Detailed Analysis About E Way Bill And Documents To Be Carried While Transporting Goods Under GST Law
1. Prologue
In order to bring in the tax net, all transactions of supply, the legislature enacted provisions of EWB for the movement of goods for supply to consumer, vendor, manufacturer and agent including the movement of goods to oneself to it’s branch and for inward supply from an Unregistered person for a value exceeding Rs 50,000/-.Notification No. 15/2018 – Central Tax New Delhi, the 23rd March 2018 G.S.R. The Central Government hereby appointed the 1st day of April, 2018, as the date from which the provisions of sub-rules (ii) other than clause (7) , (iii), (iv), (v), (vi) and (vii) of rule 2 of notification No. 12/2018 – Central Tax, dated the 7th March, 2018, to come into force.
2. ANALYSIS OF PROVISIONS
The e-Way Bill is an electronic document used to disclose the movement of goods in India.
This document can be generated by the transport companies carrying the goofs, the driver, the owner of the merchandise or the recipient of the goods before the movement begins. It is mandatory for the land, air, and maritime transport of merchandise but not motorized carriers such as hand cart m bullock cart etc.
The e-Way Bill document is composed of parts A and B.
Part A includes the issuer’s and recipient’s identification data (GSTIN); the document’s expiration date; merchandise origin and destination; value of merchandise and reason for transport.
Part B is comprised of data associated to the transport and logistics carrier.
The advantages of the e-Way Bill system are is to check of tax evasion and unrecorded the movement.
The Section 68 and Rule 55A and 138 are basic provisions, which enables the Government to provide for the requirement of documents to be carried by the transporter of goods. The Rule 138 ,138 A,138 B,138 C, and 138 D provide for procedure and rules in respect of EWB. The Sections 129 and 130 provide for consequences for not carrying documents required to be accompanied by a person in charge of a vehicle carrying goods of the value exceeding the threshold limit.
EWBs is initially implemented from 1st April, 2018 in case of inter-state movements.
E-way bill user manual has been issued by National Informatics Centre New Delhi, detailing out the manner in which e-way bill shall be generated and used for the movement of goods [Release Date: 19/07/21, Version: 1.5]:
Eway Bill System integrated with Vaahan System of Transport Department – E-Way Bill system is now integrated with Vaahan system of Transport Department. Vehicle (RC) number entered in e-way Bill will be verified with Vaahan data for its existence/correctness. If the vehicle number does not exist, then system will alert the user to check and correct, if required. If the vehicle (RC) number is correct as per the tax payer, then he can continue with generation of E-Way Bill. However, he needs to get the vehicle number updated in the vaahan database so that in future E-way Bill generation will not be affected.
https://docs.ewaybillgst.gov.in/Documents/usermanual_ewb.pdf
E-way Bill system integrated with Fastag and Vahan – E-way Bill System has been integrated with Vahan and Fastag. ‘Vahan’ provides for validation of vehicle details, while ‘Fastag’ provides data from automated toll plazas on the movement of vehicles. This provides for near real time tracking of vehicles and e-way bills. This ensures objective checking of vehicles by GST Officers. The movement of vehicles can be checked on the map by using mobile app. Data can be analysed for fraud detection. [Improvement made in May 2021].
The combined movement of goods by road and ship – Mode of transport Ship is now updated as Ship/Road cum Ship so that the user can enter Vehicle number in case the goods are moved by Road initially, and for the movement by Ship, the Bill of lading Number and date may be entered. This will help in availing the ODC benefits for the movement using Ship and facilitate updating of vehicle details as and when moved on Road – Improvement w.e.f. 1-6-2021.
HSN Code when material sent for job work – In the case of job work, e-Way Bill cannot be generated with only SAC code (99) for Services. Minimum one HSN code belonging to Goods is mandatory – Instruction dated 17-3-2021.
The registered person who causes the movement of goods or transporter can generate and accompany EWB voluntarily even if the value of goods is less than the threshold limit.
Registration on www.ewaybillgst.gov.in (Notification No. 9/2018-CT dated 23.01.2018) is required to generate EWB. Persons who are already registered under section 22 are required to register on this portal. Registration on the portal merely refers to creation of user login for use of the features on this portal.
Even a transporter who is not registered under section 22 may register on this portal for the limited purposes of updating information in Part B of EWB and is called ‘enrolment’. Such transporters are issued TRANSIN registration. Considering that TRANSIN is required only for purposes of updating EWB information, a Consignor or Consignee are also permitted to obtain TRANSIN.
