What is E-way Bill under GST? How to generate e-way bill?

Introduction

E-waybill under GST is a document containing details or/and instructions relating to the shipment of a consignment of goods. The details include name of consignor, consignee, the point of origin of the consignment, its destination and distance to be travelled. Electronic Way Bill is a compliance wherein by way of a digital interface, the person causing the movement of goods uploads the relevant information prior to the commencement of movement of goods. This article aims to cover some frequently asked questions related to electronic way bill. After reading this article, you will know the what is e-way bill under GST, how to generate e-way bill and activate it, who should generate it, and conditions when e-way bill is not required to be generated.

1. What is an E-Way Bill under GST?

E-way Bill under GST is an electronic document generated on the GST portal for movement of goods. It has two components:

Part A: Details of GSTIN of recipient, place of delivery, invoice / challan number, date, value of goods, HSN code, transport document number and reasons for transportation;

Part B: comprising transporter's details with vehicle number.

As per Rule 138 of the CGST Rules, 2017, every registered person who causes movement of goods of consignment value more than INR. 50,000/- is required to generate e-way bill under GST and furnish above-mentioned information in.

2. Who should generate the e-way bill?

It is to be generated by the consignor or consignee himself. If the goods are handed over to a transporter for transportation by road, it can be generated by the transporter also. It shall be the responsibility of the transporter to generate it where neither the consignor nor the consignee generates the bill and the value of goods is more than INR.50,000.

3. How to generate E-way Bill under GST?

One can generate an e-way bill by the following methods:

• Web based system
• SMS based facility
• Android App (below is the sight)

For generating more than one bill, users cannot opt for SMS based facilities.

In this article, we will be focusing on the web based system for generating the bill. Without more ado, let us understand the most used method of generating that is Web based.

4. E-way Bill System Login

The bill contains two parts- Part A and part B. Where the goods are transported by a registered person whether as consignor or recipient, the said person shall have to generate the bill by furnishing information in the portal. With the following steps, anyone can easily generate the e-way bill:

Step 1: Login to https://www.ewaybillgst.gov.in/

Step 2: Fill the details as required in the pop box, a snip of it is shown below

Step 3: After e-way bill login, the portal interface will appear like the image shown below. On Face, the recent activities for the last 3 days can be easily traced.

Step 4: At the left side of the menu, Portal will show various options. At the top most, users can choose to create a new bill by clicking on "Generate New".

5. How to generate an E-way Bill using web-based system?

Step 1: The form is divided into two parts. Part A consists of details of user filling in the Form GST EWB-01. The user shall select the supply type which can be inward supply or outward supply.

Step 2: Following the supply type, the form has options in Sub-type of supply. That is, the transit of goods need not be a mandatory supply. It can be for any purpose and the purpose shall be determined in the form. The following are the options available:

Step 3: Users need to fill in the remaining mandatory fields of Part A of the Form. The details in "Bill From" will be prefilled, while the other tabs need to be filled.

Step 4: A form cannot be submitted without completing this part. Where the bill is not generated by a registered person and the goods are handed over to the transporter for transportation, the registered person shall furnish the information relating to the transporter in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01.

Step 5: The users can preview the details entered before finalising the Form.It is suggested to always go through the information, if there is a mistake in the bill, then it cannot be corrected later. Only option is cancellation and generating a new one with correct details.

Step 6: After preview, if the information is correct to their knowledge, the user shall continue to submit the Form and generate an e-way bill.

6. Can we update Part B of Form GST EWB-01?

The Registered Person can only change the vehicle number, since goods can go through multiple modes of transportation before reaching its final destination. As per the mode of transportation, the EWB can be updated by using 'Update Vehicle Number'. Mostly, this is due to a change in mode of transportation.

7. What is the validity of an E-wayBill?

The validity of E-way bills depends on the distance to be travelled by the goods.

- For a distance of not more than 100 Km, the bill will be valid for a day from the relevant date.

- For every 100 Km or a part, one day validity is provided.

- And in case of Over Dimensional Cargo vehicles, for every 20 KMs or part of its movement thereafter, the validity will be additional one day from the relevant date.

Here the relevant date means the date on which the bill is generated and the period of validity shall be counted from that time and each day shall be counted as 24 hours.

If under circumstances of an exceptional nature, the goods cannot be transported within the validity period, the transporter may generate another bill after updating the details in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01.

8. Cancellation and Rejection of E-Way Bill?

If the goods were never transported or are not transported as per the details furnished in the E-way Bill, then the generator of E-way Bills can cancel the Bill by following the steps below.

Step 1: Click on 'E way Bill' or 'Consolidated EWB' and Select 'Cancel' from the drop down

Step 2: Enter the 12 digit bill number for the existing bills you want to cancel and click 'Go'.

Step 3: When the selected bill appears, give a reason for cancellation.

The Bill can only be cancelled only if it has not yet been inspected by an officer that is before verification in transit, and within 24hrs from its generation.

However, rejection is different from cancellation. Users must not mix the two different concepts. Rejection is done by the recipient of the bill within 72hours.

9. E-Way bill to be issued whether for supply or otherwise?

The bill is to be issued irrespective of whether the movement of goods falls in the definition of supply or otherwise. In respect of transportation for reasons other than supply, movement could be in view of Export, Import, Job-work, exhibition or fairs, for own use or others like sales returns, sale on approval basis, etc.

10. When is e-way bill not required?

E-way bill is not required to be generated in the following cases :

• Goods as specified in Annexure to Rule 138 of the CGST Rules, 2017

• Goods transported by a non-motorized conveyance;

• Goods transported from the port, airport, air cargo complex and land customs station to an inland container depot or a container freight station for clearance by Customs;

• Movement of goods within such areas as are notified under rule 138(14)(d) of the SGST Rules, 2017 of the concerned State; and

• Inter State consignment value less than INR. 50,000 except,

○ movement of goods from Principal to Job Worker

○ movement of Handicraft Goods by a person who is exempted from requirement of registration under clauses Section 24(i) and (ii)

So, in all the above conditions an e-way bill is not required to be generated.

11. How Can I obtain E-way Bill Invoice Number?

A registered person may obtain an Invoice Reference Number from the portal by uploading a tax invoice issued by him in FORM GST INV-1 which appears to be like any other normal invoice issued (as seen in image below), and produce the same for verification by the proper officer in lieu of the tax invoice and such number shall be valid for a period of 30 days from the date of uploading.

12. How is E-billing linked with E-way Bill?

The registered person will NOT have to upload the information in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 for generation of the bill. The same shall be auto-populated by the portal on the basis of the information furnished in FORM GST INV-1.

Upon generation of the bill on the common portal, a unique e-way bill number (EBN) generated by the common portal, shall be made available to the supplier, the recipient and the transporter on the common portal.

The article consists of highly probable FAQs and does not hold up 100% queries on the topic. For specific queries, readers can write up in comments or can raise threads on our forum platform. Readers are also requested to convey the correct interpretation of the relevant provisions of law, if varies, which shall be appreciated for correction.