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What is E-way Bill: Rules, Applicability, Limit, Requirement & Generation Process Explained

By Tanya Gupta

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Updated on: Dec 12th, 2024

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5 min read

Managing a seamless movement of goods for your enterprise while also ensuring compliance regulations can be challenging for your teams. As a finance leader, you might see your teams face numerous hurdles, including paperwork delays and confusion about transportation rules. This is where the e-way Bill system under GST streamlines the movement of goods under India's GST framework. It ensures every consignment is properly documented, making the entire process transparent and hassle-free. But what exactly is an E-way Bill, and how does it work?

EWay Bill or an Electronic Way bill is required for movement of goods under GST. Transporters should carry an eWay Bill when moving goods from one place to another, valid across India if value of consignment exceeds a specified limit.

From this article, learn about-

  • What is an eWay Bill?
  • What are the components of an e-way bill?
  • When should an eWay Bill be issued?
  • Who should generate an eWay Bill?
  • Cases when an eWay bill is not required
  • State-wise e-Way Bill rules and limits
  • How to generate an eWay Bill on the portal
  • SMS e-way bill generation on mobile
  • Validity of eWay Bill
  • Documents or details required to generate an eWay Bill
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Latest Updates

17th September 2024
The e-way bill generation has met an all-time high to reach 10.54 crore in August 2024 as per GSTN's data from GSTN showed. An improved compliance coupled with strict action by field formation must have propelled growth in the e-way bill count. 

What is an eWay Bill?

Under GST, an Electronic Way bill is required for movement of goods. A registered person cannot transport goods in a vehicle whose value exceeds Rs. 50,000 (Single Invoice/bill/delivery challan) without an e-way bill that is generated on ewaybillgst.gov.in.

Alternatively, Eway bill can also be generated or cancelled through SMS, Android App and by site-to-site integration through API entering the correct GSTIN of parties. Validate the GSTIN with the help of the GST search tool before using it. When an eway bill is generated, a unique Eway Bill Number (EBN) is allocated and is available to the supplier, recipient, and the transporter.

What are the components of an e-way bill? 

E-Way bill is divided into two components i.e. Part A and Part B. The person required to issue eway bill should fill in the following details of Part A:

  • Details of GSTIN of recipient, 
  • Place of delivery (PIN Code), 
  • Invoice or challan number and date, 
  • Value of goods, 
  • HSN code
  • Transport document number (Goods Receipt Number or Railway Receipt Number or Airway Bill Number or Bill of Lading Number) and 
  • Reasons for transportation 

While as far as Part B is concerned, it comprises of the transporter details (for eg: Vehicle number)

When Should eWay Bill be issued?

eWay bill will be generated when there is a movement of goods in a vehicle/ conveyance of value more than Rs. 50,000 (either each Invoice or in aggregate of all invoices in a vehicle/conveyance)  –

  • In relation to a ‘supply’
  • For reasons other than a ‘supply’ ( say a return)
  • Due to inward ‘supply’ from an unregistered person

For this purpose, a supply may be either of the following:

  • A supply made for a consideration (payment) in the course of business
  • A supply made for a consideration (payment) which may not be in the course of business
  • A supply without consideration (without payment) In simpler terms, the term ‘supply’ usually means a:
  1. Sale – sale of goods and payment made
  2. Transfer – branch transfers for instance
  3. Barter/Exchange – where the payment is by goods instead of in money

Therefore, eWay Bills must be generated on the common portal for all these types of movements. For certain specified Goods, the eway bill needs to be generated mandatorily even if the value of the consignment of Goods is less than Rs. 50,000:

  1. Inter-State movement of Goods by the Principal to the Job-worker by Principal/ registered Job-worker
  2. Inter-State Transport of Handicraft goods by a dealer exempted from GST registration

e-way bill process

*Generate e-way bill irrespective of the value of consignment.

Who should Generate an eWay 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 but are not required to generate the Eway bill (as Form EWB-01 or EWB-02) where all the consignments in the conveyance :
  • Individually (single Document**) is less than or equal to Rs 50,000 BUT
  • In Aggregate (all documents** put together) exceeds Rs 50,000

**Document means Tax Invoice/Delivery challan/Bill of supply

Unregistered Transporters will be issued Transporter ID on enrolling on the e-way bill portal after which Eway bills can be generated.