It is advisable for every GSTIN-holder to obtain an enrolment with a TRANSIN ID. This will help in modifying information in Part B of the EWB if and when required, to obtain extension of validity in case of bona fide delay, and most importantly, reporting detention.
It appears that EWB is not required to be generated for supply by an unregistered person for supply to an unregistered person even if the consignment value is more than threshold limit. But a transporter may voluntarily generate EWB for the movement of goods by an unregistered person.
3. Limits:
Inter State movements of Goods:
EWB in case of Iner State Supply State(s) and Union
Territories Rs 50,000.
However, in respect of suppliers of handicraft goods by casual taxable person who enjoys exemption from Registration by a Government Notification No. 56/2018 Central Tax dt 23rd October, 2018, the person so exempted shall be liable to generate EWB for supply of such goods from one State or Union Territory to another State or Union Territory irrespective of value of goods supplied or moved.
Intra State Movements of Goods:
For intra state movement of goods, different States have set different limits for requirement of EWBs. Now , e-way bill is required for all inter-State movement of goods beyond threshold limits of respective State or UT.
Consignment Value Above Rs. 1,00,000
West Bengal; Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Bihar,
In case of Maharashtra, e-way bill for intra-State movement of goods is not required if value is less than Rs. one lakh. In Maharashtra ( for movement of Hank, Yarn, Fabric and Garments for job work, e-way bill is not required irrespective of value – Notification No. 15E/2018-State Tax, dated 29-6-2018).
Rajasthan(Movement of goods within Rajasthan State if value does not exceed Rs one lakh,( except tobacco and its products like pan masala, cigarettes, khaini, bidi w.e.f. 1-4-2021)
Consignment Value Above Rs. 50,000
Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, , Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Sikkim, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Puducherry Lakshadweep, Daman and Diu, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Chandigarh
State where e-way bill is not absolutely mandatory for intra-State movement of goods
In case of Gujarat, e-way bill is not required for intra-city movement of goods, irrespective of value. In case of intra-State movement of goods, e-way bill is required only for 19 goods, specified in Notification No. GSL/GST/RULE-138(14)/B.12 dated 11-4-2018. This list includes items like edible oils, oil seeds, iron and steel, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, ceramic tiles, brass parts, tobacco products, yarns, plywood, coal, timber, cement, marble, Kota stones, Naptha, LDO and tea.
4.Documents to be carried by a transporter while transporting Goods:
A transporter has to carry with him while transporting or making movements of goods to carry with him following documents:[Rule 138A]
1. The invoice or bill of supply or delivery challan ;and
2. A copy of EWB in Physical Form or EWB number in electric form or RFID Device enabled. The Commissioner shall get RFID readers installed at places where the verification of movement of goods is required to be carried out and verification of movement of vehicles shall be done through such device readers where the EWB has been mapped with the said device.
Otherwise copy of EWB is not required to be carried by transporter if movement of goods are by rail or air or vessel. But Commissioner may by Notification require transporter to carry Invoice or Bill of Supply or Bill of Entry and instead of that, carry the delivery challan , if goods are transported for reason other than supply
The Value to be determined as per Section 15 and shall include all taxes and cess but excluding exempt supply if dispatched in case of invoice is issued is issued for both for exempt and taxable supplies. It EWB can be generated on E way portal by transporter or supplier or recipient. For movement goods from one State or Union Territory to other State or Union Territory , for job work , irrespective of the value of the goods, EWB is mandatory to be generated. The generation of the E Way in one of the mode of furnishing information about movement of goods. The generated EWB is like gate pass for movement of goods beyond threshold limits. The EWB is to be generated by recipient if movement of goods is from an unregistered person exceeding threshold limit.
If transport is only upto 50 kms for transport to the transporter within the State or Union Territory for further transportation, no EWB details are required to be furnished in Part B of EWB-01 ,but part A is mandatory.
The EWB mandatory for movement of goods either by own vehicle or a hired vehicle or public conveyance by road or railways or by air or any vessel.
In case of transportation by non motorized vehicle , EWB is not required.
But in case of movement of goods by railways, the goods cannot be delivered unless the EWB is produced at the time of delivery by the consignee or recipient.
If EWB is not generated by the consignor or consignee and goods are handed over to a transporter for transport by road, information shall be furnished about the transporter and other information, upon which transporter will generate EWB.
A transport carrying goods without EWB valued more than threshold limit, his vehicle is liable to detained and seized and can be released on payment of penalties.
If in one vehicle total number of consignments, exceeds Rs 50,000 or Rs 1,00,000 or threshold limit applicable at relevant time, the transporter, except movement of goods by railways or air or sea (vessel) must generate EWB or may generate consolidated EWB on EWB in EWB 02.
If goods are dispatched in one vehicle and on the route goods are loaded on another vehicle, before the goods are loaded, on another vehicle, update is required of details of such transport on common portal.
But if the transport of goods are for further transport within 50 Km range , such updates are not required.
5. Assignment of E-Way bill number EBN:
The consignor or the recipient, who has furnished the information in Part A or the transporter, may assign the EBN to another registered or enrolled transporter for updating the information in Part B for further movement of the consignment. However, after the details of the conveyance have been updated by the transporter in Part B, the consignor or recipient, as the case may be, who has furnished the information in Part shall not be allowed to assign the EBN to another transporter.
The validity of the EWB may be extended within eight hours from the time of its expiry Notification No. 31/2019 – Central Tax dated 28-06-2019 w.e.f. 28.6.2019.
6. Validity:
The generated EWB is valid for 15 days and can be cancelled within twenty four hours before it is verified in transit by an authority.
Validity of EWBs are as follows:
An e-way bill or a consolidated e-way bill generated under this rule shall be valid from date of generation , for the distance, within the country, as under:
| Sl. No | Distance | Validity period |
| 1. | Up to 200 km. | One day in cases other than Over Dimensional Cargo or multimodal shipment in which at least one leg involves transport by ship |
| 2. | For every 200 km or part thereof thereafter | One additional day in cases other than Over Dimensional Cargo or multimodal shipment in which at least one leg involves transport by ship |
| 3. | Upto 20 km | One day in case of Over Dimensional Cargo or multimodal shipment in which at least one leg involves transport by ship |
| 4. | For every 20 km. or part thereof thereafter | One additional day in case of Over Dimensional Cargo or multimodal shipment in which at least one leg involves transport by ship. |
However, if the goods can not be delivered in exceptional cases or circumstances, the transporter can extend the validity period after updating details in part B of E Way Bil,l if required.
On generation of the EWB the person who has generated EWB shall communicate on common portal, the generation of EWB to the recipient or supplier or transporter, as the case may, the such communication shall be accepted by the recipient of information within seventy two hours of communication, otherwise , on his default to comment on acceptance or rejection, such communication, shall be deemed to have been accepted.
7. Exemptions :
However, not all movements of goods are required to be accompanied by EWB
The following movement of goods can be without EWB irrespective of the value of the goods:
1. Following class of goods are exempted from generation of EWB.
2. Liquefied petroleum gas for supply to household and non domestic category customers;
3. Kerosene under Public Distribution Scheme;
4. Post Baggage by Department of Posts;
5. Natured coloured pearls and precious and semi-precious stones; precious metal and metal clad with precious metal.
6. Jewellery, goldsmith’s and silversmith’s ware and other such articles.
7. Currency;
8. Used personal and household effects;
9. Coral and unworked Coral
10. Transport of goods on non motorized vehicles such as bullock cart or animal cart or hand cart;
11. Transport of goods from customs port, air port, air cargo complex, and land customs station to an inland container depot or container freight station for clearance by Customs.
12. Exempted by respective goods by respective States specifically;
13. Goods which are specified in Central Notification(Rate) 2/2017 (Exempted Goods) ;
14. Alcoholic liquor for human consumption and enumerated petroleum products earmarked for State domain for sales tax under E 54 of List II of Sch. VII of Constitution.
15. Schedule III goods;
16. Goods under customs bond from Customs Stations etc;
17. Under Customs Supervision or Seal;
18. Goods transported which are trasnsit goods from or to Nepal or Bhutan;
19. Goods exempted under Notification 7/2017 such as Exemption from CGST supplies by CSD to Unit Run Canteens and supplies by CSD / Unit Run Canteens to authorised customers notified under section 11 (1) and section 55 CSD.
20. Goods movement by defence formation under Minstry of Defence as consignor or consignee;
21. Rail Transport of goods by Central Government or State Government or Local Authority;
22. Empty Cargo Containers;
23. Movement of goods with delivery challan to and fro weighbridge upto 20 Kms;
24. Empty Liquefied Gas Cylinders.
Where goods move from a DTA unit to a SEZ unit or vice versa located in the same State, there is no requirement to generate an e-way bill, if the same has been exempted under rule138(14)(d) of the CGST Rules.- Circular No. 47/21/2018-GST dated 08.06.2018.
8. RESTRICTIONS ON GENERATION OF EWBS [Rule 138E]
According to Rule 138E (a) and (b) of the CGST Rules, 2017, the e-way bill (EWB) generation facility of a taxpayer will be restricted, if the taxpayer fails to file their Form GSTR-3B returns / Form GST CMP-08 statement, for two tax periods or more. The system of blocking e-way billing was implemented from the 2nd of December 2019.The provisions are as under:
i) a person paying tax under section 10, or availing the benefit of notification of the Government of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue No. 02/2019– Central Tax (Rate) regarding about the availability of a Composition Scheme for Suppliers of Services (or Mixed Suppliers) with a Tax Rate of 6% (3% CGST +3% SGST) having an Annual Turnover in the preceding Financial Year up to Rs 50 lakhs., has not furnished the statement in FORM GST CMP 08 for two consecutive quarters; or;
ii) a person other than a person specified in clause (a), has not furnished the returns for a consecutive period of two tax periods;
-
- person other than a person specified in clause (i), has not furnished the statement of outward supplies for any two months or quarters, as the case may be;
- a person, whose registration has been suspended under the provisions of sub-rule (1) or sub-rule (2) or sub-rule (2A) of rule 21A.
The jurisdictional Commissioner however has power to relax this restrictions on an application being made on certain terms and conditions after hearing the applicant. Hence, all taxable persons who are having movement of goods for delivery should ensure the compliance of filing their respective statements and returns as provided in the Act.
Once the Return-3B is filed in the GST Common Portal, the blocked GSTIN will get automatically updated as ‘Unblocked’ within a day in the E-Waybill system and the tax payer can continue with e-way bill generation.
9. Suspension and Resumption of Blocking of E-Way Bill (EWB) Generation Facility.
As per Advisory dt 04/10/2021
1. The blocking of EWB generation facility had been temporarily suspended by Government on account of Covid pandemic.
2. The blocking of EWB generation facility has now resumed on the EWB portal for all the taxpayers. Going forward, from the tax period August, 2021 onwards, the System will periodically check the status of returns filed in Form GSTR-3B or the statements filed in Form GST CMP-08 as per the regular procedure followed before pandemic, and block the generation of EWBs as per rule.
3. To avail EWB generation facility on EWB Portal on continuous basis, concerned person are, advised to file your pending GSTR 3B returns/ CMP-08 Statement on regular basis.
4. For details of blocking and unblocking EWB, following link is to be followed.
https://tutorial.gst.gov.in/userguide/returns/index.htm#t=FAQs_unblockingewaybill.htm
Mode of transport Ship is now updated as Ship / Road cum Ship so that the user can enter Vehicle number in case the goods are moved by Road initially, and for movement by Ship, the Bill of lading Number and date may be entered. This will help in availing the ODC benefits for movement using Ship and facilitate updating of vehicle details as and when moved on Road.
Suspended GSTIN as supplier cannot generate e-way bill. However, the Suspended GSTIN as recipient or as transporter can get the e-way bill generated.
10. CONSEQUENCES OF TRANSPORTING GOODS BEYOND THRESHOLD LIMIT WITHOUT GENERATING EWB.
What are the consequences are enumerated in Section 129,130 and 131 and Rules138,138A,138B and 138 C,, 138D , 138E ,140 and 141.
As we know that EWB is to be generated and accompanied with transporter of goods vehicle , it is to be assumed that it is mandatory provision, because consequences of non compliance are narrated in S 129 and S 130.
Section 68 provides for requirement of such documents and such devices as may be prescribed. The Rule 138A prescribes that the person-in-charge of vehicle shall carry :
1. the invoice or bill of supply or delivery challan ;and
2. a copy of e-way bill in physical form or e-way bill number on electronic form or mapped to a RFID Device enabled on the conveyance , except movement of goods by rail or air or vessel.
An authorised proper officer may intercept any conveyance to verify the e-way bill in physical form or electronic form for all interstate or intra state movement of goods.
The requirement of carrying documents applies to very transport of goods since Rule 55A is inserted with effect from 25.1.2018 providing for mandatory carrying of Tax Invoice or Bill of Supply when EWB is not required to be carried with the vehicle under this rule. Hence, every supply should accompany such documents u/r 46A or 49 issued by a registered person as the case may be.So consequences of Section 129 can be invoked if not complied.
If any person transports any goods in contravention of provisions of the Act or Rules all such goods and conveyance used as a means of transport shall be liable to detention or seizure.
The CBIC has issued a circular being Circular Nos. 41/15/2018-GST dated 13.04.2018 and 49/23/2018-GST dated 21.06.2018 where in procedure for inspection ,seizure and confiscation is explained in detail and it is binding on the officers who intercept a vehicle. All readers are advised to thoroughly to go through this Circular which explains in lucid manner procedure for Inspection of documents when goods are under transit and steps to be taken by authorities and person in charge of a vehicle.
As per Section 129 any person transports any goods or stores any goods while they are in transit in contravention of the provisions of the Act or the rules made there under, all such goods and conveyance used as a means of transport for carrying the said goods and documents relating to such goods and conveyance shall be liable to detention or seizure .This is not restricted to provide for carrying EWB only, all sets of documents are required to accompany transport of goods beyond respective threshold limits.
They shall be released only:
Where the owner of the goods comes forward for payment of such penalty
- on payment of penalty equal to two hundred per cent of the tax payable on such goods and, in case of exempted goods, on payment of an amount equal to two per cent. of the value of goods or twenty-five thousand rupees, whichever is less.
Where the owner of the goods does not come forward for payment of such penalty:
(b) on payment of penalty equal to fifty per cent of the value of the goods or two hundred per cent. of the tax payable on such goods, whichever is higher, and in case of exempted goods, on payment of an amount equal to five per cent. of the value of goods or twenty-five thousand rupees, whichever is less, [ Substituted (with effect from a date yet to be notified) by s. 117(i) of the Finance Act, 2021 (13 of 2021).] When the rate of tax on goods is more than 25% , it is onerous on the part of the carrier of the goods to pay penalty equal to twice the amount of tax which can be more than 50 % of value of goods. Only when rate of tax is less than 25% then of penalty at 50 % of value of goods will be ceiling. Practically owner of the goods is beneficial for settlement of interruption who has to pay only twice the amount. No transporter will opt for second option but recipient may come forward to pay penalty if the owner of the goods is not approaching in case of FOB deliveries.
(c) upon furnishing a security equivalent to the amount payable under clause (a) or clause (b) in such form and manner as may be prescribed. This is provided as Bank Guarantee of the amount payable u/e 140.
11. Blocked ITC u/s 17(5).
Important Note : When tax element for violation is excluded from being recovered u/s 129 under Finance Act 2021, the ITC block u/s 17(5)(i) is not permissible and hence tax paid in GSTR 3B is available for credit to recipient.
The proper officer detaining or seizing goods or conveyance shall issue a notice within seven days of such detention or seizure, specifying the penalty payable, and thereafter, pass an order within a period of seven days from the date of service of such notice, for payment of penalty .
No penalty shall be determined under without giving the person concerned an opportunity of being heard.
In section 129(4) for levying tax , interest and penalty , hearing of the person concerned was required .Now no hearing is required for levying tax and interest and hearing on only penalty is provided.
Where the person transporting any goods or the owner of such goods fails to pay the amount of penalty within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the copy of the order passed the goods or conveyance so detained or seized shall be liable to be sold or disposed of to recover the penalty payable under sub- .Now only penalty is required to be deposited and not tax as earlier both were required to be deposited for release of goods
However, the vehicle /conveyance shall be released on payment by the transporter of penalty or one lakh rupees, whichever is less. Transport should avoid carrying goods beyond threshold limit without proper documents, including EWB.
If the detained or seized goods are perishable or hazardous in nature or are likely to depreciate in value with passage of time, the said period of fifteen days may be reduced by the proper officer.
12. Confiscation of goods or conveyances and levy of penalty.- Section 130
If a any person-
(i) supplies or receives any goods in contravention of any of the provisions of this Act or the rules made thereunder with intent to evade payment of tax; or
(ii) uses any conveyance as a means of transport for carriage of goods in contravention of the provisions of this Act or the rules made there under unless the owner of the conveyance proves that it was so used without the knowledge or connivance of the owner himself, his agent, if any, and the person in charge of the conveyance, then, all such goods or conveyances shall be liable to confiscation and the person shall be liable to penalty under section 122.
Whenever confiscation of any goods or conveyance is authorised by this Act, the officer adjudging it shall give to the owner of the goods an option to pay in lieu of confiscation, such fine as the said officer thinks fit:
Fine leviable shall not exceed the market value of the goods confiscated, less the tax chargeable thereon:
The aggregate of such fine and penalty leviable shall not be less than the penalty equal to hundred per cent. of the tax payable on such goods
Where any such conveyance is used for the carriage of the goods or passengers for hire, the owner of the conveyance shall be given an option to pay in lieu of the confiscation of the conveyance a fine equal to the tax payable on the goods being transported thereon.
Section 130(3) has been omitted there by meaning that the person shall not be liable for payment of tax , penalty and charges payable in respect of such goods once he has paid any fine in lieu of confiscation.
No order for confiscation of goods or conveyance or for imposition of penalty shall be issued without giving the person an opportunity of being heard.
Where any goods or conveyance are confiscated under this Act, the title of such goods or conveyance shall thereupon vest in the Government.
The proper officer adjudging confiscation shall take and hold possession of the things confiscated and every officer of Police, on the requisition of such proper officer, shall assist him in taking and holding such possession.
The proper officer may, after satisfying himself that the confiscated goods or conveyance are not required in any other proceedings under this Act and after giving reasonable time not exceeding three months to pay fine in lieu of confiscation, dispose of such goods or conveyance and deposit the sale proceeds thereof with the Government.
Confiscation or penalty not to interfere with other punishments. – Section 131.
Without prejudice to the provisions contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, (2 of 1974.) no confiscation made or penalty imposed under the provisions of this Act or the rules made there under shall prevent the infliction of any other punishment to which the person affected thereby is liable under the provisions of this Act or under any other law for the time being in force.
13. Clarifications:
Circular No.41/15/2018 dt. 13.04.2018, an E-way bill number (EBN) may be available with the person in charge of the conveyance in the form of a printout, SMS or it may be written on an invoice. All these forms of having an e-way bill are valid. However, this requirement of EWB is not applicable in case of movement of goods by rail or by air or vessel.
Circular No. 47/21/2018-GST F. No. CBEC- 20/16/03/2017-GST dt 8.6.2018 has clarified that Whether e-way bill is required in the following cases- (i) Where goods transit through another State while moving from one area in a State to another area in the same State it may be noted that e-way bill generation is not dependent on whether a supply is interState or not, but on whether the movement of goods is inter-State or not. Therefore, if the goods transit through a second State while moving from one place in a State to another place in the same State, an e-way bill is required to be generated. (ii) Where goods move from a DTA unit to a SEZ unit or vice versa located in the same State. (ii) Where goods move from a DTA unit to a SEZ unit or vice versa located in the same State, there is no requirement to generate an eway bill, if the same has been exempted under rule 138(14)(d) of the CGST Rules.
By Notification No.27/2018 – Central Tax New Delhi, the 13 th June, 2018 G.S.R….(E).- the Central Government hereby notified the goods or the class of goods mentioned in the Schedule below, which shall, as soon as may be after its seizure under sub-section (2) of section 67 of the said Act, be disposed of by the proper officer, having regard to the perishable or hazardous nature, depreciation in value with the passage of time, constraints of storage space or any other relevant considerations of the said goods.
Schedule
(1) Salt and hygroscopic substances
(2) Raw (wet and salted) hides and skins
(3) Newspapers and periodicals (4) Menthol, Camphor, Saffron
(5) Re-fills for ball-point pens
(6) Lighter fuel, including lighters with gas, not having arrangement for refilling
(7) Cells, batteries and rechargeable batteries
(8) Petroleum Products
(9) Dangerous drugs and psychotropic substances
(10) Bulk drugs and chemicals falling under Section VI of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 (51 of 1975)
(11) Pharmaceutical products falling within Chapter 30 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 (51 of 1975)
(12) Fireworks
(13) Red Sander
(14) Sandalwood
(15) All taxable goods falling within Chapters 1 to 24 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 (51 of 1975)
(16) All unclaimed/abandoned goods which are liable to rapid depreciation in value on account of fast change in technology or new models etc.
(17) Any goods seized by the proper officer under section 67 of the said Act, which are to be provisionally released under sub-section (6) of section 67 of the said Act, but provisional release has not been taken by the concerned person within a period of one month from the date of execution of the bond for provisional release.
