Section 22 IGST Act - Power to Make Rules
Section 22 of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 authorises the Government, on the recommendations of the GST Council, to make rules for carrying out the Act. It also defines the scope of that rule-making power, permits limited retrospective effect and allows rules to prescribe a penalty for their contravention.
Updated: 27 September 2026
Section 22 of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017
(1) The Government may, on the recommendations of the Council, by notification, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions of sub-section (1), the Government may make rules for all or any of the matters which by this Act are required to be, or may be, prescribed or in respect of which provisions are to be or may be made by rules.
(3) The power to make rules conferred by this section shall include the power to give retrospective effect to the rules or any of them from a date not earlier than the date on which the provisions of this Act come into force.
(4) Any rules made under sub-section (1) may provide that a contravention thereof shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding ten thousand rupees.
Meaning and scope of Section 22
Section 22 is the principal rule-making provision in the IGST Act. It delegates authority to the Government to make subordinate legislation needed to implement the Act. The power is exercised by notification and, under sub-section (1), is linked to the recommendations of the GST Council.
Government and Council
For the IGST Act, the expression "Government" means the Central Government, while "Council" means the Goods and Services Tax Council established under Article 279A of the Constitution. These expressions form part of the definitions in Section 2 of the IGST Act.
What does "prescribed" mean?
The expression "prescribed" refers to matters prescribed by rules made under the Act. Section 22(2) therefore supports detailed rules wherever the IGST Act expressly requires or permits a matter to be prescribed or dealt with by rules.
Retrospective rules under Section 22(3)
Sub-section (3) expressly permits rules to be given retrospective effect. However, the retrospective date cannot be earlier than the date on which the relevant provisions of the IGST Act came into force. This places a statutory limit on the retrospective rule-making power.
Penalty under Section 22(4)
Rules made under Section 22(1) may provide that contravention of those rules attracts a penalty. The maximum penalty authorised by Section 22(4) is Rs. 10,000.
IGST Rules and the CGST Rules
The Integrated Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017 were notified under Section 22. For provisions of the CGST Act made applicable to integrated tax through Section 20 of the IGST Act, the CGST Rules apply, as far as may be, in relation to integrated tax in the manner provided by the IGST Rules.
Key points at a glance
- Rules are made by the Central Government by notification on the recommendations of the GST Council.
- The rule-making power covers matters required or permitted to be prescribed under the IGST Act.
- Rules may operate retrospectively, but not from a date earlier than the commencement of the relevant provisions of the Act.
- Rules may provide a penalty for contravention, subject to the statutory ceiling of Rs. 10,000 under Section 22(4).
- Rules, regulations and notifications under the IGST Act are subject to the parliamentary laying requirement in Section 24.
Official references
For the current statutory text and official GST material, refer to the India Code, the CBIC GST portal and the GST Council IGST resources.