WhoWhenPartForm
Every Registered person under GSTBefore movement of goodsFill Part AForm GST EWB-01
Registered person is consignor or consignee (mode of transport may be owned or hired) OR is recipient of goodsBefore movement of goodsFill Part BForm GST EWB-01
Registered person is consignor or consignee  and goods are handed over to transporter of goodsBefore movement of goodsFill Part B The registered person shall furnish the information relating to the transporter in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01
Transporter of goodsBefore movement of goods-- Generate e-way bill on basis of information shared by the registered person in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01
An unregistered person under GST and recipient is registeredCompliance to be done by Recipient as if he is the Supplier.-- 1. If the goods are transported for a distance of fifty kilometers or less, within the same State/Union territory from the place of business of the consignor to the place of business of the transporter for further transportation, the supplier or the transporter may not furnish the details of conveyance in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01. 2. If supply is made by air, ship or railways, then the information in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 has to be filled in by the consignor or the recipient

Note: If a transporter is transporting multiple consignments in a single conveyance, they can use the form GST EWB-02 to produce a consolidated e-way bill, by providing the e-way bill numbers of each consignment. If both the consignor and the consignee have not created an e-way bill, then the transporter can do so by filling out PART A of FORM GST EWB-01 on the basis of the invoice/bill of supply/delivery challan given to them.

Cases when eWay bill is Not Required

In the following cases it is not necessary to generate e-Way Bill:

  1. The mode of transport is non-motor vehicle
  2. Goods transported from Customs port, airport, air cargo complex or land customs station to Inland Container Depot (ICD) or Container Freight Station (CFS) for clearance by Customs.
  3. Goods transported under Customs supervision or under customs seal
  4. Goods transported under Customs Bond from ICD to Customs port or from one custom station to another.
  5. Transit cargo transported to or from Nepal or Bhutan
  6. Movement of goods caused by defence formation under Ministry of defence as a consignor or consignee
  7. Empty Cargo containers are being transported
  8. Consignor transporting goods to or from between place of business and a weighbridge for weighment at a distance of 20 kms, accompanied by a Delivery challan.
  9. Goods being transported by rail where the Consignor of goods is the Central Government, State Governments or a local authority.
  10. Goods specified as exempt from E-Way bill requirements in the respective State/Union territory GST Rules.
  11. Transport of certain specified goods- Includes the list of exempt supply of goods, Annexure to Rule 138(14), goods treated as no supply as per Schedule III, Certain schedule to Central tax Rate notifications. (PDF of List of Goods).

Note: Part B of e-Way Bill is not required to be filled where the distance between the consigner or consignee and the transporter is less than 50 Kms and transport is within the same state.

State-wise e-Way Bill Rules and Limits

Inter-State movement of goods has seen rise in numbers of generation of eway bills ever since its implementation began from 1st April 2018. State-wise e-way bill rules has differed and changed from time-to-time. Many States and Union Territories also joined the league in the generation of eway bills for movement of goods within the State/UT.

However, reliefs have been provided to people of few States by way of exempting them from eway bill generation in case of monetary limits falling below threshold amount or certain specified items. For Instance, Tamil Nadu has exempted people of its State from the generation of eway bill if the monetary limit of the items falls below Rs. One Lakh. To know more of such reliefs for other States/UTs, visit our page on state-wise e-way bill rules and threshold limits or alternatively check the respective commercial tax websites for each of such States/UTs.

How to generate eWay Bill on portal

E-Way Bill and the e-way bill number can be generated on the e-Way Bill Portal. All you need is a Portal login. For a detailed step-by-step guide on e-Way Bill Generation check out our article – Guide to generate e-Way Bill online.

SMS e-way bill generation on mobile

You can generate e-way bills via SMS using registered mobile phone. All can begin by enabling SMS e-way bill generate facility. Register the mobile phone to be used for SMS facility of e-way bill generation. Thereafter, send simple SMS codes to a particular mobile number managed by the e-way bill portal/GSTN to generate, manage and cancel e-way bills. For more details, read our article on SMS mode of e-way bill generation

Validity of eWay Bill

An e-way bill is valid for periods as listed below, which is based on the distance travelled by the goods. Validity is calculated from the date and time of generation of e-way bill-

Type of conveyanceDistance
Validity of EWB
Other than Over dimensional cargo
Less Than 200 Kms1 Day
For every additional 200 Kms or part thereof
additional 1 Day
For Over dimensional cargo
Less Than 20 Kms1 Day
For every additional 20 Kms or part thereof
additional 1 Day

Validity of Eway bill can also be extended by the generator of such Eway bill either eight hours before expiry or within eight hours after its expiry.

Documents or Details required to generate eWay Bill

  1. Invoice/ Bill of Supply/ Challan related to the consignment of goods
  2. Transport by road – Transporter ID or Vehicle number
  3. Transport by rail, air, or ship – Transporter ID, Transport document number, and date on the document

Note: While in movement, a vehicle can be blocked by the proper officer for the verification of documents including the E-way bill or inspection of goods. 

