The Government of Tamil Nadu has undertaken a major restructuring of the Commercial Taxes Department to strengthen Goods and Services Tax (GST) administration, accelerate the disposal of pending tax appeals and improve administrative efficiency. Through G.O. (Ms) No.157, G.O. (Ms) No.158, G.O. (D) No.440 and G.O. (Ms) No.159, all dated October 16, 2026, the State Government has approved the merger of four Territorial Commercial Taxes Districts/Zones, establishment of 15 additional GST First Appellate Forums across different categories, temporary promotion of 13 Assistant Commissioners as Deputy Commissioners, and redeployment of existing officers and departmental resources.
The restructuring follows the earlier administrative reforms introduced through G.O. (Ms) No.42 dated 6 April 2023, under which the State Government ordered the creation of 13 new Commercial Taxes Districts/Zones and the establishment of 37 co-terminus Commercial Taxes Districts/Zones aligned with the headquarters of Revenue Districts. Following implementation, the department reviewed the performance of these territorial units with reference to revenue potential, taxpayer base, manpower utilisation and administrative expenditure.
Subsequently, through G.O. (Ms) No.155 dated 5 November 2025, the Government restructured the appellate wing of the Commercial Taxes Department by creating 15 First Appellate Forums, comprising one Joint Commissioner (Appeals) Forum and 14 Deputy Commissioner (Appeals) Forums, with four camp offices. These forums were entrusted with handling appeals under Section 107 of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, across the relevant territorial and intelligence divisions.
Further, under G.O. (Ms) No.49 dated 27 May 2026, the Government had temporarily promoted 24 Assistant Commissioners as Deputy Commissioners under Section 47(1) of the Tamil Nadu Government Servants (Conditions of Service) Act, 2016, subject to confirmation of seniority and inter-se seniority.
A subsequent review of GST appellate cases highlighted the need for additional appellate infrastructure. As recorded in G.O. (Ms) No.157, a total of 84,022 appeals were pending as on 5 July 2026. The pendency increased to 84,707 appeals as on 27 July 2026, involving disputed revenue of approximately ₹31,398.25 crore, as recorded in G.O. (Ms) No.158. The Government observed that the increasing volume of adjudication orders and the absence of remand powers for First Appellate Authorities under Section 107 had contributed to delays in disposal. The existing 15 appellate forums had disposed of 6,954 appeals during January–June 2026, averaging approximately 1,159 appeals per month.
As part of the first major restructuring measure, the Government, through G.O. (Ms) No.157 dated 16 October 2026, approved the abolition and merger of four Territorial Commercial Taxes Districts/Zones with neighbouring districts. Accordingly, Kallakurichi will be merged with Villupuram, Tiruppathur with Vellore, Mayiladuthurai with Thiruvarur and Tenkasi with Tirunelveli. The decision follows an assessment of the comparatively limited revenue potential and administrative requirements of these four zones and is intended to facilitate better utilisation of existing departmental manpower and infrastructure.
Under the same Government Order, approval has been granted for the establishment of four GST First Appellate Forums headed by Deputy Commissioners (Appeals), at Kancheepuram, Thiruvarur (functioning at Thanjavur), Virudhunagar and Coimbatore-II, along with the corresponding Departmental Representative offices. The restructuring includes upgrading three existing appellate camp offices into full-fledged forums and creating an additional forum at Coimbatore. The existing Coimbatore appellate forum will be designated as Coimbatore-I, while the other affected appellate offices will be renamed in accordance with their revised jurisdictions. The Government has authorised the Commissioner of Commercial Taxes to redeploy the existing sanctioned staff strength, including personnel available following the merger of the four zones, without creating additional posts or incurring additional expenditure.
In a further measure to address the substantial pendency of GST appeals, the Government, through G.O. (Ms) No.158 dated 16 October 2026, sanctioned 10 additional First Appellate Forums on an ad-hoc basis for a period of three years under Section 107 of the Tamil Nadu GST Act, 2017. These forums are proposed for Chennai Central, Chennai South, Erode, Kancheepuram, Cuddalore, Madurai, Salem, Tirunelveli, Tiruppur and Tiruchirappalli. The initiative is aimed at ensuring faster disposal of appeals, improving the recovery of disputed tax demands and strengthening appellate administration.
