov.in
2. Go to Services, Track Application Status
3. In Module, select Refund
4. Enter the ARN and Search
5. Note current stage, date and case history

1. Log in with GSTIN
2. Services, Track Application Status, Module Refund
3. Enter ARN, or pick the filing year to list refunds
4. Open the ARN hyperlink for the receipt PDF
5. Open Status for case history, tax period and claimed amount
6. For notices and replies: Dashboard, Services, User Services, My Applications

If bank validation failed, the Action column shows UPDATE BANK ACCOUNT. Fix IFSC or account through a non-core registration amendment. That is faster than a new refund filing.

GST tutorial also lists login path Services, Refunds, Track Application Status. Use whichever menu your dashboard currently shows. The ARN is the same.

Verb-led steps when the status is stuck

1. Match the portal words to the table above. Do not invent a meaning.
2. Fix what you control: bank details, missing statements, RFD-09 reply.
3. Ticket at selfservice.gstsystem.in with GSTIN, ARN and RFD-02 date if acknowledged.
4. Write to the proper officer shown in your login, citing section 54(7) and the ARN.
5. RTI the jurisdictional GST Commissionerate PIO if the file stays silent after the ticket.

Ticket first when the portal is working but slow. RTI when you need the noting, the officer name, the date the file last moved, or a copy of the deficiency or withhold order that is not on the dashboard.

When a ticket is enough

• Bank validation failed and you already corrected the account
• Status is acknowledged and still inside the 60-day window
• You need a password or dashboard glitch fixed

When RTI is the better tool

• RFD-02 is old, no RFD-04 or RFD-06 is visible, and the ticket has no speaking reply
• Status is withheld or adjusted and no reason is on the portal
• You need the file movement record for an appeal

File RTI under RTI Act 2005 section 6(1) to the PIO of the Commissionerate that has the refund. The PIO has 30 days under section 7(1). If there is no reply or a refusal, file first appeal under section 19(1).

Subject: RTI Act 2005 section 6(1) - GST refund file [ARN]

Please provide:

1. Current status of refund application ARN [number], GSTIN [number].
2. Date of filing, date of RFD-02 or RFD-03 if issued, and date last acted upon.
3. Name and designation of the officer with whom the file is pending.
4. Copy of deficiency memo, show-cause notice, withhold order or sanction order, if any.
5. If no order is issued, the noting that records the reason for delay.

Draft with the AI RTI Drafter. Appeal with the First Appeal Builder.

A deficiency memo in Form RFD-03 means the application was incomplete. Official GST help says you then file a fresh refund application. A new ARN is generated. Amounts debited for that claim are auto re-credited. You can reuse the same supporting documents in the fresh filing after you fix every listed gap.

Do not keep arguing on the old ARN after RFD-03. Read the memo. Fix all listed deficiencies. File again.

Provisional refund in Form RFD-04 is available for listed categories, including export-related claims and inverted tax structure, where the applicant is eligible. GST help says the officer may issue RFD-04 within 7 days from acknowledgement, up to 90 percent of the claimed amount. Final order is still RFD-06. Eligibility is not a promise for every GSTIN. If the officer sends the claim to full scrutiny, track RFD-06.

If you receive RFD-08, reply in RFD-09 within 15 days of the notice, or within the extra time the officer allows. After RFD-06, you cannot file RFD-09 on that ARN.

If RFD-06 rejects the claim, file Form GST APL-01 within three months of the order under section 107 of the CGST Act.

• Bank account validation failure: inactive IFSC, name mismatch with PAN, closed account
• GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B figures do not match
• Export documents not uploaded or not linked to invoices
• Inverted duty refund: wrong computation under the CGST refund formula
• Claimant flagged for further scrutiny
• Refund filed beyond the time in section 54(1)
• RFD-09 not filed after a show-cause notice

• GSTIN and ARN
• RFD-01 copy and ARN receipt PDF
• RFD-02, RFD-03, RFD-08 or RFD-06 PDFs from the portal
• Bank proof: cancelled cheque or passbook, IFSC, account name as in PAN
• GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B for the claim period
• Export or inverted-duty statements already filed with the refund
• Ticket number from selfservice.gstsystem.in

• Tracking without the ARN
• Treating RFD-03 as a final rejection instead of a fresh-filing trigger
• Ignoring UPDATE BANK ACCOUNT
• Missing the 15-day RFD-09 window
• Filing RTI to CBIC headquarters for a range-level file
• Expecting the portal to pay automatically on day 61
• Quoting a blog's “3 to 7 working days” as if it were a CGST rule
• Filing a duplicate RFD-01 while the first ARN is still live and acknowledged

Illustrative scenario. A refund sits on “Pending for Processing” with no RFD-02. The taxpayer files a ticket with the ARN. If the ticket returns no officer name and no noting, RTI to the Commissionerate PIO asks for the date the file was assigned and the last action. That is a file-movement request, not a demand to sanction money.

• How to apply for GST registration
• Apply GST registration 2026
• GST refund ITC mismatch, CBIC escalation
• RTI for GST refund delay
• AI RTI Drafter
• The RTI Playbook
• RTI Act, 2005

• GST portal
• GST portal refund processing FAQ
• GST taxpayer self-service
• CGST Act 2017 sections 54, 56, 107
• RTI Act 2005 sections 6(1), 7(1), 19(1)

On gst.gov.in go to Services, Track Application Status, Module Refund, enter the ARN. Login adds tax period, claimed amount and PDFs.

RFD-01 is the refund application. Filing it creates the ARN. Later officer actions attach to that ARN as RFD-02 through RFD-09.

After RFD-02 the officer still has to examine the claim and issue RFD-06. Section 54(7) sets 60 days from a complete application. If that window passes, ticket, write to the officer, then RTI for the noting.

Download the memo. Fix every listed gap. File a fresh RFD-01. The portal generates a new ARN. Debited amounts are auto re-credited.

Open Track Application Status for that ARN and use UPDATE BANK ACCOUNT. Correct IFSC or the account that matches the PAN name. Do not file a new refund only to change the bank line.

Use a ticket for dashboard and bank-validation issues. Use RTI when you need the file noting, officer name, withhold reason, or proof that the file has not moved after RFD-02.

Yes. gst.gov.in, Services, Track Application Status, Module Refund, enter ARN. Login is needed for amounts, PDFs and replies.

File Form GST APL-01 within three months of the RFD-06 order under section 107 of the CGST Act. File on the common portal.

Reviewed for RTI Wiki by Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak.