MOHAN & CHANDRASEKHAR
Chartered Accountants
Hosur | Bengaluru | Chennai
GSTN ADVISORY – GST Portal Update: Pre-Deposit Field in APL-01 Now Made Editable
GSTN Advisory dated 10th April 2026 — Critical Relief for Appellants
April 2026
1. Background
Under Section 107(6) of the CGST Act, 2017, every appellant filing an appeal before the First Appellate Authority is required to pre-deposit:
- The full admitted amount of tax, interest, fine, fee and penalty arising from the impugned order; and
- 10% of the remaining disputed tax (subject to a maximum of ₹25 crores each under CGST and SGST/UTGST).
This pre-deposit is a jurisdictional pre-condition for admission of the appeal — non-compliance renders the appeal liable to rejection at the threshold itself.
2. The Problem — Portal Rigidity Causing Hardship
Until recently, when an appellant filed Form GST APL-01 on the GST portal, the pre-deposit percentage was auto-populated as 10% and was non-editable. This one-size-fits-all approach created practical difficulties in the following situations:
- Where the pre-deposit had already been made through Form GST DRC-03 or through other means, and the linkage via DRC-03A was not yet reflected;
- Where the demand amount was incorrectly reflected under the appropriate head in the Electronic Liability Register;
- Where the admitted amount itself was in dispute and the system-computed 10% did not align with the appellant’s calculation; and
- Where partial payments made during investigation were to be adjusted against the pre-deposit obligation.
In all these scenarios, the rigidity of the non-editable field forced appellants into either making excess payments or being unable to file the appeal altogether — causing serious procedural prejudice.
3. The GSTN Solution — Editable Pre-Deposit Field (w.e.f. 06.04.2026)
GSTN, through its Advisory dated 10th April 2026, has announced that effective from 6th April 2026, the pre-deposit field in Form GST APL-01 has been made editable. This enables appellants to:
- Modify the pre-deposit percentage as applicable to their specific case, instead of being locked into the system-generated 10%;
- Calculate and pay the correct amount on the basis of the actual admitted and disputed amounts as computed by the appellant; and
- Proceed with filing the appeal without being blocked by a portal-generated mismatch.
The GSTN has clarified that the Appellate Authority will subsequently verify the correctness of the pre-deposit amount and the mode of payment during the course of adjudication of the appeal.
4. Practical Implications — Scenario-Wise Impact
| Scenario | Position Before 06.04.2026 | Position After 06.04.2026 |
| DRC-03 payment already made during investigation | Forced to pay 10% pre-deposit again | Enter modified % reflecting actual balance payable |
| Demand incorrectly reflected in the portal | Could not override system-generated figure | Editable field allows correction |
| Appellant disputes the admitted amount | System-computed figure was binding on the appellant | Appellant can input correct computation |
| Partial payments made during investigation stage | Not adjustable at the time of filing appeal | Can now be factored in while entering pre-deposit % |
5. A Word of Caution
The editability of the pre-deposit field is a procedural relief — it does not dilute the substantive obligation under Section 107(6). The Appellate Authority retains full power to examine whether the pre-deposit made is correct in law and in quantum. Appellants must therefore:
- Maintain clear documentation of all prior payments (DRC-03, challan, bank evidence) that are being set off against the pre-deposit;
- Ensure that the DRC-03A linkage (as clarified in the earlier GSTN Advisory dated 14.03.2026) is completed before filing, wherever applicable;
- Arrive at the pre-deposit figure through a transparent, defensible calculation — as the Appellate Authority will scrutinise this during adjudication; and
- Not treat the editable field as a licence to under-deposit — deliberate under-payment of pre-deposit remains a ground for dismissal of appeal.
6. Our Observation
This update, read together with the earlier advisory on DRC-03A linkage (March 2026), represents a significant step towards aligning the GST portal’s functionality with real-world litigation realities. For years, the rigidity of the pre-deposit mechanism on the portal has been a source of genuine hardship — particularly for taxpayers caught between investigation-stage voluntary payments and the appeal-stage portal validations.
The move to make the field editable, with post-facto verification by the Appellate Authority, reflects a mature and trust-based approach to compliance — one that balances taxpayer convenience with departmental oversight.
Taxpayers with pending APL-01 filings are strongly advised to take immediate advantage of this facility.
For assistance in computing pre-deposit, filing APL-01, or strategising GST appeals, please reach out to our offices.
Mohan & Chandrasekhar, Chartered Accountants | Hosur | Bengaluru | Chennai
This circular is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice specific to your facts.