GST rule change: From April 2025, taxpayers need to upload e-invoices within 30 days of issuance

GST rules: The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has announced an update to the e-invoicing process for businesses. Effective April 1, 2025, taxpayers with an annual aggregate turnover (AATO) of Rs 10 crore and above will now be mandated to upload e-invoices to the Invoice Registration Portal (IRP) within 30 days from the date of invoice issuance.

Previously, this 30-day requirement only applied to businesses with an AATO of Rs 100 crore or more. However, beginning in April 2025, this regulation will extend to a larger group of taxpayers, including those with smaller businesses. This will be applicable to individuals with an Aggregate Annual Turnover (AATO) exceeding Rs 10 crore, resulting in a significantly larger group of GST taxpayers being affected.

According to GST regulations, suppliers and sellers with a designated annual aggregate turnover (AATO) must create an electronic invoice (e-invoice) and post it on the IRP portal for the buyer to utilize for input tax credit. Upon uploading the invoice, an invoice reference number (IRN) and a QR code will be generated.

"From 1st April 2025, taxpayers with an AATO of Rs 10 crore and above would not be allowed to report (means upload in portal) e-invoices older than 30 days from the date of reporting on IRP portals. This restriction would apply to all document types (Invoices/Credit Notes/Debit Notes) for which an IRN is to be generated," said GSTN in an advisory dated November 5, 2024.

What happens after the 30-day deadline

According to GSTN, any e-invoice not uploaded within 30 days will be automatically rejected by the IRP.

In practical terms, this means that an invoice dated April 1, 2025, must be uploaded by April 30, 2025. Submissions made after this deadline will not be accepted by the system.

"If an invoice is dated 1st April 2025, it cannot be reported after 30th April 2025. The validation built into the invoice registration portals (IRP) would disallow the user from reporting (i.e. uploading) the e-invoice after the 30-day window. Hence, it is essential for taxpayers to ensure that they report the e-invoice within the 30-day window provided by the new time limit," said GSTN in its advisory.

Failure to promptly upload e-invoices can result in various complications.

For sellers, delayed submission may hinder timely tax payments. Likewise, buyers might encounter challenges in claiming input tax credits, affecting their refund eligibility.

Even in GST-exempt scenarios where no tax or input credit is applicable, timely uploads are essential for proper record-keeping and account reconciliation purposes.