How to Create a GST Invoice in India (Step by Step)

Who needs to issue a GST invoice

Every business registered under GST must issue a tax invoice when it supplies taxable goods or services. The invoice is what lets your customer claim input tax credit, so mistakes cost them money and cost you goodwill.

If you are not registered, you should not show GST at all. Issue a plain invoice (or a bill of supply if you are under the composition scheme) instead.

The fields a tax invoice must show

The GST rules list what a tax invoice needs. In practice, check that yours has all of these:

• Your name, address and GSTIN
• A unique invoice number of up to 16 characters (letters, numbers, - and / only) and the date
• The recipient's name and address, and their GSTIN if they are registered
• The place of supply with its state code
• Description, HSN code (goods) or SAC code (services), quantity and unit
• Taxable value, discount, and the rate and amount of each tax
• The total in figures and in words
• Whether tax is payable on reverse charge, and your signature

Working out the tax

Start with quantity times price for each line, take off any line discount, then spread any invoice-level discount across the lines in proportion to their value. The result is the taxable value of each line.

If the place of supply is in your own state, split the GST rate in half: 18% becomes 9% CGST plus 9% SGST (or UTGST in some union territories). If it is in another state, charge the full rate as IGST. Exports under LUT carry IGST at 0%.

Round each tax total to the paisa, and optionally round the grand total to the nearest rupee with a separate "round off" line.

Doing it in two minutes

Open the GST invoice generator, choose your state and the place of supply, and add your items with their HSN or SAC codes. The generator picks CGST + SGST or IGST for you, checks your GSTIN, writes the amount in words in the Indian lakh and crore system and prints a UPI QR code if you add your UPI ID.

Larger businesses above the e-invoicing turnover limit must also register each invoice on the government portal to get an IRN. This tool does not do that, so use it for invoices that do not need an IRN.