Circular No. 61/35/2018-GST Page 1 of 2 CBEC-20/13/01/2018-GST dt 4th Sept 2018 In case the consignee/ recipient taxpayer stores his goods in the godown of the transporter, then the transporter’s godown has to be declared as an additional place of business by the recipient taxpayer. In such cases, mere declaration by the recipient taxpayer to this effect with the concurrence of the transporter in the said declaration will suffice. Where the transporter’s godown has been declared as the additional place of business by the recipient taxpayer, the transportation under the e-way bill shall be deemed to be concluded once the goods have reached the transporter’s godown (recipient taxpayer’ additional place of business). Hence, e-way bill validity in such cases will not be required to be extended.
Circular No. 64/38/2018-GST Page 1 of 3 CBEC/20/16/03/2017-GST Dated the 14th September, 2018 In case a consignment of goods is accompanied with an invoice or any other specified document and also an e-way bill, proceedings under section 129 of the CGST Act may not be initiated, inter alia, in the following situations:
a) Spelling mistakes in the name of the consignor or the consignee but the GSTIN, wherever applicable, is correct;
b) Error in the pin-code but the address of the consignor and the consignee mentioned is correct, subject to the condition that the error in the PIN code should not have the effect of increasing the validity period of the e-way bill;
c) Error in the address of the consignee to the extent that the locality and other details of the consignee are correct;
d) Error in one or two digits of the document number mentioned in the e-way bill; Circular No. 64/38/2018-GST Page 3 of 3
e) Error in 4 or 6 digit level of HSN where the first 2 digits of HSN are correct and the rate of tax mentioned is correct;
f) Error in one or two digits/characters of the vehicle number.
In case of the above situations, penalty to the tune of Rs. 500/- each under section 125 of the CGST Act and the respective State GST Act should be imposed (Rs.1000/- under the IGST Act) in FORM GST DRC-07 for every consignment. A record of all such consignments where proceedings under section 129 of the CGST Act have not been invoked in view of the situations listed in paragraph 5 above shall be sent by the proper officer to his controlling officer on a weekly basis.
Release Notes: 01/06/2021
With reference Notification 15/2021-CT dated 18.05.2021, to blocking of GSTIN for e-Way Bill generation is now considered only for the defaulting Supplier GSTIN and not for the defaulting Recipient or Transporter GSTIN.
Further Advisory for Taxpayers regarding Generation of EWB where the principal supply is Supply of services. Dt 16/09/2021.
In cases where along with the principal supply of service, movement of some goods is also involved, e-way bill may be generated. Such situations may arise in cases of supply of services like printing services, works contract services, catering services, pandal or shamiana services, etc. In such cases, e-way bill may be generated by entering the details of HSN code of the goods, along with SAC (Service Accounting Code) of services involved.
However, inter-State movement must follow the threshold of Rs. 50,000 prescribed under the CGST Act and registered persons in any State where a relaxation is granted cannot rely on the State threshold for inter-state movement.
in case of imported goods, a copy of the bill of entry filed by the importer ofsuch goods and shall indicate the number and date of the bill of entry in Part A. Notification No. 39/2018 – Central Tax dated 04-09-2018
As per Rule wef 23.1.2018
“55A. Tax Invoice or bill of supply to accompany transport of goods.- The person-in-charge of the conveyance shall carry a copy of the tax invoice or the bill of supply issued in accordance with the provisions of rules 46, 46A or 49 in a case where such person is not required to carry an e-way bill under these rules.”;
14. Key Statistics from April 2018 to March 2021
Number of E-Waybills 180 Crores
Number of Vehicles 2.2 Crores
Number of Users 37.6 Lakhs
Number of Consignors 35 Lakhs
Number of Consignees 77 Lakhs
Number of Transporters 0.92 Lakhs
Total Verifications of e-Way Bill by Officers 7 Crores
Number of Officers 0.22 Lakhs
15. Judgments.
I The question of classification can not be ground for non compliance of documents to be accompanied by transporters and hence S 129 is not attracted.
