Service Tax pre-deposit

I have done some 6 months back and this was procedure.

Step 1 — Login on CBIC-GST Portal

Open:

CBIC GST Portal

Login using old ACES / Service Tax credentials. If not having credentials check with GST jurisdiction officer if he can help.

Then go to:

Services → e-Payment → Create Challan

Step 2 — Create Challan

Select:

• Tax Type = Service Tax
• Payment type = Pre-deposit / Other payment (depending on screen options)
• Enter amount

Generate challan.

After generation, system creates:

• CTIN (Challan Temporary Identification Number)

Important:
Do NOT try to complete payment there itself if mandate form is not appearing.

The challan only gets pushed to ICEGATE backend.

The generated challan generally remains valid for 15 days.

Step 3 — Open ICEGATE

Open:

ICEGATE Portal

Then:

Services → e-Payment → Central Excise / Service Tax

Step 4 — Locate Challan on ICEGATE

Under Central Excise / Service Tax section:

• Document Type = ST
• Enter:
• 15-digit Service Tax Registration Number
• 6-digit location code

The location code is usually visible on challan generated earlier.

Then click:

Proceed

Now ICEGATE fetches unpaid challans from CBIC system.

Step 5 — Select Challan

Your generated challan should now appear.

Tick the challan.

Click:

Make Payment / Proceed

Step 6 — Choose Payment Mode

You generally get:

• NEFT
• RTGS
• Net Banking

If you choose:

NEFT / RTGS ( Please not NEFT/RTGS for some bank is having issue with CBIC we have done through Mandate form)

Then ICEGATE generates:

• Mandate Form

This is the form you print/save and submit to bank or use for online NEFT.

This mandate form generation happens on ICEGATE — not on old ACES login.

Step 7 — Payment Reflection

After payment:

• Challan gets validated by bank
• CIN gets generated
• Payment reflects back in CBIC system

Then download:

• Challan copy
• Payment confirmation
• CIN proof

Attach all these with CESTAT appeal.

Important Practical Issue

Very commonly:

• challan generated on CBIC portal
• but not immediately visible on ICEGATE

Usually because of:

• sync delay
• wrong location code
• browser/cache issue

Practical fixes:

• wait 30 mins to few hours
• use Edge instead of Chrome sometimes
• regenerate challan if CTIN expired
• verify correct ST registration + location code

Very Important Legal Point

Do NOT use:

• DRC-03
• GST cash ledger
• GST PMT-06

for Service Tax pre-deposit.

CESTAT has repeatedly held such payment invalid for old regime appeals.

Exact ICEGATE Navigation

CBIC itself issued procedure:

ICEGATE → Services → e-Payment → ACES-GST Payment → Central Excise/Service Tax → select ST → enter registration details → Proceed → select challan → Make Payment → Generate Mandate Form.

One More Important Point

Sometimes CESTAT registry specifically asks for:

• challan copy
• CIN proof
• bank acknowledgement
• proof showing payment mapped against appeal pre-deposit

So preserve all PDFs/screenshots.

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

To pay the Service Tax pre-deposit, log into the ACES-GST (CBIC) portal, generate a challan under the "Pre-deposit" accounting code, and complete the payment via e-payment/net banking. Save the CIN receipt as proof for your appeal filing.