A compliant GST tax invoice in India must identify the supplier and recipient, use a financial-year-unique serial number, describe and classify the supply, show taxable values and the correct GST components, and include transaction-specific place-of-supply and delivery information. If the supplier and document fall within the notified e-invoicing scope, the invoice must also be reported to an Invoice Registration Portal (IRP) and carry the returned Invoice Reference Number (IRN) and QR code. Keep invoices and related GST records for at least 72 months from the due date of the relevant annual return, with a longer period where specified proceedings or investigations continue.
This checklist follows the central GST framework in force as checked on 17 October 2026. State or Union territory rules, exemptions and transaction-specific notifications can change the result for a particular business, so confirm those before relying on a general checklist.
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What a GST invoice is required to do
Rule 46 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules sets out the particulars expected on a tax invoice. It is not a universal one-size-fits-all form: some fields depend on whether the recipient is registered, whether the supply is interstate, whether delivery differs from the place of supply, and whether the document is covered by e-invoicing.
The invoice should let a customer, auditor or tax officer answer five questions without reconstructing the transaction:
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- Who supplied the goods or services and who received them?
- What was supplied, in what quantity or service classification?
- When was the invoice issued and how can it be identified in the financial year?
- What is the taxable value, rate and amount of each applicable GST component?
- Where is the supply treated as taking place, and where was delivery made?
For a covered e-invoice, the IRP response adds a sixth control: can the document be matched to a valid IRN and the corresponding QR code?
GST invoice field checklist under Rule 46
Use the following table to review each invoice. “When required” matters: do not force a conditional field onto every transaction or omit it when the rule makes it applicable.
| Invoice element | What to enter | When or how to check it |
|---|---|---|
| Supplier identity | Legal name, address and GSTIN of the supplier | Required for a registered supplier; confirm the GSTIN belongs to the issuing registration. |
| Serial number | A consecutive serial number in one or more permitted series | It must be unique for the financial year and comply with the rule’s format and length limits. Keep series controls so numbers cannot be duplicated or silently skipped without an explanation. |
| Date of issue | The invoice issue date | Use the actual issue date and ensure it is consistent with the accounting and delivery records. |
| Registered recipient | Recipient’s legal name, address and GSTIN or UIN | Use the registration details supplied by the customer and validate the GSTIN before posting the invoice. |
| Unregistered recipient details | Recipient name and address, plus State name and code where required | These particulars apply in the circumstances specified by Rule 46, including a taxable supply of ₹50,000 or more, or a lower-value supply when the recipient asks for the details. |
| Description | Clear description of each good or service | Describe line items precisely enough to support the HSN or Accounting Code and the tax treatment. |
| Goods quantity | Quantity and unit or unique quantity code | Use for goods; services generally rely on the service description and Accounting Code instead. |
| Classification | HSN code for goods or Accounting Code for services | Apply the classification required for the supplier’s turnover and transaction category. A mismatched code can affect rate, reporting and audit evidence. |
| Values | Total value of the supply and taxable value after applicable discount or abatement | Show the calculation clearly enough that the taxable base can be traced to the contract, order and discount documents. |
| Tax rates and amounts | Applicable rate and amount for central, state, integrated, Union territory tax and cess, as relevant | Show the components separately where the law requires them. Do not label an interstate supply as CGST plus SGST, or a domestic supply as IGST, without checking place-of-supply rules. |
| Place of supply | Place of supply and State name for an interstate supply | Include it when the transaction is interstate and apply the operative place-of-supply rule for the type of supply. |
| Delivery address | Address to which goods or services are delivered | Include it when it differs from the place of supply or is otherwise required by the transaction. |
| E-invoice identifiers | IRN and the QR code returned by the IRP | Required on a covered e-invoice before it is shared with the recipient. |
CBIC’s official Rule 46 text is the controlling reference for the legal particulars. A generic invoice template can help with layout, but it cannot decide whether a field is conditional for a particular supply.
Numbering and dates that survive an audit
Maintain a documented numbering policy for every series. A practical control is to assign series by business unit, branch or document type only where your process can prove that each series remains consecutive and unique within the financial year. Lock the issue date after posting, and retain evidence for cancelled or amended documents rather than reusing their numbers.
Recipient details for unregistered customers
Do not assume that “B2C” means recipient information is never needed. Rule 46 specifies circumstances in which an unregistered recipient’s name, address, State and code must be recorded, including a taxable supply of ₹50,000 or more. The same details can be required for a lower-value supply when the customer requests them. Your billing screen should therefore ask for recipient and delivery information based on transaction value and customer request, not only on registration status.
HSN, Accounting Code and descriptions
Use an HSN code for goods and the applicable Accounting Code for services. Keep the classification decision supported by product or service master data, because a description alone does not cure an incorrect code. For goods, record the quantity and unit or unique quantity code for each relevant line.
