Guides by topic
GST guides
Registration, return filing, input credit reconciliation and how to read what the department sends you. Written for business owners and finance teams who want the process in plain language rather than circular language.
GST
The GST LUT — Exporting Without Paying IGST, and the Two Deadlines That Withdraw It
A Letter of Undertaking lets you export without paying IGST at all. Almost every registered person is eligible, the old ₹1 crore remittance test died in 2017, and the two deadlines that can withdraw the facility are different lengths for goods and for services — one of which was quietly rewritten in July 2024.
GST
Goods Detained in Transit — E-Way Bill Validity and What Section 129 Actually Costs Now
The detention penalty changed on 1 January 2022 and a great deal of published guidance still quotes the old formula. This sets out the current section 129 numbers, the seven-day notice and order clocks that run in your favour, and the e-way bill validity rules — including the eight-hour extension window and the fact that validity runs from the minute the bill was generated.
GST
Am I In Scope for GST E-Invoicing? The Turnover Test Is a Ratchet
E-invoicing applies where aggregate turnover in ANY preceding financial year from 2017-18 onwards exceeds ₹5 crore — not the immediately preceding year. Cross it once and you never fall back out. Rule 48(5) then says an invoice issued the wrong way is not an invoice at all, which is your customer's credit problem as much as your compliance one.
GST
Appealing to the GST Appellate Tribunal — Limitation, Pre-Deposit and Which Bench
The second appeal in GST runs to the Appellate Tribunal under section 112. This sets out when the three-month clock actually starts, the second 10% pre-deposit stacked on top of the first, the ₹25,000 fee ceiling in Rule 110, the filing-date trap for orders not on the portal, and why a place-of-supply issue can only be heard in New Delhi.
GST
GST Registration Process in India
What the CGST Act and Rules actually require to get a GSTIN — the real turnover thresholds State by State, the thirty-day clock and what missing it costs, the REG-01 to REG-06 sequence, and the rejection paths with a way out of each.
GST
GST Return Filing Guide
The GST return cycle taken from the CGST Act and Rules — what GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B each do, the real due dates and which ones are only for QRMP filers, the annual return thresholds, late fees with their caps, and the three-year bar that now closes old periods for good.
GST
GST Notice Reply Guide
A calm guide to GST notices — what the common ones mean, how to read them, how to reply correctly, the deadlines you cannot miss, and when a notice needs professional help.
GST
GST Registration Documents Checklist
The exact documents needed for GST registration, grouped by what they prove — identity, business constitution, place of business and bank — plus the formatting that quietly causes rejections.
GST
GST Input Tax Credit Explained (Eligibility, Conditions & Mistakes)
Input tax credit is conditional, and section 16(2) sets six conditions that must all hold — including two most summaries omit. This works through them from the Act, the 30 November cut-off, the 180-day reversal in Rule 37, the full section 17(5) blocked list with the two provisos that claw credit back, and the section 16(6) relief nobody mentions.
GST
GST Registration for E-commerce Sellers: The Complete Guide
Selling on Amazon, Flipkart or Meesho almost always requires GST — regardless of turnover. Here is why marketplaces need your GSTIN, how TCS works, and what online sellers must file.
GST
GST Registration for Freelancers: Do You Really Need It?
Freelancers and consultants often over- or under-register for GST. Here is a straight answer on when you need it, what export of services means, and how an LUT protects your cash flow.
GST
GSTR-1 vs GSTR-3B: What Is the Difference?
GSTR-1 reports your sales; GSTR-3B is where you pay tax. They must reconcile, and the gap between them is the single biggest cause of GST notices. Here is how they connect.
GST
GST Cancellation and Revocation: A Complete Guide
Cancellation and revocation are opposite processes and confusing them costs time. This sets out both from the Act and Rules — the three-month GSTR-10 deadline and why its late fee is four times the monthly one, the ninety-day revocation window that replaced thirty days in October 2023, the Rule 22(4) proviso that requires proceedings to be dropped, and the section 16(6) credit that only revocation preserves.
GST
GST Registration Fees and Timeline (2026 Guide)
There is no government fee for GST registration, and the CGST Rules say so by saying nothing. Here is the real cost stack component by component, the statutory clocks that decide your timeline, two worked examples, and the one mistake that costs far more than any fee.