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GST26 June 2026

What Is GSTR-1, the GST Return of Outward Supplies?

GSTR-1 is the monthly or quarterly statement of outward supplies that every regular GST-registered person files under Section 37 of the CGST Act, read with Rule 59 of the CGST Rules. It reports invoice-level details of sales: taxable value, tax charged, GSTIN of registered buyers, and the place of supply. GSTR-1 does not by itself pay any tax; that happens in GSTR-3B. Its real weight is downstream: the data filed in GSTR-1 auto-populates each buyer's GSTR-2B, the statement they rely on to claim input tax credit. A monthly filer's GSTR-1 is generally due by the 11th of the following month; a QRMP filer files quarterly by the 13th of the month after the quarter, with an optional Invoice Furnishing Facility for the first two months. Since 2022, GSTR-1 for a period cannot be filed until the previous period's GSTR-3B is filed.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is GSTR-3B, the Monthly GST Summary Return?

GSTR-3B is the self-assessed summary return through which a registered person pays GST for a tax period. It is prescribed under Rule 61 of the CGST Rules and is treated as the return under Section 39 of the CGST Act. Unlike GSTR-1, which lists every outward invoice, GSTR-3B reports only consolidated figures: total outward tax, eligible input tax credit, and the net tax paid in cash. Input tax credit claimed in GSTR-3B is capped at what appears in the auto-drafted GSTR-2B, under Section 16(2)(aa). A monthly filer's GSTR-3B is generally due by the 20th of the following month; QRMP filers pay monthly and file the return quarterly, by the 22nd or 24th depending on the state. Because the outward tax in GSTR-3B must reconcile with GSTR-1, a shortfall now draws an automated intimation in Form DRC-01B under Rule 88C.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is the Time of Supply Under GST, and When Does Tax Become Due?

The time of supply is the point at which GST becomes payable, fixed by Section 12 of the CGST Act for goods and Section 13 for services. It decides which tax period a supply belongs to, and so which GSTR-3B pays the tax. For goods, the time of supply is the date the invoice is issued, or the last date by which it should have been issued under Section 31; the payment trigger was removed by Notification 66/2017, so an advance for goods is not taxed early. For services, it is the earlier of the invoice date, provided the invoice is raised within 30 days under Rule 47, or the date of payment. Under the reverse charge mechanism, Section 12(3) and 13(3) shift the time of supply to the earlier of the payment date or the day after a fixed window from the supplier's invoice, 30 days for goods and 60 days for services.

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GST26 June 2026

Advance Receipt Under GST: When Do You Issue a Receipt Voucher?

A receipt voucher is the document a GST-registered supplier issues when it receives an advance payment, before the goods or services are supplied, under Section 31(3)(d) of the CGST Act, with contents set by Rule 50 of the CGST Rules. It is not a tax invoice; the tax invoice is raised later, when the supply is actually made. Whether GST is payable on the advance depends on what is being supplied. For services, GST falls due when the advance is received under Section 13(2). For goods, Notification 66/2017-Central Tax removed the advance trigger, so no GST is paid on an advance for goods; the tax waits for the invoice. A receipt voucher still has to be issued either way. If the order is later cancelled and no invoice is raised, the supplier issues a refund voucher under Section 31(3)(e) and Rule 51 to return the advance.

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GST26 June 2026

Credit Note vs Debit Note Under GST: When Do You Issue Each?

A credit note and a debit note under GST are the two documents that correct a tax invoice after it has been issued, both governed by Section 34 of the CGST Act. The supplier issues a credit note under Section 34(1) when the original invoice charged too much: goods are returned, a service falls short, or a discount is agreed after the sale. The supplier issues a debit note under Section 34(3) when the invoice charged too little and the value or tax has to go up. Both are always raised by the supplier, never the buyer. A credit note reduces the supplier's output tax, but only if it is declared in a GST return by 30 November following the end of the financial year of the original supply, or the annual return, whichever is earlier, under Section 34(2). A debit note carries no such issue deadline, and the buyer's credit on it is timed to the debit note's own date under Section 16(4).

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GST26 June 2026

What Is an Input Service Distributor (ISD) Under GST?

