What is Invoice Management System (IMS) under GST: Key Features, Benefits & How Does It Work

The Goods and Services Tax Network is constantly streamlining its GST portal and introducing new features to simplify compliance and auditing for taxpayers. The latest is the Invoice Management System (IMS), which went live on 14th October 2024. It aims to help significantly manage the process of ITC claims more accurate and faster.  

This article explores the latest features, core benefits, and workflow of IMS, including updates rolled out through October 2025.

Latest Updates

17th October 2025
GSTN, in its recent advisory, stated that the IMS functionality has been enhanced to allow taxpayers to modify ITC reversal amounts upon acceptance of credit notes and other specified records, ensuring ITC is reversed only to the extent actually availed.

23rd September 2025
GSTN via advisory has introduced the following new changes in GST Invoice Management System (IMS) effective from October 2025 tax period.

• Specified records that were earlier not allowed to be marked pending can now be kept pending for one tax period (one month for monthly taxpayers and one quarter for quarterly taxpayers). 
• A new facility lets taxpayers declare the exact ITC availed and reverse only that amount, either partially or fully. If ITC was never claimed, no reversal is required. 
• Taxpayers can save optional remarks when rejecting or keeping records pending; these remarks will appear in GSTR-2B and supplier dashboards, improving communication and reconciliation.

19th June 2025
GSTN via advisory has clarified the impact and resolution for wrongly rejected documents on IMS on both supplier and recipients.

7th June 2025
GSTN via advisory will implement hard-locking of auto-populated sales liability values in GSTR-3B from July 2025 tax period (filed in August 2025) onwards. It means taxpayers cannot manually edit Table 3 values in GSTR-3B, auto-filled from GSTR-1/GSTR-1A/IFF. The suppliers must take prompt/regular actions using GSTR-1A on any documents rejected by their B2B buyers on the Invoice Management System (IMS).

21st December 2024

The GST Council in its 55th meeting recommended the following*:

1. To amend section 38 of CGST Act, 2017 and rule 60 of CGST Rules, 2017 to provide a legal framework in respect of generation of FORM GSTR-2B based on the action taken by the taxpayers on the Invoice Management System (IMS).
2. To amend section 34(2) of CGST Act, 2017, to specifically provide for the requirement of reversal of input tax credit as is attributable to a credit note, by the recipient, to enable the reduction of output tax liability of the supplier.
3. To insert a new rule 67B in CGST Rules, 2017, to prescribe the manner in which the output tax liability of the supplier shall be adjusted against the credit note issued by him.
4. To amend section 39 (1) of CGST Act, 2017 and rule 61 of CGST Rules, 2017 to provide that FORM GSTR-3B of a tax period shall be allowed to be filed only after FORM GSTR-2B of the said tax period is made available on the portal.

14th October 2024
As per the latest GSTN advisory, IMS is made available on the GST portal since 14th October 2024. The first GSTR-2B with IMS actions would be the one generated for October 2024 that is generated on or after 14th November 2024.

9th September 2024
In the 54th GST Council Meeting, the Finance Minister acknowledged the enhancements to the existing GST return architecture. As stated in the advisory issued on 3rd September, the recipient taxpayers, for the purpose of availing Input Tax Credit (ITC), will be provided options to either accept, reject, or keep the invoice pending. Though, as of the moment, the facility stands optional, this process is expected to reduce errors, improve reconciliation, and reduce notices issued on account of ITC mismatch in the returns.

*The same would be given effect through the relevant circulars/ notifications.

What is the Invoice Management System (IMS) Under GST? 

The Invoice Management System, or IMS, is a new feature within the GST portal in the late 2024 to allow recipient taxpayers accept, reject, or keep invoices pending when saved or filed by their supplier taxpayers. Mismatches between invoices filed by suppliers and returns submitted by recipients are a significant issue taxpayers face when claiming input tax credits. 

The IMS allows registered recipients to match their records with invoices reported by suppliers in their GSTR-1. This will streamline recipient taxpayers' ITC availing process.  

Watch the video to understand the complete workflow of IMS:

Key Features of Invoice Management System (IMS)

• Accept/Reject/Pending Options:
  Recipients can flag each document (invoice, credit note, amendment) as Accepted, Rejected, or Pending for one tax period, allowing time for dispute resolution or verification. Inaction results in 'deemed acceptance'.
• ITC Reversal Flexibility:
  Taxpayers declare the exact ITC availed and only reverse the attributable amount on acceptance of any pending credit note or amendment. If ITC was never claimed, no reversal is required.
• Remarks for Better Communication:
  When recipients reject or mark a document as pending, optional remarks can be saved and these appear in GSTR-2B and the supplier dashboards, improving communication and reconciliation between trading parties.
• Dashboard Summary:
  All inward records are classified by type (e.g., B2B invoices, credit notes, amendments), with summary counts for actions: No action, Accepted, Rejected, Pending—streamlining decision-making and audit trails.
• Automatic GSTR-2B Integration:
  Only accepted documents flow into GSTR-2B for ITC claiming. Pending or rejected items are temporarily excluded till resolved. No action by the GSTR-3B deadline results in deemed acceptance.
• Bulk Actions & Download:
  Recipients can select multiple records and take actions in bulk, plus download Excel lists for easier audit and review.
• Supplier Invoice Amendment:
  Suppliers can now amend submitted documents (through GSTR-1A), triggering review through IMS in the next tax period.
• Compliance-Friendly:
  IMS does not increase compliance workload; any missed action automatically results in deemed acceptance. The workflow is streamlined for taxpayers with zero manual burden for unchanged invoices.

