In its 22nd meeting, the GST Council decided and recommended that the e-way bill under GST shall be introduced in a staggered manner from 1st January 2018, and will be rolled out nationwide from 1st April 2018. However, at the recently concluded 24th GST Council meeting held on 16th December 2017, it was announced that the e-way bill will be launched from the 1st of February, 2018 – a full two months ahead of the earlier plan.
Why has the e-way bill been preponed?
The e-way bill GST provisions had primarily targeted a single national level e-way bill, which could be used by suppliers and transporters all across the country. Till such time as this national e-way bill was ready, the States were authorized to continue their own separate e-way bill systems. However, the GST Council received several representations from the trade and transporter communities, stating that this was causing an unnecessary bottleneck to the inter-State movement of goods, prompting the need for an earlier implementation of the e-way bill. As a result of the GST Council, reviewed the readiness of the hardware and software required for the nationwide rollout of the e-way bill, and has announced the renewed date, post discussions with all the States.
E-way Bill FAQs
What is GST E-Way Bill?
EWay Bill is an electronic way bill for movement of goods which can be generated on the eWay Bill Portal. Transport of goods of more than Rs. 50,000 (Single Invoice/bill/delivery challan) in value in a vehicle cannot be made by a registered person without an e-way bill. Alternatively, Eway bill can also be generated or cancelled through SMS, Android App and by Site-to-Site Integration(through API). When an e-way bill is generated a unique e-way bill number (EBN) is allocated and is available to the supplier, recipient, and the transporter.
When is the E-Way Bill applicable?
It is applicable for any consignment value exceeding INR 50,000. Even in case of inward supply of goods from an unregistered person, E-Way Bill is applicable.
When should the E-Way Bill be generated?
The E-Way Bill needs to be generated before the commencement of movement of goods.
What is the validity of E-Way Bill?
Less than 100 KM: 1 Day
Every 100 Km or part thereof thereafter – 1 additional day
The validity period will be counted from the time of generation of the E-Way Bill. The validity period of the E-Way Bill may be extended by the commissioner for certain categories of goods, as specified in the notification issued in this regard.
Who should generate the E-Way Bill?
Registered Person – Eway bill must be generated when there is a movement of goods of more than Rs 50,000 in value to or from a Registered Person. A Registered person or the transporter may choose to generate and carry eway bill even if the value of goods is less than Rs 50,000.
Unregistered Persons – Unregistered persons are also required to generate e-Way Bill. However, where a supply is made by an unregistered person to a registered person, the receiver will have to ensure all the compliances are met as if they were the supplier.
Transporter – Transporters carrying goods by road, air, rail, etc. also need to generate e-Way Bill if the supplier has not generated an e-Way Bill.
How to generate the E-Way Bill?
Form GST EWB-01 is an E-Way Bill form. It contains Part A, where the details of the goods are furnished, and Part B contains a vehicle number.
Can E-Way Bill be generated for consignments of value less than INR 50,000?
Yes, either a registered person or a transporter can generate an E-Way Bill although it may not be mandatory.
What happens if multiple consignments are transported in one vehicle?
The transporter should generate a consolidated E-Way Bill in the Form GST EWB 02 and separately indicate the serial number of E-Way Bill for each of the consignment.
On the generation of E-Way Bill, will there be any reference number generated?
Upon generation of the E-Way Bill, on the common portal, a unique E-Way Bill number called ‘EBN’ will be made available to the supplier, the recipient and the transporter.
What happens if goods are transferred from one vehicle to another vehicle in the course of transit?
Before transferring the goods to another vehicle and making any further movement of such goods, the transporter needs to update the details of conveyance in the E-Way Bill on the common portal in Form GST EWB 01.
What happens if the consignor does not generate the E-Way Bill even though the value of consignment is more than INR 50,000?
The transporter has to generate the E-Way Bill in Form GST EWB 01 on the basis of the invoice, bill of supply or the delivery challan.
What happens if E-Way Bill is generated but goods are not transported?
The E-Way Bill can be cancelled electronically on the common portal within 24 hours of its generation. The E-Way Bill cannot be cancelled if it has been verified by an officer during transit.
Will the E-Way Bill be made available for acceptance to the recipient of goods?
Yes, the details of the E-Way Bill will be made available for the recipient of goods only if he is registered. The recipient of goods should communicate acceptance or rejection of the consignment covered by the E-Way Bill within 72 hours of the details being made available.
What happens if a recipient of goods does not communicate the acceptance or rejection within 72 hours?
If the recipient of goods doesn’t communicate acceptance or rejection within 72 hours, it will be deemed as accepted by the recipient.
Is there a facility to generate or cancel the E-Way Bill through SMS?
The facility of generation and cancellation of E-Way Bill will be made available through SMS.
Documents or Details required to generate eWay Bill
Invoice/ Bill of Supply/ Challan related to the consignment of goods
Transport by road – Transporter ID or Vehicle number
Transport by rail, air, or ship – Transporter ID, Transport document number, and date on the document
After every inspection, the officer needs to record the details of the inspection of goods in Part A of Form GST EWB 03 within 24 hrs of inspection and the final report must be recorded in Part B of Form GST EWB 03 within 3 days of inspection. If the vehicle is detained for more than 30 minutes, the transporter has an option to complain by uploading the details in Form GST EWB 04.
