Under the new e-invoicing system, a taxpayer will have to generate his invoice on his own accounting/ERP system and then upload the same into IRP i.e the government’s Invoice Registration Portal.
The IRP will then generate a unique Invoice Reference Number after which invoice details are transferred from the IRP to GST portal and e-way bill portal. Therefore, it eliminates the need for manual data entry each time.
The article covers the following:
Update as on 30th July 2020
1. A new refined format of e-invoice has been notified by CBIC adding 20 new fields and removing 13 fields. Certain fields have undergone changes in character length as well.
2. e-Invoicing system shall apply to those taxpayers with annual turnover exceeding Rs 500 crore instead of Rs 100 crore.
3. Special Economic Zones (SEZ) units shall also be exempted from issuing e-invoices.
Update as on 23rd March 2020
The implementation of e-invoicing and the QR code has been deferred to 1st October 2020.
Exemption from e-Invoicing and QR code has been granted to sectors such as the insurance, banking, financial institutions, NBFCs, GTA, and passenger transportation service, etc.
Who must register for e-invoicing?
Every GST registered person whose aggregate turnover in the financial year 2019-20 was Rs.500 crore or more has to mandatorily generate e-invoice from 1 October 2020 in the Invoice Registration Portal (IRP).
Earlier, it was planned to implement on a voluntary basis from 1 February 2020 for taxpayers with turnover greater than Rs.100 crore. So, as of now, taxpayers whose turnover was Rs.500 crore or more can register in the IRP and generate the IRN.
Where to register for e-invoicing?
All GST registered taxpayers who need to generate IRN should register on the trial e-invoice system using his GSTIN. The taxpayers registered on the e-way bill portal can use EWB credentials for login and need not register on the e-invoice system again.
Steps for registration on the e-invoice system
Step 1: Visit the IRP portal
A. If a taxpayer is registered on the e-way bill portal: In this case, a taxpayer can use the same login credentials to login onto the e-invoice portal.
B. If a taxpayer is not registered on the e-way bill portal: In this case, he/she should have a GSTIN and mobile number registered with the GST system. Once he/she enters the URL of the e-invoice system, the screen below will open.
Step 2: Navigate to the Registration tab
A first-time GSTIN can register by clicking on the e-invoice registration link, which will open the e-invoice registration link. The user shall fill in the form and submit the same. Below is the e-invoice registration form:
Step 3: Enter GSTIN details
A taxpayer has to submit his GSTIN number along with the captcha and click on ‘GO’. The taxpayer will be redirected to the next page of the form wherein certain details will be auto-populated like the applicant’s name, trade name, mobile number, etc. In case, he wants to change this information, he/she should click on ‘Update from GST’ on the common portal. It will pull the latest information from the GST common portal.
Step 4: Click on ‘Send OTP’. A One time password is sent to the contact number submitted in the previous step.
Step 5: Enter the OTP and click ‘Verify OTP’ to verify the same.
Step 6: Provide your preferred username
Next, a taxpayer has to provide his user ID/username to operate his account. The username provided should be 6 to 15 alphanumeric characters and unique. Upon successful submission of the request, the system validates the data and creates username along with the password which can be used to access the e-invoice system.
Note:
1. In case a user forgets his password, he/she should enter the username, GSTIN and mobile number on the e-invoice system. On successful validation, he/she can reset his password.
2. In case a user forgets his username, he/she should enter his GSTIN and the registered mobile number. The system will validate the same and send a username to his registered mobile number through SMS.
FAQs on e-Invoice Registration on IRP
- Can a seller upload the e-invoice on a bulk basis?
Yes, a seller can bulk upload the e-invoices with the help of API. - Is a no-tax invoice required to obtain IRN?
An invoice with a no-tax component (generally known as Bill of Supply) is exempted from obtaining the IRN. - If a person is already registered on the GST portal, is he/she required to again register on the e-invoice portal?
Yes, even if a person is registered on the GST portal, he needs to again register on the e-invoice portal. But, if he is registered on the e-way bill portal, he need not re-register on the e-invoice portal. - For how long will the generated e-invoice be available on the government portal?
After the validation of an invoice by the IRP, it will be available for the taxpayers on the e-invoice system for 24 hours. - Can the IRN be generated twice for a single invoice?
No, the e-invoice system will check under the Central Registry of GST system to ensure that the invoice is not uploaded twice for re-generation of IRN. - Can IRN be cancelled?
Note that an IRN once generated cannot be deleted/modified, however, it can be cancelled and freshly generated in case wrong information is uploaded on the invoice. But, such cancellation can be done within 24 hours from the time of generation of IRN.