An Input Service Distributor (ISD) is an office of a business that receives tax invoices for input services used across several branches under the same PAN, and distributes that input tax credit (ITC) to those branches. It is defined in Section 2(61) and governed by Section 20 of the CGST Act. From 1 April 2025, registering as an ISD became mandatory wherever common input services, including services taxed under reverse charge, are received for distinct GST registrations under one PAN. The ISD takes a separate registration under Section 24(viii), issues ISD invoices, distributes credit pro-rata to each branch turnover under Rule 39, and files a monthly GSTR-6 return. ISD handles input services only, not goods or capital goods.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is TCS Under GST? The Tax E-Commerce Platforms Collect

TCS (Tax Collected at Source) under GST is the tax an electronic commerce operator (ECO) such as Amazon, Flipkart or Zomato deducts from the payments it passes to sellers on its platform. It is governed by Section 52 of the CGST Act. The ECO collects TCS on the net value of taxable supplies made through it, deposits it with the government, and reports it in a monthly GSTR-8 return. The rate was reduced from 1% to 0.5% (0.25% CGST + 0.25% SGST, or 0.5% IGST) with effect from 10 July 2024 under Notification 15/2024-Central Tax. The collected amount appears in the seller electronic cash ledger and is set off against the seller own GST liability, so it is an advance, not an extra tax. Sellers supplying taxable goods through an ECO must register for GST regardless of turnover under Section 24(ix).

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GST26 June 2026

What Are Deemed Exports Under GST (Section 147)?

Deemed exports are supplies of goods notified under Section 147 of the CGST Act that are treated as exports for refund purposes even though the goods do not leave India. The goods must be manufactured in India and payment may be received in Indian rupees. Unlike a true export, GST is paid on a deemed export and then refunded, so there is no LUT route and the supply is not zero-rated. Notification 48/2017-Central Tax notifies four categories: supply against an Advance Authorisation, supply of capital goods against an EPCG Authorisation, supply to an Export Oriented Unit (EOU), and supply of gold by a bank or PSU against an Advance Authorisation. The refund of the tax can be claimed by either the supplier or the recipient under Rule 89.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is GSTR-9? The GST Annual Return Under Section 44

GSTR-9 is the annual GST return that consolidates a registered taxpayer entire financial year: all outward supplies, input tax credit claimed, and tax paid, drawn together from the monthly GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B returns. It is required under Section 44 of the CGST Act and Rule 80, and the due date is 31 December following the end of the financial year. Filing is currently optional for taxpayers with aggregate turnover up to ₹2 crore, a relaxation issued by notification each year. Taxpayers with turnover above ₹5 crore must also file GSTR-9C, a self-certified reconciliation statement. A late annual return attracts a fee under Section 47, capped by turnover slab. GSTR-9 is a reconciliation, not a fresh tax computation, so the monthly returns it summarises should already match.

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GST26 June 2026

Electronic Credit Ledger vs Cash Ledger: What Is the Difference?

Every GST registration carries two ledgers on the portal under Section 49 of the CGST Act. The electronic credit ledger holds input tax credit (ITC) earned on purchases and can be used only to pay output tax. The electronic cash ledger holds money deposited through a challan (Form PMT-06) and can pay anything: tax, interest, penalty, late fee, and reverse-charge liability. A third record, the electronic liability register, shows what is owed. Input tax credit is set off in a fixed order under Sections 49A and 49B with Rule 88A: IGST credit must be used first and exhausted before CGST or SGST credit. Because reverse-charge tax is a liability rather than output tax, it can never be paid from the credit ledger and must be paid in cash.

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GST26 June 2026

Aggregate Turnover (AATO): What Number Decides GST Registration?

Aggregate turnover, often shown as AATO (annual aggregate turnover), is the single number GST uses to decide whether you must register and which schemes you can use. Section 2(6) of the CGST Act defines it as the total value of all taxable supplies, exempt supplies, exports, and inter-state supplies of all persons holding the same PAN, computed across India, but excluding the GST itself (CGST, SGST, IGST, and cess) and the value of inward supplies taxed under reverse charge. Registration becomes mandatory once aggregate turnover crosses ₹20 lakh for service providers (₹10 lakh in some special-category states) or ₹40 lakh for a supplier of goods only (₹10 lakh in special-category states, and ₹20 lakh in states that opted out of the ₹40 lakh threshold). Because the test is PAN-level and includes exempt and inter-state supplies, businesses that track only taxable sales often cross the line without realising it.

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GST26 June 2026

Export of Services Under GST: When Is a Foreign Client a GST Export?

An export of services under GST is defined by Section 2(6) of the IGST Act through five conditions: the supplier is in India, the recipient is outside India, the place of supply is outside India, payment is received in convertible foreign exchange (or in rupees where the RBI permits), and the two parties are not merely branches of the same entity. Meet all five and the supply is zero-rated under Section 16 of the IGST Act, which is not the same as a 0% or exempt supply. A zero-rated exporter keeps full input tax credit and recovers tax in one of two ways: supply under a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) without charging IGST, or pay IGST on the invoice and claim a refund. Miss even one condition (most often the foreign-exchange one) and the supply is taxed as a normal domestic service.