How Does the Invoice Management System Work? 

One of the significant problems that taxpayers face in GST compliance is availing input tax credit (ITC). The IMS functionality is expected to resolve some of the critical bottlenecks in that process. 

• First, suppliers submit and save their GSTR-1 by the 11th of every month or Invoice Furnishing Facility (IFF) or amend the submitted invoice using GSTR-1A in the GST portal. GSTR-1A can be submitted until the time a taxpayer files the GST return (GSTR-3B) for the relevant tax period. 
• Once the supplier saves and submits the recorded invoice, it will appear in the recipient taxpayer's IMS dashboard and eventually in the GSTR-2B.
• The IMS dashboard includes the supplier's GSTIN, trade name, invoice number, and type. 
• The recipient taxpayers will be given three options: ACCEPT, REJECT, or PENDING, which must be acted upon within the time the supplier uploads the invoice in their GSTR1/IFF/1A and the recipient files their GSTR-3B by the 20th of the corresponding months. To take action on an invoice after the 14th of every month, recipients will need to recompute the draft GSTR-2B.
• If the recipient chooses to ACCEPT, the accepted invoice becomes part of the recipient's auto-generated ITC statement or GSTR-2B, which is generated on the 14th of every month.
• Suppose the recipient decides to REJECT an invoice saved by the supplier. In that case, it does not become part of the recipient's ITC report or GSTR-2B. 
• When the recipient decides to keep an invoice PENDING, the portal does not count it as part of GSTR-2B for that month. IMS carries it forward to next month.  
• Suppose a recipient takes no action on an invoice. In that case, the system considers it 'deemed accepted' and automatically adds it to the recipient's GSTR-2B. 
• If the supplier amends an accepted or pending invoice, the amended invoice will replace the old invoice. The recipient must act on the newly updated invoice. 
• When suppliers make amendments in GSTR-1 through a GSTR-1A, the updated information flows through IMS to the recipient's GSTR-2B, but only in the subsequent month.
• Taxpayers can avail of PENDING invoices in any future months subject to a maximum limit as per Section 16(4) of the CGST Act, 2017.

Specified Records Allowed as Pending Only for One Tax Period

Taxpayers are allowed to keep the following specified records pending only for one tax period, one month for monthly filers and one quarter for quarterly filers.

• Credit notes, or upward amendment of credit note
• Downward amendment of credit note where original credit note rejected
• Downward amendment of Invoice/debit note only where original Invoice already accepted and 3B has been filed
• ECO-Document downward amendment only where original accepted, and 3B has been filed

Recipient has to accept or reject that record after the expiry of specified time period. If no action is taken then the system will consider such record as deemed accepted.

When accepting specified records, taxpayers are prompted whether ITC needs to be reduced for the record. Selecting "No" means the ITC was never claimed and no reversal is needed. Selecting "Yes" indicates either full or partial reversal. For partial reversal, taxpayers may optionally declare the reversal amount. For full reversal, no declaration is needed and full ITC value is reversed.

How to Use IMS on the GST Portal?

As a buyer or vendor, you can find the IMS functionality on the GST portal after logging into it using your credentials.

Step 1: Login to the GST portal

Login to the GST portal. Go to Services > Returns > click on ‘Invoice Management System (IMS)’.

Access both supplier dashboard (outward supplies) and recipient dashboard (inward supplies) by clicking on the ‘View’ button on the respective tiles.

Step 2: View summary of invoices on the IMS Dashboard

As a buyer, you can view all the purchase/inward supplies invoices reported by your GST-registered suppliers through their GSTR-1/ GSTR-1A or IFF on the IMS dashboard.

All invoices will be classified into headings such as B2B invoices, CGST Section 9(5) invoices by the e-commerce operator, credit notes and debit notes, both original and amended. It will show the number of records/documents against each such heading based on your actions- ‘No action’, ‘Accepted’, ‘Rejected’, and ‘Pending’. Below is a glimpse of the same-

Click on any one of the headings to view the list of invoices to take one of the actions.

Step 3: Time to take actions 

Select one of the buttons to take action - A (Accept), R (Reject) or P (Keep it Pending). If you do not mark any button, then it will be considered as no action taken. Click on the ‘Save’ button to save your actions. 

Choose the relevant filters or search option to look for any particular invoice while you can also download the records with their status in the form of Excel sheet.

Use the checkboxes against the records to make multiple selections or take bulk actions.

Note: Beware! No action up until the filing of GSTR-3B leads to deemed acceptance of invoices.

When accepting Specified records such as credit notes or their amendments and downward amendments of invoices or debit notes, the recipient taxpayer will be asked, "Does ITC need to be reduced for this record?" with two options: Yes or No.

