57th GST Council meeting (8 Oct 2026): procedure and enforcement, not rates
Unlike last year's rate overhaul, this round is about compliance and litigation — automated refunds, a higher prosecution threshold, and fewer blocked input tax credits. None of it is law yet.
The GST Council met for the 57th time on 8 October 2026 in New Delhi. Where the 56th meeting (September 2025) rewrote the rate slabs, this one is aimed at the procedural and enforcement side of GST — registration, return filing, refunds, and ongoing litigation — with a stated goal of more automation and less back-and-forth between taxpayers and officers.
Reported recommendations include:
- Enforcement: the arrest power under Section 69 is reportedly being withdrawn, and the threshold for prosecution raised to ₹5 crore. - Refunds: a push toward largely automated refund processing, including a wider refund of accumulated input tax credit. - Input tax credit: previously blocked credit categories — insurance, telecom towers, pipelines, free samples — are proposed to be unblocked. - Exports: the "distinct person" condition and a specific IGST provision (Section 13(3)(a)) are proposed for removal, easing a known export friction point. - Rates: a NIL rate on psyllium seeds/husk (isabgol), and aligning the rate on re-treaded tractor tyres with new tractor tyres.
Important: these are Council recommendations, not enacted law. Each item needs a formal notification or circular before it takes effect, and effective dates can differ from the announcement date. Treat this as "what's coming," verify anything that affects your filings against the actual CBIC notification once published, and don't change a return or a client's filing based on this summary alone.
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