GST · 26 June 2026
What Is GSTR-2B, and Why Does It Now Decide Your Input Tax Credit?
GSTR-2B is a static, auto-drafted input tax credit (ITC) statement generated for every GST-registered buyer under Rule 60(7) of the CGST Rules. It lists the eligible and ineligible credit from invoices your suppliers filed. Since Section 16(2)(aa) of the CGST Act, GSTR-2B, not the older dynamic GSTR-2A, is the document GST officers match your ITC claim against.
By Mrs. Swapna Patel
Published on 26 June 2026
Last modified on 26 June 2026
In this section
Answers
- What Is GSTR-2B, and Why Does It Now Decide Your Input Tax Credit?
- What Must You Verify Before Submitting Your ITR for AY 2026-27?
- What Is GSTR-1, the GST Return of Outward Supplies?
- What Is GSTR-3B, the Monthly GST Summary Return?
- What Is the Time of Supply Under GST, and When Does Tax Become Due?
- Advance Receipt Under GST: When Do You Issue a Receipt Voucher?
- Credit Note vs Debit Note Under GST: When Do You Issue Each?
- What Is the Value of Supply Under Section 15 of the CGST Act?
- What Are the GST Rate Slabs in India After the GST 2.0 Reform?
- Exempt vs Nil-Rated vs Zero-Rated Supply: What Is the Difference?
You can claim input tax credit on any purchase as long as you hold the supplier’s tax invoice.
Since Section 16(2)(aa) of the CGST Act[2], credit is allowed only on invoices your supplier actually filed and that appear in your GSTR-2B. A genuine invoice that is missing from 2B does not earn ITC until the supplier reports it.
What is GSTR-2B?
Short answer
GSTR-2B is a static, auto-drafted input tax credit statement that Rule 60(7) of the CGST Rules[1] generates for every registered buyer. It lists, invoice by invoice, the ITC you are eligible to claim from suppliers who filed their returns.
- Input tax credit (ITC) is the GST you paid on purchases that you set off against the GST you collect on sales.
- GSTR-2B is auto-drafted: you do not file it. The portal builds it from the GSTR-1 and Invoice Furnishing Facility (IFF) data your suppliers submit.
- It is static. Once generated for a tax period, the figures are frozen, so the credit you see on the generation date does not shift afterwards.
- It sorts each invoice into ITC available or ITC not available, flagging reasons such as a supply from a different state or a time-barred invoice.
GSTR-2B vs GSTR-2A: which one counts for ITC?
Short answer
GSTR-2B is static and GSTR-2A is dynamic. Since Section 16(2)(aa)[2], GSTR-2B is the statement your claim is matched against, because it gives a fixed figure that does not move after the cut-off.
| Feature | GSTR-2A | GSTR-2B |
|---|---|---|
| Nature | Dynamic, keeps changing as suppliers file late | Static, frozen once generated |
| Purpose | Running view of inward supplies | The ITC statement you claim against |
| Generated | Continuously updated | Once per tax period, on the 14th of the next month |
| Basis in law | Rule 60 (auto-population) | Rule 60(7) auto-drafted ITC statement |
| Used for the claim | No (reference only) | Yes, per Section 16(2)(aa) |
GSTR-2B is the static snapshot that decides your eligible credit; GSTR-2A is a dynamic reference. Source: Rule 60, CGST Rules 2017[1]. The generation date can shift when the GSTR-1 due date moves, so confirm the current date on the GST portal for your tax period.
When is GSTR-2B generated, and what should you do with it?
Short answer
For monthly filers, GSTR-2B is generated on the 14th of the month after the tax period, once the supplier filing window closes. You reconcile your purchase register against it before claiming ITC in GSTR-3B.
- Why the date matters: an invoice your supplier files after the 14th rolls into the next month’s 2B, so the credit shifts one cycle, not disappears.
- Reconcile every purchase invoice against 2B. A purchase that is in your books but missing from 2B means the supplier has not reported it yet, and the credit is not yet claimable.
- Quarterly (QRMP) filers receive a quarterly GSTR-2B; the monthly IFF feeds it. Check your filing frequency before assuming a monthly statement.
- A valid tax invoice is what lets a supply reach your buyer’s 2B. See what fields a GST tax invoice must carry under Section 31 and Rule 46.
References
- 1.Rule 60(7) and 60(8), Central Goods and Services Tax Rules 2017 — CBIC — Auto-drafted ITC statement (GSTR-2B) for every registered person.
- 2.Section 16(2)(aa), Central Goods and Services Tax Act 2017 — India Code — ITC allowed only where the invoice is communicated to the recipient in GSTR-2B.
- 3.Rule 36(4), Central Goods and Services Tax Rules 2017 — CBIC — ITC restricted to credit reflected in the auto-generated statement.
- 4.GSTR-2B advisory — Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) — Generation date and static nature of the GSTR-2B statement.
References & related
Primary sources
- Rule 60(7) and 60(8), Central Goods and Services Tax Rules 2017 — CBICAuto-drafted ITC statement (GSTR-2B) for every registered person.
- Section 16(2)(aa), Central Goods and Services Tax Act 2017 — India CodeITC allowed only where the invoice is communicated to the recipient in GSTR-2B.
- Rule 36(4), Central Goods and Services Tax Rules 2017 — CBICITC restricted to credit reflected in the auto-generated statement.
- GSTR-2B advisory — Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN)Generation date and static nature of the GSTR-2B statement.