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GST26 June 2026

Inter-State vs Intra-State Supply: CGST+SGST or IGST?

Whether a supply is inter-state or intra-state decides which tax appears on the invoice: an intra-state supply carries CGST plus SGST, while an inter-state supply carries IGST. The classification is set by Sections 7 and 8 of the IGST Act, which compare two coordinates, the location of the supplier and the place of supply. Same state for both means intra-state (CGST+SGST); different states or union territories means inter-state (IGST). A few supplies are inter-state by law even within one state, most notably supplies to a Special Economic Zone, imports, and exports under Section 7(5). Charging the wrong type is fixable: Section 77 of the CGST Act and Section 19 of the IGST Act let you reclaim tax paid under the wrong head, without interest, once you pay the correct one.

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GST26 June 2026

Do You Owe GST on Zoom, Figma, or Google Workspace?

When a GST-registered business in India buys a service from a foreign supplier, such as Zoom, Figma, Google Workspace, or an overseas consultant, that purchase is an import of services under Section 2(11) of the IGST Act. The foreign supplier charges no Indian GST, so Section 5(3) of the IGST Act and Notification 10/2017-IGST(Rate) move the tax to the buyer under the reverse charge mechanism. The recipient pays IGST (18% on most digital and professional services) in cash from the electronic cash ledger, raises a self-invoice under Section 31(3)(f), and can then claim that IGST back as input tax credit if the service is otherwise eligible. The liability sits with the Indian buyer, so an unbilled foreign-software subscription is a common reverse-charge gap at audit.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is GSTR-9C? The Self-Certified GST Reconciliation Statement

GSTR-9C is the GST reconciliation statement that ties the figures in your annual return, GSTR-9, to your audited annual financial statements. It is required under Section 44 of the CGST Act read with Rule 80 for every registered taxpayer whose aggregate annual turnover exceeds ₹5 crore in a financial year. Since the financial year 2020-21 it is self-certified by the taxpayer rather than certified by a chartered accountant, after the Finance Act 2021 removed the mandatory GST audit under Section 35(5). It is filed alongside GSTR-9 and shares the same due date of 31 December following the end of the financial year. The statement reconciles turnover, tax paid and input tax credit between the GST returns and the books of account, and explains any gap. Clean, sequentially numbered tax invoices through the year are what keep that reconciliation free of unexplained differences.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is the GST Invoice Number Format Under Rule 46(b)?

The GST invoice number is governed by Rule 46(b) of the CGST Rules 2017. It must be a consecutive serial number not exceeding 16 characters, in one or more series, containing only letters, numerals and the special characters hyphen and slash, and it must be unique for the financial year. The rule exists so that every tax invoice can be tracked, matched to a return, and tied to the buyer input tax credit claim. There is no fixed prefix the law demands, so a business may design its own series such as INV/2026-27/001, as long as the numbering stays sequential, within 16 characters, and does not repeat within the year. For businesses under e-invoicing, the Invoice Registration Portal validates the document number against this format and rejects numbers that break it. Getting the series wrong can stall a buyer ITC claim and invite scrutiny, so the numbering is worth fixing once at the start of the year.

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GST26 June 2026

B2B vs B2C Supply: How GST Invoice Rules Differ

A supply is B2B when the buyer is registered under GST and holds a GSTIN, and B2C when the buyer is unregistered, an ordinary consumer. The distinction decides what the invoice must show and how the sale is reported. A B2B tax invoice must carry the recipient GSTIN, name and address, and each one is reported individually in GSTR-1 so the buyer can claim input tax credit. A B2C sale carries no buyer GSTIN, and most B2C sales are reported as a consolidated summary rather than invoice by invoice. Two extra rules attach to the larger end: e-invoicing applies to B2B supplies and exports above the turnover threshold, not to B2C, and a dynamic QR code is required on B2C invoices issued by very large taxpayers. Misreading the buyer status either denies a registered buyer their credit or collects details you did not need.

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GST26 June 2026

What Is an FIRC, and Why Do Service Exporters Need One?

A Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate, or FIRC, is a document issued by an authorised dealer bank certifying that an inward remittance in foreign currency has been received, along with the amount, currency, date and purpose. For a service exporter it is the standard proof that payment for the export arrived in convertible foreign exchange. That proof matters because an export of services qualifies as zero-rated under the IGST Act only when, among other conditions, the payment is received in foreign currency or in rupees where the RBI permits it. Without that evidence, a service export can be denied zero-rated treatment and the related refund of accumulated input tax credit. In practice the physical certificate has largely moved to an electronic FIRC issued by the bank, while exports of goods are evidenced through the DGFT electronic bank realisation certificate instead. The exact form and process vary by bank, so confirm what your authorised dealer issues.

