Quarterly Filing of GSTR-3B for Small Taxpayers

The CBIC has released a notification allowing small taxpayers to opt for quarterly filing of GSTR-3B. Small taxpayers are those taxpayers with a turnover of up to Rs.5 crore in the previous financial year and opted for the QRMP scheme. The quarterly filing option is available from 1st January 2021 and the January-March 2021 quarter onwards.

Latest Updates

10th January 2025
Due Dates for filling of GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B (monthly and quarterly) for December 2024 were extended by two days as per the CGST notifications 01/2025 and 02/2025.

Manner of Opting for Quarterly Filing

A registered person who intends to file his GSTR-3B quarterly should indicate his preference electronically, on the GST portal, from the 1st of the second month of the preceding quarter until the last day of the first month of the quarter for which such option is being exercised.

For example: If Mr X wishes to file quarterly returns for the quarter of Apr-Jun 2025, he should opt for quarterly filing on the common GST portal between 1st February 2025 and 30th April 2025. Once the registered person has opted for quarterly filing, he will have to continue to furnish his return every quarter for all future tax periods, except in the following situations:

1. He becomes ineligible for furnishing a quarterly return as per the conditions and restrictions notified in this regard (for example, if his aggregate turnover crosses Rs.5 crore during a quarter, then from the next quarter he will not be able to file quarterly returns).
2. He opts for furnishing of return every month, electronically, on the GST portal. 

Note: A registered person will not be eligible to opt for furnishing quarterly returns if the last return, which was due on the date of exercising such an option has not been furnished. For example: If the person is opting for quarterly GSTR-3B filing on 1st March 2025, they will need to furnish his GSTR-3B return for January 2025, which would have been the last return due on the date of exercising the quarterly filing option.

Payment of Taxes By Taxpayers Who Have Opted to File GSTR-3B Quarterly

From 1st January 2021, registered persons who have opted to file their GSTR-3B returns quarterly, are required to pay the taxes due monthly by depositing an amount in the electronic cash ledger that is equivalent to: 

1. 35% of the tax liability that was paid in the previous quarter – in cases where the GSTR-3B has been furnished quarterly. 
2. 100% of the total tax liability paid for the last month of the immediately preceding quarter – in cases where the return has been furnished monthly. 

The amount needs to be deposited using form GST PMT-06 by the 25th of the following month, for the first and second months of the quarter. There are certain instances where no amount may be required to be deposited, such as –  

a) For the first month of the quarter – where the balance in the electronic cash/credit ledger is adequate for the tax liability of the said month OR where the tax liability is nil. 

b) For the second month of the quarter – where the balance in the electronic cash/credit ledger is adequate for the cumulative tax liability for the first and second months of the quarter OR  where the tax liability is nil.

Note that a registered person will not be eligible for the said procedures unless he has furnished the return for the complete tax period preceding such month. A complete tax period is a tax period where the said person is registered from the first until the last day of the tax period.

Deemed Monthly/Quarterly Filing of GSTR-3B

In the case of registered persons falling in the categories specified in the table below, who have furnished their GSTR-3B return for October 2020 by 30th November 2020, it shall be deemed that they have opted for monthly or quarterly filing as detailed below-

The taxpayers referred to in the Sl. No. 2 in the above table can change the default option and opt for quarterly GSTR-3B filing between 5th December 2020 and 31st January 2021.

Due Dates to File GSTR-3B

The due dates filing GSTR-3B for quarterly filers has been notified as follows:

For more information, you may read:

• Steps to make tax payments for quarterly GSTR-3B filing
• How to change the QRMP profile from Quarterly to monthly
• How to file details on the IFF on the GST portal