Complete Provisions and Procedures of E-Way Bill- Under GST

Ramesh Chandra Jena

In the pre-GST era, there was no concept of electronic way bill. A manual form of way bill was used under earlier VAT laws in most of the States. An electronic way bill is a physical transport document for transport of goods, which is incorporated under GST laws require for movement of goods, if the value of GST paid goods is more than Rs.50,000/- through road, railways, airways and vessels except for certain specified goods as notified by the Government. The person in charge of a conveyance carrying any GST paid goods shall carry Tax invoice along with e-way bill and present to the Check post authority at entry point of any States or Union territory for scrutiny of Tax paid goods and also facilitates the transit checking of goods by the GST officer.

Advantages of E-Way Bill:

(i) Easy access to e-way bill portal by the supplier, recipient and transporter,

(ii) Unique single document valid for the across the country,

(iii) Quick generation and cancellation of e-way bill,

(iv) To control tax evasion in the Country,

(v) To ensure there is no pilferages of goods in transit, no mismatch of input tax credit.

(vi) Hassle free movement of goods throughout the country,

(vii) Tracking of the movement of goods with RFID mapped with vehicle,

(viii) Provisions allowed for consolidation and extension of validity of e-way bill,

(ix) Easier for transit checking by the authorised officer.

Statutory provision of E-Way Bill:

Rule 138 of the CGST Rules, 2017 before its amendment stated that till such time an e-way bill system is developed and approved by the Council, the Government may, by notification, specify the documents that the person in charge of a conveyance carrying any goods in transit shall carry the said documents. Provisions with regard to Electronic Way Bill Rules has been notified on 30^th August’2017 vide Notification No. 27/2017 – Central Tax, dated 30.08.2017 whereunder the provisions for providing for providing information to be furnished prior to commencement of movement of goods and generation of e-way bill were incorporated by amending Rule 138 and inserting new Rules from 138A to 138D in the CGST Rules, 2017. But the implementation of E-way bill was deferred by the GST Council meeting. Thereafter, as per decision of the GST Council, the Central Government has decided to introduce e-way bill for inter-State movement of goods w.e.f 1-04-2018 vide Notified No.12/2018-C.T., dated 7-03-2018. For intra-State implementation of E-way bill is to be made effective from 15th April’2018 in a phased manner shall be completed by 1st June’2018. For this purpose, States are to be divided into 4 lots to execute this phase roll out.

Requirement of E-Way Bill:

As mentioned above, e-way bill is required where the value of goods of a consignment is more than Rs.50,000/- except for certain specified goods for examples: goods meant for Job work, goods meant for export with Customs seal from factory to Port, airport, ICD, imported goods , goods sent on approval basis, exhibition or fairs purposes , removal for testing , removal from factory to weighbridge for weighment of goods and back to factory up to 20 kms., inward supply from unregistered person, SKD / CKD , Sales return, For own use and exempted goods.

Step to take registration on E-way Bill portal:

(i) E.way bill portal for registration www.ewaygst.gov.in

(ii) Click on “ E-Way Bill Registration”

(iii) Enter the GSTIN of the Registered Taxpayer as the consignor or the consignee and then enter the Captcha Code, then Click on “Go” tab, then, Click on Send OTP and verify the same, after checking the auto-filled details.

(iv) Enter the OTP received on the registered mobile number and verify the same by clicking on the “verify OTP” button”.

(v) Create a “New User id and password” by your own choice. The user id should be of at least 8 characters without any special characters. Once all the details are provided correctly, system validates automatically and User id and password will be accepted in the system.

Format and details to be filled in e-way bill:

Format of e-way Bill has two parts and Format details as under:

The information shall be furnished in Part -A of FORM GST WEB-01:

A.1 – GSTIN of Supplier

A.2- GSTIN of Recipient

A.3-Place of Delivery

A.4-Document Number

A.5-Document Date

A.6- Value of Goods

A.7- HSN Code

A.8-Reason for Transportation

The information shall be furnished in Part -B of FORM GST WEB-01:

B.1-Vehicle number for Road

B.2-Transport Document Number

How to generate E-Way Bill:

(1) Rule 138 (1) of the CGST Rules, stated that information to be furnished prior to commencement of movement of goods and generation of e-way bill, every registered person, who requiring movement of goods of consignment shall furnish electronically on the E-way bill Portal before commencement of movement of goods relating (i) in relation to a supply; or (ii) for reasons other than supply; or (iii) due to inward supply from an unregistered person, For its generation, the registered person is required to furnish information relating to the said goods in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01, electronically, on the E-way Bill portal and shall be mapped to a Radio Frequency Identification Device embedded on to the conveyance.

