The Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) has formally commenced functioning of its Andhra Pradesh State Benches located at Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam, marking a significant development in the GST appellate framework and providing taxpayers and litigants with a dedicated forum for adjudication of GST disputes in the State. The development was announced through Public Notice No. 01/2026 dated May 27, 2026, issued by the GSTAT Andhra Pradesh Bench.
The public notice stated that the GSTAT Andhra Pradesh Bench has started functioning from a temporary office located at Flat No. 401, Vinaygarh Apartments, Brindavan Colony, Labbipet, Vijayawada – 520010. The notice clarified that the permanent office addresses for the Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam benches will be communicated separately in due course.
The Andhra Pradesh Bench has been constituted with Shri Bhaskar Reddy Vemireddy serving as Vice-President of GSTAT Andhra Pradesh and Shri Satish Kumar Agrawal, Technical Member (Centre), presently assigned temporarily from GSTAT Raipur. The Vijayawada State Bench will hear appeals concerning both the Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam benches, with discretion vested in the Vice-President to conduct proceedings through virtual, hybrid, or physical modes.
The notification also lays down a clear jurisdictional structure for the two State Benches. The GSTAT Vijayawada Bench has been assigned jurisdiction over districts including Krishna, NTR, Guntur, Palnadu, Bapatla, Prakasam, Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore, Kurnool, Nandyal, Ananthapuramu, Sri Sathya Sai, YSR Kadapa, Annamayya and Chittoor/Tirupati areas. Meanwhile, the GSTAT Visakhapatnam Bench will exercise jurisdiction over districts including Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Parvathipuram Manyam, Alluri Sitharama Raju, Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli, Kakinada, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema, East Godavari, West Godavari and Eluru.
The notice further clarifies that these benches shall hear appeals and applications arising under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 as well as the Andhra Pradesh State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 along with relevant rules framed thereunder.
Importantly, all appeals, applications, and related proceedings within the prescribed jurisdictions are now required to be filed before the respective State Benches according to their territorial allocation. Such filings are required to comply strictly with the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (Procedure) Rules, 2025, along with other statutory and administrative requirements.
The public notice also highlights that the procedural mechanism governing institution of appeals is regulated under Chapter III of the GSTAT (Procedure) Rules, 2025. For the convenience of stakeholders, the Tribunal stated that the e-filing advisory, procedural rules, and various Tribunal orders would be made available on the GSTAT e-filing portal under the “Notice” section.
To facilitate smooth implementation and address practical issues during the transition phase, appellants and applicants facing any difficulties while filing appeals or applications may seek assistance through the GSTAT help system or the toll-free helpline.
The commencement of GSTAT State Benches in Andhra Pradesh is expected to provide substantial relief to taxpayers and practitioners who have long awaited the operationalization of GST appellate mechanisms. With GST litigation continuing to rise across issues relating to input tax credit, classification disputes, valuation matters and procedural challenges, the functioning of these benches is likely to streamline dispute resolution and reduce dependence on High Courts for matters intended to be adjudicated through the specialized appellate structure.
