The answer
A supplier registered in Tamil Nadu (GSTIN starting 33) charges CGST + SGST on any sale delivered inside Tamil Nadu. On a sale to another state or UT it becomes a single IGST charge. Tamil Nadu is a State with its own legislature under the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, so the State levy is SGST. UTGST never applies.
Which tax heads apply, and when?
| Sale type | Place of supply | Tax heads |
|---|---|---|
| Intra-state | Inside Tamil Nadu (code 33) | CGST + SGST |
| Inter-state | Any other state or UT (e.g. Kerala) | IGST |
The state-side head here is SGST, because Tamil Nadu is a state (has legislature). See the companion exhibit: CGST+SGST vs IGST — place of supply.
Why Tamil Nadu works this way
Tamil Nadu levies the State half of GST as SGST under the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, pairing with the central CGST Act, 2017. SGST on an intra-Tamil Nadu sale accrues to Chennai. Tamil Nadu's Vidhan Sabha means UTGST is inapplicable on any invoice where the supplier code is 33.
Tamil Nadu anchors India's automotive supply chain. Chennai hosts assembly plants and thousands of tier-1 and tier-2 auto-component suppliers raising invoices on HSN 8708 (auto parts) and HSN 8703 (passenger vehicles). A Coimbatore engineering supplier (code 33) billing a buyer in Karnataka (code 29) or Telangana (code 36) makes an inter-state supply under IGST Act §7: one IGST line at the full rate. The frequent audit finding in auto-component B2B is intra-state CGST+SGST billed on pan-India dispatch orders.
Beyond automotive, Tamil Nadu exports significant IT services from Chennai (SAC 998314) and textiles from Tirupur (HSN 6109 — T-shirts). Both sectors cross state borders constantly. For a Tirupur knitwear exporter, the supply chain typically routes goods to Maharashtra or NCR warehouses before onward sale — each leg where the supplier GSTIN and the delivery state code differ triggers IGST, not CGST+SGST.
Worked example — ₹10,000 sale at 18%
A Tamil Nadu supplier sells goods worth ₹10,000 at a 18% GST rate, delivered inside Tamil Nadu. The 18% splits into two equal state-and-Centre halves:
- Taxable value
- ₹10,000
- CGST @ 9% (Centre)
- ₹900
- SGST @ 9% (State)
- ₹900
Invoice total
₹11,800
On the same sale to a buyer in another state or UT, the ₹1,800 becomes one IGST line of ₹1,800 at 18%, with no CGST or SGST column. The buyer pays ₹11,800 either way; only the heads change.
How it appears on your pakka bill
On a GST tax invoice (pakka bill) under Rule 46, the tax block is not a single "GST" line. It names each head separately, so for an intra-state Tamil Nadu sale the buyer sees two rows:
- CGST: the Centre's half, 9% in the worked example.
- SGST: the State half, 9% in the worked example.
The pakka bill generator reads the two-digit code from each GSTIN and picks CGST + SGST or IGST for you, so the Tamil Nadu invoice carries the heads the law actually requires.
Raise a Tamil Nadu GST invoice
Enter your GSTIN and the buyer's, and the tax heads (CGST + SGST or IGST) compute automatically. Rule 46 fields, validated GSTIN, ₹9 per invoice. No signup.
Open the pakka bill generator →Tamil Nadu GST tax-head FAQ
- Which GST heads apply when a Tamil Nadu business raises an invoice?
- For a sale delivered inside Tamil Nadu (buyer place-of-supply code 33), CGST + SGST, split half and half. For a sale to any other state or UT, a single IGST charge at the full rate.
- Does Tamil Nadu charge SGST or UTGST?
- SGST. Tamil Nadu is a full State with its own legislature, so the State levy is SGST under the Tamil Nadu GST Act, 2017. UTGST never applies.
- How is 18% GST split on a ₹10,000 sale inside Tamil Nadu?
- ₹900 CGST (9%) + ₹900 SGST (9%) = ₹1,800 tax. The invoice total is ₹11,800.
- A Chennai supplier bills a buyer in Kerala: CGST+SGST or IGST?
- IGST. Tamil Nadu (33) and Kerala (32) are different state codes, so it is an inter-state supply: one IGST line at the full rate, no CGST or SGST column.