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Taxable value, discounts and tax components
Show the total supply value and the taxable value after an applicable discount or abatement. Then show the rate and amount for each tax component that applies: CGST, SGST, IGST, Union territory GST or cess. The arithmetic should reconcile to the amount payable, and the invoice should make clear whether a price reduction was applied before tax.
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When place of supply and delivery information changes the invoice
Place of supply is not a decorative address field. It helps determine whether the transaction is intra-state or interstate and therefore whether CGST and SGST (or Union territory GST) or IGST applies. For an interstate supply, Rule 46 requires the place of supply and State name on the invoice. If goods are delivered somewhere different from the place-of-supply location, include the delivery address as required.
Build a transaction check that captures the customer’s registration state, the actual delivery location and any special place-of-supply rule relevant to the goods or service. Escalate unusual cases—such as multi-location services, bill-to/ship-to arrangements or supplies involving a third location—instead of allowing the billing system to infer the tax solely from the customer’s GSTIN.
E-invoicing: what changes from a normal invoice
E-invoicing is a reporting and validation workflow, not a requirement to abandon your accounting or ERP system. The supplier still creates the invoice in its billing system. If the taxpayer and document are covered, invoice data is sent to an IRP. The IRP validates the payload, assigns a unique Invoice Reference Number (IRN) and returns a QR code. The supplier must place the IRN and QR code on the invoice before issuing or sharing it with the recipient.
Step-by-step e-invoice workflow
- Check scope before issuing. Confirm the supplier’s aggregate annual turnover, the GST registration details, the document type and any exemption or notified exclusion. Turnover alone is not a complete applicability test.
- Create the commercial invoice. Prepare the document in the accounting, billing or ERP system with the Rule 46 fields, correct classification, values, tax components and place-of-supply data.
- Submit the required data to the IRP. Use the approved integration, offline utility or other available IRP submission method. The payload must match the document you intend to give the customer.
- Validate the IRP response. Store the returned IRN, IRN date and signed QR information with the invoice record. If validation fails, correct the underlying data rather than manually altering a rejected response.
- Print or render the identifiers. Put the IRN and QR code on the invoice copy sent to the recipient. A PDF that lacks the required IRN is not made compliant merely because the invoice was created in accounting software.
- Reconcile to GST returns. Review the e-invoice data that flows into the relevant GSTR-1 tables and resolve discrepancies before filing.
The official IRP guidance states that a covered B2B GST invoice is valid only with a valid IRN and that the IRN and QR code should be printed before the invoice is shared. The exact document categories and exemptions must still be checked against the operative notification for your taxpayer and transaction.
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Current IRP threshold material states that e-invoicing applies at an aggregate annual turnover (AATO) of ₹5 crore or more in any financial year from 2017–18 onward. The calculation is across all GST registrations under the same PAN, not separately for each registration. Exempted classes and transaction-specific conditions continue to apply, so the threshold should be treated as the starting test rather than an automatic answer.
| Question | How to handle it |
|---|---|
| Has AATO reached ₹5 crore in any financial year from 2017–18 onward? | Use the current IRP applicability material and operative notifications to determine whether the taxpayer is in the notified class. |
| Is the document one that must be reported? | Check the document type and transaction category. Not every invoice or recipient type follows the same IRP treatment. |
| Does an exemption apply? | Verify the taxpayer’s exempt class and conditions in the current notification; do not rely on turnover alone. |
| Is the customer unregistered? | Do not infer that no IRP or QR requirement exists. The IRP guide discusses B2C treatment separately, while other QR-code requirements can apply to notified taxpayers. |
An older IRP explainer still shows a ₹10 crore threshold. Later IRP notification material records the change to ₹5 crore effective 1 August 2023, so the later threshold is the relevant starting point. Recheck the portal’s latest advisories before changing your implementation.
The separate 30-day reporting restriction for larger taxpayers
From 1 April 2025, IRP production release notes state that taxpayers with AATO of ₹10 crore and above are restricted from reporting invoices, credit notes and debit notes more than 30 days after the document date. This is a submission-timing control for that turnover group; it does not replace the broader ₹5 crore applicability threshold.
For an affected business, configure an age check in the billing queue. A document approaching 30 days should be escalated before the window closes, and rejected submissions should be corrected quickly enough to allow a new report within the permitted period. Keep the original document date and the IRP submission history so a reviewer can distinguish late preparation from a portal rejection.
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IRP schema material records a validation relaxation effective 1 February 2026 for certain RSP-based invoices under Notification No. 20/2025. That change is limited to the specified RSP-based scenarios; it should not be generalized to unrelated invoice types. Keep your integration and validation rules versioned, and read the applicable release note when the portal changes a field rule.
How e-invoices flow into GSTR-1
The GST Portal guide says IRP-generated e-invoice details are auto-populated into relevant GSTR-1 tables. Auto-population reduces re-keying but does not remove the review step. The same guide describes editing e-invoice details in GSTR-1 and notes that editing clears the source, IRN and IRN-date fields. If a correction is necessary, preserve the original IRP record, understand what the edit removes, and ensure the return treatment agrees with the valid document and any amendment process.
GST record-keeping: the 72-month baseline
Section 36 of the CGST Act sets the ordinary retention period at 72 months from the due date for filing the annual return for the year to which the accounts and records relate. The period is measured from the annual-return due date, not simply from the invoice date.
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The statutory wording reproduced on CBIC’s CGST Act page is: “Every registered person required to keep and maintain books of account or other records in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 35 shall retain them until the expiry of seventy-two months from the due date of furnishing of annual return for the year pertaining to such accounts and records.”
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If records relate to an appeal, revision, another proceeding or an investigation under Chapter XIX, retain them for one year after final disposal or for the ordinary 72-month period, whichever is later. Put a legal hold on records connected with an open matter; do not destroy them when the normal calendar date arrives.
What to retain with each invoice
CBIC’s account-record rules cover more than the invoice PDF. Organize the invoice register and the underlying documents, including:
- tax invoices and amended or cancelled invoices;
- bills of supply;
- credit notes and debit notes;
- delivery challans connected with stock movement, inward supplies or outward supplies;
- purchase orders, contracts, dispatch or delivery evidence and discount support;
- IRP request and response data, including IRN and QR information where applicable; and
- return data and reconciliation evidence linking invoices to GSTR-1 and other relevant filings.
Electronic storage and backup
Electronic records are acceptable when they remain complete, readable and retrievable. The account-record rules call for a proper electronic backup capable of restoring information within a reasonable time after accidental or natural destruction. Use access controls, a documented backup schedule and periodic restore tests. Store records by GSTIN, financial year and document type so an invoice can be retrieved alongside its supporting transaction and return entry.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Manual paper workflow versus software controls
A paper book can support a small manual process, but the compliance question is whether the workflow can perform every required control consistently. Compare the process—not a product brand—against these capabilities:
| Control | Manual process | Software-enabled process |
|---|---|---|
| Rule 46 field completeness | Relies on a printed checklist and staff review; conditional fields can be missed. | Can make fields mandatory based on recipient, value, supply type and place of supply. |
| Numbering | Requires disciplined series registers and review for duplicates or gaps. | Can enforce sequential series and prevent duplicate numbers. |
| IRN and QR workflow | Requires a separate submission, response capture and print-control procedure. | Can connect to the IRP, store responses and render identifiers automatically, subject to correct configuration. |
| GSTR-1 reconciliation | Usually depends on spreadsheets and manual matching. | Can export registers and flag differences, but staff must still review edits and source-field effects. |
| Retention and retrieval | Needs secure physical storage, indexing and disaster protection. | Can provide searchable electronic archives, backups and access logs when configured and tested properly. |
Neither format removes the legal responsibility to issue accurate documents, report covered invoices correctly or preserve records for the required period.
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Common failure points and practical fixes
Using the wrong tax split
Symptom: An interstate transaction shows CGST and SGST, or an intra-state transaction shows IGST. Fix: Recheck the place-of-supply rule, customer location, delivery facts and the registration used for the sale before issuing a revised document.
Missing conditional recipient information
Symptom: A high-value B2C invoice has no recipient or delivery details. Fix: Trigger the Rule 46 unregistered-recipient test at ₹50,000 and whenever the customer requests the information for a lower-value supply.
Sharing an e-invoice without IRN or QR code
Symptom: The accounting system produced a PDF, but the covered B2B document was never successfully reported to the IRP. Fix: Submit the invoice, retain the successful response and regenerate the customer copy with the IRN and QR code before sharing it.
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Symptom: A taxpayer with AATO of ₹10 crore or more attempts to report an invoice, credit note or debit note more than 30 days after its document date. Fix: Add an aging alert at issuance and investigate whether the document date, turnover classification or portal response was recorded incorrectly.
Editing away the IRP trail in GSTR-1
Symptom: A return edit removes the source, IRN and IRN-date fields. Fix: Reconcile the edited entry to the original IRP record and retain an explanation and supporting documentation for the change.
Deleting records at the wrong time
Symptom: Files are purged 72 months after invoice date, even though the annual-return due date falls later or a proceeding remains open. Fix: Calculate retention from the annual-return due date and apply the “later of” rule when an appeal, revision, proceeding or investigation is involved.
A practical pre-issue control sequence
- Confirm the issuing GSTIN, customer status and transaction category.
- Check the financial-year serial series and issue date.
- Validate description, HSN or Accounting Code, quantity where applicable, values, discount treatment and tax arithmetic.
- Confirm place of supply, interstate or intra-state treatment and delivery address requirements.
- Run the e-invoice applicability and document-type check before releasing a covered document.
- For an IRP-covered invoice, capture and print the valid IRN and QR code.
- After issuance, reconcile the invoice to GSTR-1 and file the invoice, supporting records and audit trail in the retention archive.
Because exemptions, notified classes, State or Union territory requirements and portal validations can change, review the current CBIC rules, GST notifications and IRP advisories whenever your turnover, supply type, registration structure or billing system changes.
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