GST · 25 June 2026
What Is a Kaccha Bill? Why the Rough Slip Has No GST Standing
A kaccha bill is the everyday name for an informal sale slip: a cash memo, rough estimate, or handwritten note that records an amount without a GSTIN or GST tax breakup. It is not a document GST law recognises, so it gives the buyer no input tax credit and leaves a registered seller exposed if the sale is ever checked.
By Mrs. Swapna Patel
Last reviewed
25 June 2026
In this section
Answers
- What Is a Kaccha Bill? Why the Rough Slip Has No GST Standing
- What Is a Pakka Bill? The GST Invoice That Counts as Valid
- Why Move From a Kaccha Bill to a Pakka Bill?
- How to Upgrade From a Kaccha Bill to a Pakka Bill (GST Invoice)
- 5 GST Invoice Mistakes That Trigger a Tax Notice (And How to Fix Them)
- 7 Fields Every Skilled Professional Must Put on a GST Invoice: Rule 46 Checklist
- What Makes a GST Invoice Legally Binding — And Why Clients Pay Faster When It Is
- What Is a Bill of Supply? The GST Document Without Tax
- What Is an IRN (Invoice Reference Number) Under GST?
- What Is Input Tax Credit (ITC) Under GST?
A kaccha bill still counts as a bill for tax, accounts, and expense proof.
A kaccha bill is an informal slip with no GSTIN and no tax breakup, so under Section 16 of the CGST Act it carries no input tax credit and is weak expense proof.
What is a kaccha bill?
Short answer
A kaccha bill is an informal sale slip: a cash memo, rough estimate, or handwritten note recording an amount with no GSTIN and no GST tax breakup. "Kaccha" is the Hindi-English trade word for the bill the law does not treat as final.
"Kaccha" means rough, raw, unofficial, the opposite of "pakka". A kaccha bill is the slip a shop hands over for a quick sale: a number on paper, often without the buyer details, the tax, or the seller GST number a tax invoice must carry.
Is a kaccha bill legal?
Short answer
A kaccha bill is not illegal as a personal note, but it cannot replace a GST tax invoice on a taxable sale, which Section 31 of the CGST Act makes mandatory for a registered seller.
- As an internal note or an estimate before a sale, a kaccha bill is fine.
- As the bill for a taxable sale by a registered seller, it is not. The law requires a tax invoice (a pakka bill) instead.
- Handing out kaccha bills on taxable sales understates turnover and reads as suppression in a GST check, attracting tax, interest, and penalty.
Why can a kaccha bill cost the buyer?
Short answer
Because Section 16 of the CGST Act allows input tax credit only against a valid tax invoice, and a kaccha bill is not one.
- The GST embedded in the price cannot be claimed back as input tax credit, so it becomes a real cost to the buyer.
- A vague slip is weak expense proof at income tax, where an assessing officer expects a proper tax invoice.
- There is no audit trail tying the payment to a registered seller, so the spend is hard to defend later.
What should you issue instead of a kaccha bill?
Short answer
A registered seller issues a pakka bill (GST tax invoice); an unregistered or composition seller issues a bill of supply, not a kaccha bill.
- Registered on a taxable sale: a pakka bill (tax invoice) under Section 31 and Rule 46.
- Below the GST threshold, unregistered, or under composition: a bill of supply under Rule 49, which is informal-looking but legally correct.
- For the full side-by-side, see pakka bill vs kaccha bill.
References & related
Primary sources
- Section 31, Central Goods and Services Tax Act 2017 — CBICObligation on a registered seller to issue a tax invoice on a taxable supply.
- Section 16, Central Goods and Services Tax Act 2017 — CBICInput tax credit allowed only against a valid tax invoice.
- Rule 49 / Section 31(3)(c), CGST — CBICBill of supply: the correct informal-looking document for unregistered, composition, or exempt sellers.
Last reviewed: 25 June 2026