• Selecting No means no ITC was claimed earlier, so no reversal is needed despite acceptance.
• Selecting Yes indicates either full or partial ITC reversal. Taxpayer may optionally declare the exact amount to be partially reversed. For full reversal, no amount declaration is required, and ITC will be reduced by the full value of the record.

A new feature in the Invoice Management System (IMS) allows taxpayers to save remarks when taking Reject or Pending actions on any record. These remarks are visible to the supplier and will also appear in the GSTR-2B for improved transparency and communication. Additionally, providing remarks is mandatory when declaring Partial or No reversal of Input Tax Credit (ITC) on credit notes and other similar records.

Step 4: Do you choose to keep invoices waiting? Then Inform.

You must take action by selecting ‘P’ to keep any particular invoices/CDN as pending for later review and action. You can skip a few months, but make sure to take accept or reject the invoice/CDN on or before the deadline to claim input tax credit defined under the CGST Section 16(4). The more you delay, your working capital continues to be blocked!

Note: Specified records such as credit notes or their amendments and downward amendments of invoices or debit notes are allowed to be kept pending for only one tax period. After this period, the pending option will be disabled, and if no action is taken, the system will consider the record as deemed accepted.

Step 5: Generate GSTR-2B/ Recompute GSTR-2B

Usually, you can access GSTR-2B after 14th of every month for the previous month. If you (buyer) do not take action in IMS after the 14th of the month, then it will be the final GSTR-2B for claiming ITC in your GSTR-3B.

However, if you change or take any action after 14th of the month for the previous month, then the system enables the ‘Compute GSTR-2B’ button to recompute GSTR-2B.

Step 6: File GSTR-3B

After all the necessary actions on the IMS, GSTR-2B will have the details flowing into it based on those IMS actions. Accepted invoices/debit notes will fall under the ‘ITC Available’ section of GSTR-2B. Details from here will flow in the respective sections of Table 4 of the GSTR-3B. Review the same, edit for any discrepancies you may find and then proceed to file GSTR-3B.

For detailed guide, visit our exclusive article for all the steps- ‘Step-by-step guide to use IMS’.

How Taxpayers Manage Invoices and Claim Input Tax Credit

Currently, taxpayers need to follow multiple steps to manage inward invoices, reconcile them, and claim ITC based on reconciled invoices. These steps are: 

1. Collecting records from purchase register: A recipient taxpayer must first collect all the records in their purchase register.  
2. Download GSTR-2A: Once suppliers file their GSTR-1 with all the supporting documents, the details of the inward invoices appear in the recipient taxpayer's GSTR-2A form. 
3. Download GSTR-2B: The portal generates GSTR-2B on the 14th of every month. Taxpayers also need to get this auto-generated ITC statement as part of their ITC claim. 
4. Reconciling GSTR-2A and purchase register: Once a taxpayer receives a pre-filled GSTR-2A form for a month, they compare the GSTR-2A with each entry in the purchase register records. 
5. Reconciling the taxpayer's GSTR-1 with the sales register helps the taxpayer verify the accuracy of outward supplies. 
6. Reconciling GSTR-3B and GSTR-1 - This step helps to calculate GST liability accurately. 
7. Matching GSTR-2B with GSTR-3B helps ensure proper utilisation of ITC while discharging the GST liability.

Large businesses also require reconciling e-way bills and invoices to avoid discrepancies and future compliance issues. 

Impact & resolutions for wrong actions on IMS

• Suppose the recipient wrongly rejected any document on IMS and also has reported the same and filed GSTR-3B, they can ask the supplier to report such document in GSTR-1A of same period or as amendment in GSTR-1 of subsequent period. It will enable the recipient to accept the document in the relevant period accordingly.
• As far as the impact on supplier for rejected invoice is concerned, the above action will not have increase supplier's liability.
• Recipients can reverse ITC claimed based on the amended credit note by accepting credit note raised by supplier on IMS. As soon as GSTR-2B is recomputed, ITC will be reduced with complete amended value.
• As far as the impact on supplier for rejected credit note is concerned, in the first instance, liability is added back in unsubmitted GSTR-3B. However, once supplier reports the credit note in GSTR-1A of same period/GSTR-1 of next period, their liability reduces to such extent.

Benefits of Invoice Management System

IMS offers multiple benefits to small and large businesses. 

• Precision audit: IMS will allow auditors to check each invoice thoroughly without requiring them to access multiple interfaces, helping to avoid audit errors. 
• Minimal error in GSTR-3B: The system offers a summary view of all inward invoices. So, taxpayers do not need to bother about missing out on any invoice before filing GSTR-3B. 
• Less complication with pending invoices: Pending invoices get carried forward to upcoming tax periods without affecting GSTR-2B and 3B. 
• Available for QRMP taxpayers: The new invoice management system will be helpful for small businesses and is also available for QRMP taxpayers. However, it will not automatically populate GSTR-2B for months 1 and 2 in a quarter. For them, GSTR-2B will be generated quarterly. 

Also Read-
FAQs on Invoice Management System (IMS) in GST 
Invoice Management System (IMS) Process Flow