Gujarat High Court in SYNERGY FERTICHEM PVT. LTD.’s case held that the detention and seizure of goods on classification ground cannot be justified and the process of detention of the goods cannot be resorted to when the dispute is bona fide especially concerning the exigibility of tax and, more particularly, the rate of that tax. Judgment of Kerala High Court in the case of N.V.K. Mohammed Sulthan Rawtger & Sons Dindigul, Tamil Nadu ., reported in (2019) 61 GSTR 307-2018-VIL-502-KER, wherein a learned Single Judge of the Kerala High Court has taken similar view Referred to in WP(C).No.5384 OF 2020(W) in case M/S.HINDUSTAN COCA COLA PRIVATE LIMITED, vs ASSISTANT STATE TAX OFFICER
II On account of non-extension of the validity of the e-way bill by petitioner or the auto trolley driver, no presumption can be drawn that there was an intention to evade tax. It was the duty of 2nd respondent to consider the explanation offered by petitioner as to why the goods could not have been delivered during the validity of the e-way bill Telangana High Court DB M/S SATYAM SHIVAM PAPERS PVT. LTD. vs Asst. Commissioner St And 4 Others on 2 June, 2021 in Writ Petition No.9688 of 2020
The under valuation of goods in the invoice could not be a ground for the detention of the goods and vehicle u/s129 of the CGST Act. r/w Rule 138 of CGST Rules. Accordingly, the order is quashed, and Authorities were directed to release the goods.
IV Detention of goods
Detention of goods on the ground of under- valuation of goods
Held: The under valuation of goods in the invoice could not be a ground for the detention of the goods and vehicle u/s129 of the CGST Act. r/w Rule 138 of CGST Rules. Accordingly, the order is quashed, and Authorities were directed to release the goods. [K.P. SUGANDH LIMITED V. COMMISSIONER, SGST, 2020-VIL-142- CHG]
Detention of goods on the ground of wrong classification of goods
The High Court quashed detention order on the ground that this was a bona-fide case of dispute in the classification of goods and directed release of goods. [DAILY FRESH FRUITS INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED V. COMMISSIONER, SGST, 2020-VIL-115- KER; AND HINDUSTAN COCA COLA PRIVATE LIMITED V. ASSISTANT STATE TAX OFFICER, SGST, 2020-VIL-144-KER]
Detention of goods on the ground that the vehicle took a different route or reached wrong destination.
Held: The High Court observed that allegation of ‘wrong destination’ or that the driver has taken a different route is not a ground to detain the vehicle carrying the goods or levy tax or penalty. It was held that the fact that the vehicle was found at another place does not automatically lead to any presumption that there was an intention of evasion of tax. The amount collected was directed to be refunded with interest @ 6%. [COMMERCIAL STEEL COMPANY V. ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF STATE TAX, 2020-VIL- 116-TEL]
Supply of new vehicle by dealer terminated on its purchase and its subsequent movement was not the transaction of supply. The car had come into possession of purchaser and used for some distance which indicated that it was “used personal effect”. There was no taxable transaction for movement of the car, detention of car was illegal. The provisions of Section 129 of the SGST Act were not attracted [KUN MOTOR CO. PVT. LTD. VERSUS ASSISTANT STATE TAX OFFICER, KERALA STATE GST DEPARTMENT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM- 2019 (21) G.S.T.L. 3 (KER.)].
The power of detention under Section 129 is to be exercised only in cases where a transportation of goods is seen to be in contravention of the provisions of the Act and Rules and not simply because a document relevant for assessment does not contain details of tax payment. As per the statutory provisions applicable to the instant case, a person transporting goods is obliged to carry only the documents enumerated in Rule 138(A) of GST Rules, the said Rule clearly indicates that the e-way bill has to be in FORM GST EWB-01, and in that format, there is no field wherein the transporter is required to indicate the tax amount payable in respect of the goods transported. If the statutorily prescribed form does not contain a field for entering the details of the tax payable in the e-way bill, then the non-mentioning of the tax amount cannot be seen as an act in contravention of the rules. [M.S STEEL AND PIPES V. ASST. STATE TAX OFFICER, 2020 SCC ONLINE KER 3214, DECIDED ON 12-08-2020]
16. Appeals:
In the context of filing the first appeals (Commissioner), presently, Sec. 107(6) of the CGST Act, 2017 provides a pre-deposit of 10% of the disputed tax amount for filing the appeal and staying the recovery. However, an amendment has been made in the context of the orders passed levying penalty u/s 129(3) for E-way bill violations to provide that the quantum of the pre-deposit in such cases shall be equal to 25% of the penalty ordered to be paid w e f 1.1.2022.
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