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Tax Guide26 June 2026

Section 40A(3): When a Cash Payment Disallows Your Expense

Section 40A(3) of the Income Tax Act disallows a business expense where payment to a single person in a single day exceeds ₹10,000 and is made other than by an account-payee cheque, bank draft, or a prescribed electronic mode. The disallowance is the whole expense, not only the amount above the limit, which is what makes the rule sharp. The threshold is higher, ₹35,000, for payments made for plying, hiring or leasing goods carriages, easing the rule for transport operators. A companion provision, Section 40A(3A), pulls the amount back as income if an expense allowed in one year is later paid in cash above the limit. Rule 6DD lists the situations that are exempt, such as payments where banking facilities are absent. This is the payment side of the cash rules, distinct from Section 269ST, which limits cash receipts on the recipient. The safe path is to route business payments through the bank and keep a clean invoice for each.

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GST25 June 2026

Place of Supply in GST: Does Your Invoice Charge CGST+SGST or IGST?

Place of supply is the rule that decides where a supply is deemed to occur, and therefore which GST applies. Compare the supplier's state with the place of supply: same state is an intra-state supply, charged as CGST + SGST under Section 8 of the IGST Act; different states is an inter-state supply, charged as a single IGST under Section 7. Sections 10 to 12 of the IGST Act fix the place of supply itself, separately for goods and services, and for bill-to/ship-to deliveries the place of supply is the principal place of business of the party billed, not the delivery address. The common error is using the buyer's billing address instead of the statutory place of supply, which produces the wrong tax split and fails return reconciliation.

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GST25 June 2026

What Is the Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) in GST?

The reverse charge mechanism (RCM) reverses the normal GST flow: the recipient of a supply pays the tax to the government instead of the supplier charging it on the invoice. It applies in three statutory cases: Section 9(3) of the CGST Act, a notified list of supplies such as goods transport, legal and director services; Section 9(4), where a notified registered recipient buys from an unregistered supplier; and Section 5(3) of the IGST Act, which applies the same logic to inter-state and imported supplies. The recipient pays RCM in cash, cannot set it off with existing input tax credit, and must raise a self-invoice under Section 31(3)(f) when the supplier is unregistered. The liability sits with the recipient, so an unpaid RCM amount is the buyer's default, not the supplier's.

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GST25 June 2026

What Is the GST Composition Scheme Under Section 10?

The composition scheme is GST's simplified track for small businesses under Section 10 of the CGST Act. A dealer with aggregate turnover up to ₹1.5 crore for goods (₹50 lakh for the separate service composition) pays a flat rate, 1% for traders and manufacturers, 5% for restaurants, 6% for the service composition, out of their own pocket. In exchange they give up two things: they cannot collect GST from customers, and they cannot claim input tax credit. Because no tax is collected, a composition dealer issues a bill of supply under Rule 49, not a tax invoice, and it must carry the declaration "composition taxable person, not eligible to collect tax on supplies". The scheme suits businesses selling to end-consumers, but makes a supplier more expensive to a B2B buyer who loses the credit.

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GST25 June 2026

What Is UTGST, and When Does CGST + UTGST Replace CGST + SGST?

UTGST, Union Territory GST, is the state-equivalent component of GST levied in a Union Territory that has no legislature of its own. Where an ordinary state charges CGST + SGST on an intra-state supply, such a Union Territory charges CGST + UTGST, levied under the UTGST Act 2017. The mechanics are identical to CGST + SGST: the rate splits in half, one half to the Centre and one half to the Union Territory, and a wrong head fails the same return reconciliation. UTGST applies in Union Territories without a legislature; the Union Territories that do have a legislature (Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu and Kashmir) levy SGST through their own GST Acts instead. Inter-state supplies are unaffected; they still carry a single IGST.

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GST17 June 2026

GST Reverse Charge: When Does a Small Business Pay GST for Its Supplier?

Reverse charge (RCM) means the buyer pays GST to the government instead of the supplier collecting it. It applies in two cases: Section 9(3) of the CGST Act, a notified list of supplies such as a goods transport agency, advocate or legal services, sponsorship, and a director's services to the company; and Section 9(4), a now-narrow set of cases where a notified recipient buys from an unregistered supplier. A small GST-registered business is squarely caught by the Section 9(3) list, must pay the tax in cash and not from input tax credit, must raise a self-invoice under Section 31(3)(f) when the supplier is unregistered, and stays liable even under the composition scheme, where no credit can be claimed on the RCM paid.

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References

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Last reviewed: 1 August 2026