(2) Information in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 can also be furnished by a transporter, on an authorisation received from the registered person. Similarly, where the goods are to be transported are supplied through an e-commerce operator or a courier agency, on an authorisation received from the consignee, the information in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 may be furnished by such e-commerce operator or courier agency.

(3)Where the goods are transported by the registered person as a consignor or the recipient of supply as the consignee, whether in his own conveyance or a hired one or by railways or by air or by vessel or a public conveyance, by road, after furnishing information in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01 may generate the e-way bill in FORM GST EWB-01

(4)Where the e-way bill is not generated by registered person or recipient and the goods are handed to a transporter for transportation by road, the registered person shall furnish the information relating to the transporter in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01 on the E-way Bill portal and the e-Way Bill shall be generated by the transporter on the said portal on the basis of the information furnished by the registered person in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 except in case of transportation of goods by railways, air and vessel.

(5)Where the goods are supplied by an unregistered supplier to a recipient who is registered, the movement shall be said to be caused by such recipient if the recipient is known at the time of commencement of the movement of goods. The responsibility for generation of e-way bill will be on such recipient who would be deemed to be a supplier for this purpose.

(6) Where the goods are transported by railways or by air or by vessel, information in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 shall be furnished by the consignor or the recipient of the supply as consignee. Moreover, where the goods are transported by railways, the railways shall not deliver the goods unless the e-way bill is produced at the time of delivery.

(7) Where the goods are transported by railways or by air or vessel, information in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01 will also be submitted by the registered person generating WEB.

(8) Part B of FORM GST WEB-01 is required to be filled compulsorily either by registered supplier / recipient or transporter in case of movement of goods by Road except details of conveyance not required to be filed in case transport is for a distance up to 50 Kilometers to and fro from Transporters premises.

(9) Movement of goods on account of Bill-To-Ship-To supply will be handled through the capturing of place of despatch in PART-A of e-way bill.

When to generate E-Way Bill:

The E-way has to be generated before movement of GST paid goods and due to inward supply from unregistered person where GST is to be paid under reverse charge. In case of movement of goods by railways, airways and waterways, the e-way bill can be generated even after commencement of movement of goods.

Who is responsible for generating E-Way Bill:

(1) The prime responsibility of generation of E-way Bill is that of registered supplier because he is in known of entire details of supplying along with transport details. However, a registered recipient can also generate E.way Bill on the basis of details provided by the supplier. The third person who can generate E-way Bill is the Transporter who can generate it on the basis of information supplied by the supplier / recipient as the case may be. Transporter is also liable to issue a consolidated E-way Bill in case where multiple consignments are intended to be transported in one conveyance. Further, in case of supplies by e-commerce operator, such operator can also generate e-way Bill.

(2) Since, public conveyance has also been included as a mode of transport and the responsibility of generating e-way bill in case of movement of goods by public transport would be that of the consignor or consignee.

(3) Railway has been exempted from generation and carrying of e-way bill with the condition that without the production of e-way bill, railways will not deliver the goods to the recipient. But railways are required to carry invoice or delivery challan, etc.

(4) In case of movement of goods on account of job work, the registered job worker can also generate e-way bill.

Provisions of Rule 138 of CGST Rules related to E-Way Bills for taking action by various persons:

In terms of Rule 138 of the CGST Rules, 2017, the action need to be taken by the supplier, recipient or transporter of goods or e-commerce operator is summarized in Table as under:

Compulsory generation of E.way bill:

The minimum consignment value limit prescribed in Rules for issuance of E-Way Bill is Rs.50,000/-. However, where goods are sent by a principal located in one State or Union territory to a job worker located in any other State or Union territory, the e-way bill shall be generated either by the principal or the job worker, if registered, irrespective of the value of the consignment.

A person who has been exempted from registration under (i) and (ii) of Section 24 of the CGST Act, and making inter-state movement of handicraft goods shall generate E-way bill irrespective of the value of the consignment.

Voluntary generation of E-way bill:

A registered person or transporter has option to generate e-way bill even in those cases where value of goods is less than Rs.50,000/-. Like that an unregistered person who is causing movement of goods either in his own conveyance or a hired one or through a transporter, has an option, generate the e-way bill in FORM GST EWB-01 on the common portal. Similarly, where the goods are transported for a distance of less than 10 kilometers within the State or Union territory from the place of business of the consignor to the place of business of the transporter may not furnish the details of conveyance in Part B FORM GST EWB-01.

Meaning of Consignment value for e-way bill:

Value for the purpose of e-way bill shall be considered as consignment value, which is determined under Section 15 of the CGST Act and it includes the amount of CGST, SGST, UTGST, IGST and Cess charged in tax invoice, as the case may be but excludes value of exempted goods where the invoice is issued in respect of both exempted and taxable supply.