Read more FAQ’s on Eway Bill

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I add two invoices in one e-way bill?

No, you cannot generate a single e-way bill against two invoices. However, you can use consolidated e-way bill to club two or more e-way bills.

Should I generate e-way bills against invoices raised for supply service?

No, e-way bill rules do not apply to service oriented transactions. Hence, you need not generate an e-way bill against the supply of services.

Whether eway bill is required when the goods is billed within 10 km surroundings?

Goods that are moved inside a state need no e-way bill if the distance is up to 10 km. The limit has now been increased to 50 km.

How many days after raising an invoice that one should generate the e Way bill for delayed delivery?

The e-way bill is required at the time of delivery of goods only. So, if invoice is raised but goods are not delivered yet, then part-A can be generated on the e-way bill and Part-B details can be entered later on upon delivery. The validity of e-way bill begins when Part-B is entered.

What is the responsibility and liability for the transporter in the E-Way bill system?

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 due to any reason. Generate e way bill on the basis of information shared by the suppliers/ consignors regarding the Invoice/challan. To know more refer to our article on ‘Compliance on e-Way Bills by Transporter’ If the transporter does not generate in the above circumstances when he is required to, he may face penalty of Rs 10,000 or tax sought to be evaded (wherever applicable) whichever is greater, further liable for confiscation of goods and seizure of vehicle.

How many e-way bills are required to be generated to ship a consignment to a customer involving multiple transporters (having different Transporter IDs) in between? How will the one invoice-one e-way bill validation be compiled here since the end customer is only one?

One e-Way bill needs to be generated against the Invoice. Above situation is known as “Transshipment”. Transporter can also re-assign another transporter by updating transporter ID on the eway bill portal. Once a transporter re-assigns another transporter, seller cannot make any changes to the assigned transporter. So, the user has to generate different delivery challans against the invoice based on the different Transporter ID, because different e-way bills against a single invoice is not possible and will also cause the problem in populating the data in the GSTR-1.

How is the criteria of “Value of Consignment of Goods” applied?

Value of consignment of Goods” is interpreted as follows:  
1. Invoice Value* exceeds Rs. 50,000 OR  
2. If a vehicle carries goods against multiple Invoices, then where the aggregate Invoice value* exceed Rs. 50,000  
So, if either of the above points is satisfied, the user should generate e-Way Bill.  
*Invoice Value means transaction value as per Invoice inclusive of all the taxes excluding the Value of exempt goods that are being carried along the taxable goods and billed together.

Is e-Way bill required, if the value of shipment per customer per day exceeds Rs 50,000? How will we take multiple invoices under a single e-way bill?

Here, it depends whether the supplier himself is the transporter or not. If he is the transporter, then he is required to generate the e-way bill for all the invoices but if not, then the transporter will be required to generate the e-way bill against all the invoices in the Vehicle.

For Selection of Sub Type in case of Outward Supply, What do terms “CKD/SKD” & “Line sales” mean?

“CKD/SKD” means the movement of the goods in Completely knocked down condition or Semi Knocked Down condition. For eg: Movement of Fan in different parts, which will be assembled later. “Line Sales” Vertical sales made from one unit / department/division of an organisation to another unit/department/division next in the production line within that organisation.

What are the steps to download e-Way bill?

One can download the e-way bill by log in to the ‘e-way bill portal’ and clicking on ‘Print EWB’ under the ‘e-way bill’ tab.

How to cancel an 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 such e-way bills can cancel the e-way bill.

How to modify, reject or edit E-Way bills under GST?

Modification or any editions in already generated E-way bill is possible.

How to check e way bill history?

The e-way bill system has simplified reporting, tracking and monitoring GST compliance for movement of goods across the country. It makes e-way bill history an essential piece of documentation for all the stakeholders within the GST network, namely suppliers, recipients, transporters and tax officials. 

Can we generate an e way bill without a GST number?

No, only a person having a valid GSTIN can generate an e-Way bill. 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. 

How to create bulk e way bill?

A bulk e-way bill option is used when a user needs to generate multiple e-way bills/ consolidated EWBs/update multiple e-way bills in one shot by a single upload.

About the Author

A Chartered Accountant by profession and a content writer by passion, I've dedicated my career to unraveling the complexities of GST. With a firm belief that learning is a lifelong journey, I've honed my skills in simplifying intricate legal jargon into easily understandable content. The satisfaction of transforming complex tax laws into relatable narratives is what drives me. Read more

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