The 10 ad-hoc appellate forums will be headed by Deputy Commissioners (Appeals), supported by departmental staff and Departmental Representatives. The Government has approved the temporary surrender of 10 identified existing posts, comprising three Additional Commissioner posts, two Joint Commissioner posts and five Deputy Commercial Tax Officer posts, to support the arrangement. Supporting staff and infrastructure will be provided through redeployment of existing resources. The measure has been sanctioned on the condition that there will be no additional financial commitment during the three-year operational period.
Separately, through G.O. (D) No.440 dated 16 October 2026, the State Government approved the creation of a Joint Commissioner (Appeals) First Appellate Forum at Madurai, along with a Departmental Representative office, to hear appeals arising from adjudication orders passed by Territorial Deputy Commissioners and other designated proper officers dealing with identified large taxpayers. The decision follows the extension of adjudication responsibilities to Territorial Deputy Commissioners for identified high-revenue taxpayers across the State.
Under the same order, the Government has also realigned the jurisdiction of the Joint Commissioner (Appeals) Forums at Chennai and Madurai in accordance with the territorial jurisdiction of the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal Benches. The Joint Commissioner (Appeals), Chennai, will cover the specified northern territorial divisions, while the Joint Commissioner (Appeals), Madurai, will cover the designated southern divisions and will also have a sitting at Coimbatore for the specified western divisions. The new arrangements will be supported through redeployment of existing sanctioned posts and infrastructure, without fresh sanction of resources.
Following these restructuring decisions, the Government issued G.O. (Ms) No.159 dated 16 October 2026, approving the temporary promotion of 13 Assistant Commissioners (Commercial Taxes) as Deputy Commissioners (Commercial Taxes) under Section 47(1) of the Tamil Nadu Government Servants (Conditions of Service) Act, 2016. The promotions and postings have been ordered with immediate effect, subject to the outcome of pending litigation and proceedings relating to seniority and inter-se seniority.
Under the promotion order, officers have been assigned to the newly created or designated appellate positions, including Tiruchirappalli-II, Salem-II, Chennai Central-II, Chennai South-II, Madurai-II, Cuddalore, Tiruppur-II, Erode-II, Kancheepuram-II and Tirunelveli-II. The promoted officers include Prakash S, Shajee J, Manimekalai K, Sugantha Kumar A K, Balamurugan S R, Saravanan R M, Tamilarasi P, Shanmugam M, Mohankumar S and Basker K. The order also provides for cadre upgradation in respect of Saravanan N and appointments of Sarulatha S and M. Damodaran to existing vacancies in Cuddalore Intelligence Division and Dharmapuri, Hosur Division, respectively.
In addition, four serving Deputy Commissioners have been transferred and posted to redeployed appellate positions arising from the merger of the territorial zones. M. Kalaiselvi, formerly Deputy Commissioner of Kallakurichi Zone, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner (Appeals), Kancheepuram-I; S. Gobi, formerly Deputy Commissioner of Tiruppathur Zone, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner (Appeals), Thiruvarur at Thanjavur; C. Arumugam, formerly Deputy Commissioner of Mayiladuthurai Zone, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner (Appeals), Virudhunagar; and S. Muthu Rathi, formerly Deputy Commissioner of Tenkasi Zone, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner (Appeals), Coimbatore-II.
The Government has further provided that representations regarding non-inclusion in the temporary promotion list may be submitted within two months from the date of issue of G.O. (Ms) No.159.
The coordinated measures approved through the four Government Orders represent a significant administrative initiative to rationalise territorial tax administration, redistribute appellate workloads and expand access to GST appellate mechanisms. By combining territorial mergers, regular and ad-hoc appellate forums, additional Joint Commissioner-level appellate capacity and personnel redeployment, the Government aims to facilitate timely resolution of GST disputes and improve efficiency in tax administration and revenue realisation.
The Commissioner of Commercial Taxes has been directed to take the necessary steps for effective implementation of the respective Government Orders.
The Notifications can be accessed at: https://a2ztaxcorp.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Commercial-Taxes-Department-Tamil-Nadu.pdf