Change of Transporter and E-Way Provisions:

Further, it has been permitted the consignor / recipient or the transporter to assign the e-way bill number to another registered or enrolled transporter for updating the information in Part-B of FORM GST WEB-01 for further movement of consignment . However, this facility cannot be exercise by consignor / recipient once the details of the conveyance have been updated by the transporter in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01.

Procedure to follow after furnishing information for generation of E-way bill:

(1) Unique EBN number: On furnishing details in FORM GST EWB-01 on e-way bill portal, thereby e-way bill shall generate and a unique e-way bill number (EBN) shall be available to the supplier, the recipient and the transporter on e-way bill portal. However, this unique number shall be valid for a period of fifteen days updation of Part B of FORM GST EWB-01.

(2) Transshipment of goods in transit: Any transporter transferring goods one conveyance to another in the course of transit shall, before such transfer and further movement of goods, update the details of conveyance in the e-waybill on e-way bill portal in FORM GST EWB-01, before such transfer of goods in another carrier, a new-e-way bill shall generate for further movement. If the transported distance is less than 10 kilometers in that case updating of conveyance in the e-way bill may not be required.

(3) Consolidated e-way bill: After e-way bill has been generated and where there are multiple consignments are intended to be transported in one conveyance, the transporter may indicate the serial number of e-way bill generated in respect of each such consignment and shall generate a consolidated e-way bill in FORM GST EWB-02 prior to the movement of goods.

(4) Responsibility of Transporter:- In cases , where the consignor or the consignee has not generated FORM GST EWB-01 even when the value of goods carried in the conveyance is more than Rs.50,000/- , the transporter shall generate FORM GST EWB-01 on the basis of invoice / delivery challan , etc. and also generate a consolidated e-way bill in FORM GST EWB-02 , prior to movement of goods. Thus, responsibility is lies with the transporter to generate E-way Bill in such cases.

(5) Intimation to the Supplier / recipient: The details of information furnished in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 shall be made available to the registered supplier / recipient on E-Way Bill portal, for use the same for furnishing return in FORM GSTR-1. In case of unregistered supplier, the information would be furnished either by phone or e-mail, if the same is available.

Cancellation of E-Way Bill:

Where an e-Way Bill has been generated , but goods are either not being transported or are not being transported as per the details furnished, the e-Way Bill may be cancelled electronically , within 24 hours of generation , provided that an e-Way Bill cannot be cancelled if it has been verified in transit . The facility of cancellation of e-way bill is also available through SMS to the supplier, recipient and the transporter, as the case may be as per Explanation to CGST Rule 138(14).

Validity period of E-Way Bill:

An e-Way Bill has generated on e-way bill portal shall be valid for the period, which is depending upon the distance for the goods have to be transported is summarized as in the below Table:

Relevant date for counting validity period of E-Way Bill:

The “relevant date” for the purpose of validity means the date on which the e-way bill has been generated and the period of validity shall be calculated from the time at which the e-way bill has been generated and each day shall be counted as the period expiring at midnight of the day immediately following the date of generation of e-way bill i.e. twenty-four hours considering time frame.

Power of Extension of Validity: The Commissioner has the power to extend the validity period of e-way bill for certain categories of goods as may be specified in the notification to be issued by him on recommendation of GST Council.

Extension of valid period by the Transporter : Where under circumstances of an exceptional nature, including transshipment , the goods cannot be transported within the validity period of the e-way bill; the transporter may extend the validity period after updating the details in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01.

Acceptance / Rejection of E-way bill:

The details of e-way Bill generated shall be made available to the registered recipient, if generated by consignor and vice versa on the E-way Bill portal. It is responsibility of recipient / consignor to communicate his acceptance or rejection of the consignment covered by the e-way bill. However, where the receipent / consignor does not communicate his acceptance or rejection within 72 hours on common portal or the time of delivery of goods whichever is earlier , it shall be deemed that he has accepted the said details.

Jurisdictional validity of e-way bill: The e-Way Bill generated under the Goods and Services Tax Rules of any State / Union territory or rule 138 of the Goods and Services Tax Rules shall be valid in every State and Union territory.

SMS Facilitation: The facility of generation and cancellation of e-way bill may also made available through SMS by using mobile phone.

