The Central Government has revealed alarming figures related to fraudulent GST registrations obtained using forged PAN and Aadhaar credentials, exposing large-scale misuse of personal identity documents for fake billing and input tax credit (ITC) fraud.
Responding to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha on December 15, 2025, the Ministry of Finance disclosed that more than 10,000 fake GST registrations have been detected over the last two and a half financial years, involving estimated tax evasion exceeding Rs 31,000 crore
Year-wise Data on Fraudulent GST Registrations
According to the official data tabled in Parliament:
- FY 2023-24:5,699 fraudulent registrations detected involving Rs 15,085 crore tax evasion
- FY 2024-25:3,977 fake registrations involving Rs 13,109 crore tax evasion
- FY 2025-26 (up to October 25, 2025):489 registrations involving Rs 3,013 crore tax evasion
These registrations were primarily created using forged or misused PAN and Aadhaar credentials, often without the knowledge of the individuals whose identities were compromised
Nationwide Drives Against Fake GSTINs
To combat this growing menace, the government launched two all-India special drives jointly with Central and State GST authorities:
- May 16, 2023 - August 14, 2023
- August 16, 2024 - October 30, 2024
These drives involved physical verification of business premises, leading to the identification and suspension or cancellation of non-existent and fake GST registrations used for bogus invoicing and fraudulent ITC claims
Key Measures to Prevent GST Registration Fraud
The government has introduced multiple technology-driven safeguards to strengthen the GST registration framework, including:
- Biometric-based Aadhaar authentication across India
- Risk-based system scoring of GST registration applications
- Geo-tagging of business premises during registration
- Mandatory bank account verification, linked with PAN and Aadhaar
- System-based suspension for failure to provide bank details or file returns
- Cross-verification of address documents from public databases
- Advanced analytics by DGARM to detect misuse of PAN and Aadhaar credentials
These steps aim to prevent the creation of shell entities solely for fake invoicing and ITC fraud
Arrests and Prosecution Initiated
The government also confirmed enforcement action against offenders:
- FY 2023-24: 67 arrests, 53 prosecutions
- FY 2024-25: 50 arrests, 33 prosecutions
- FY 2025-26 (up to October 2025): 16 arrests, 8 prosecutions
This reflects a continued focus on criminal accountability in GST fraud cases
Why This Matters for Taxpayers
The disclosure highlights the risk of identity misuse and underscores the need for individuals and businesses to regularly monitor their PAN- and Aadhaar-linked activities. For genuine taxpayers, the strengthened verification framework may increase compliance checks but it is critical to protecting the integrity of the GST system.
Official copy of the notification has been attached
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