Assessees, who pay duties on services they offer, are liable to receive refunds on the same. It can be said in very simple words, that this is a kind of silver lining on the necessary evil that people recognize as tax. As it is an imperative duty of any assessee to part with the levy that the central government imposes on them, it is an inalienable right of the former to receive refunds from the latter. While this may come as great news to those who may have been ignorant about it, one must remember that there is a procedure involved in receiving the refunds as there are processes involved in paying the duties.

The first among these processes that is perhaps the most important is filing for the same. Putting it in simple terms, no filing would amount to no returns. This is basically a simple process where there is a form that is required to be filled by the assessee including all the necessary details mentioned in it. The forms can be availed either through designated offices / sellers of the same or, can be downloaded from concerned websites. The former which is known as ST3 forms should be deposited along with the copies of GAR 7 forms in designated offices. It is usually not very difficult to fill these forms in the sense that instructions are clearly mentioned in the form itself or, the website from which it is downloaded.

The second crucial basic information that one should know about service tax returns is the date of filing. Missing out on the dates would amount to inviting penalties. The dates for filing returns are usually calculated at the 25th day following the end of the half yearly sessions. In this respect, the dates for the session of April to September is 25th of October and for the session of October to March is 25th of April. In case these two dates coincide with holidays, the next day (that is 26th) is taken as the last day for submission. Certain amendments though, have been made through Rule 7 of the Service Tax Rules by notification 43/2011-ST dated 25.08.2011, which declares it mandatory for all assessees to file their refunds electronically. This again has gone on to make the process very easy by minimizing the onslaught of paperwork and at the same time, reducing the chances of making errors.

The third basic that a beginner must know about service tax returns is the importance of not neglecting the filing. There are basically two consequences that any assessee can face on forgetting to do so. One relates to not receiving any refunds and the second is getting penalized for the same. Penalties for delay include fines ranging from Rs.500/- to Rs.20000/- depending upon the period of delay. This is basically what any beginner must understand about the process, and the rest can be learnt through personal experience. Practical guidance on this subject can be acquired through concerned websites and professional experts on taxation.