No requirement of e-way bill on the following cases where:

(i) the goods being transported are specified in Annexure under Rule 138(14) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules,2017;

(ii) the goods are being transported by a non-motorized conveyance;

(iii) the goods are being transported from the port , airport, air cargo complex and land Customs Station to Inland Container Depot or Container Freight Station ( for clearance by Customs);

(iv) the movement of goods within areas notified under clause (d) of sub-rule (14) of the Goods and Services Tax Rules of the Concerned State;

(v) goods ( other than de-oiled Cake) specified in the Schedule appended to Notification No.2/2017-C.T.(Rate), dated the 28th June,2017, i.e. goods exempted from GST;

(vi) alcoholic liquor for human consumption, petroleum crude, high speed diesel, motor spirit ( commonly known as petrol), natural gas or aviation turbine fuel;

(vii) goods which have been declared as ‘ no supply’ in Schedule III of CGST Act,2017;

(viii) where the goods are being transported under Customs bond from an inland container depot or a container freight station to a Customs port, airport, air cargo complex and land Customs station, or from one Customs station or Customs port to another Customs station or Customs port, or under Customs supervision or under Customs seal;

(ix) where the goods being transported are transit cargo from or to Nepal or Bhutan;

(x) where the goods being transported are exempt from tax under Notification No. 7/2017-C.T.(Rate), dated 28th June,2017 as amended from time to time and Notification No. 26/2017-C.T.(Rate), dated the 21st September,2017 as amended from time to time;

(xi) any movement of goods caused by defence formation under Ministry of defence as a consignor or consignee;

(xii) where the consignor of goods is the Central Government, Government of any State or a local authority for transport of goods by rail;

(xiii) where empty cargo containers are being transported ; and

(xiv) where the goods are being transported upto a distance of twenty kilometers from the place of business of the consignor to a weighbridge for weighment or from the weighbridge back to the place of business of the said consignor subject to condition that the movement of goods is accompanied by a delivery challan issued in accordance with Rule 55.

Provisions relating to Movement of Goods under E-Way Bill:

138A-Documents and devices to be carried by a person-in-charge of a conveyance:

(1) As per the CGST Rule 138A , the person in charge of a conveyance shall carry a set of documents in transit such as :

(a) the invoice or bill of supply or bill of entry .

(b) a delivery challan where the goods are transported for reasons other than by way of supply.

(c) a copy of the e-Way Bill or the e-Way Bill number, either physically or the e-way bill number in electronic form mapped to a Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID) embedded on to the conveyance except in case of movement goods by rail or by air or vessel.

(d) The Commissioner may by issue of Notification require certain class of transporters to obtain a unique Radio Frequency Identification Device and get the said device embedded on to the conveyance and map the e-way bill to the said device embedded on to the conveyance and map the e-way bill to the Radio Frequency Identification Device prior to the movement of goods.

(e) Dispensation of carrying E-way Bill : Under special circumstances Commissioner may by issue of notification , require the person-in-charge of the conveyance to carry the documents, i.e., (a) tax invoice or bill of supply or bill of entry; or (b) a delivery challan, where the goods are transported for reasons other than by way of supply instead of the e-way bill.

(2) A registered person may obtain an Invoice Reference Number from the E-way Bill portal by uploading a tax invoice issued by him in FORM GST INV-01 which would be valid for a period of 30 days. On furnishing of information in FORM GST INV-01, the information in Part-A of FORM GST WEB-01 shall be automatically updated.

138B -Verification of documents and conveyances: As per Rule 138B of the CGST Rules specified the following action shall be taken by the authorised officer in transit checking of conveyance.

(1) Interception and verification of conveyance in transit: As per provisions of CGST Rule 138A, the Commissioner or an officer empowered by him in his behalf can authorise the proper officer to intercept any conveyance to verify the e-Way Bill or the e-Way Bill number in physical form or for all inter-State and intra-State movement of goods. However, on receipt of specific information of evasion of tax, physical verification of a specific conveyance can also be carried out by any officer after obtaining necessary approval of the Commissioner or officer empowered by him.

(2) Radio Frequency Identification Device readers : The RFID readers shall be installed at places where 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 e-way bill has been mapped with the said device.

(3) 138C- Inspection and verification Report of transit checking: As per CGST Rule 138C, summary report of every inspection of goods in transit shall be recorded online by the proper officer in Part A of FORM GST EWB-03 within 24 hours of inspection and the final report in Part B of FORM GST EWB-03 shall be recorded online within 3 days of the inspection.

(4) Re-inspection or verification: The physical verification of goods being transported on any conveyance has been done during transit at one place within the State or in any other State, no further physical verification of the said conveyance shall be carried out again in the State, unless specific information relating to evasion of tax is made available subsequently.

(5) 138D-Facility of information delay of detention: As per the provision of CGST Rule 138D, Where a vehicle has been intercepted and detained period of more than 30 minutes, the transporter may upload the said information in FORM GST EWB-04 on the E-way Bill portal.

Penal Provisions related to E-Way Bills:

For the transportation of GST paid goods, if the supplier or transporter are not generate the e-way bills, the same will be considered as contravention of statutory provisions of GST law. As per Section 122 (xiv) of the CGST Act,2017, a taxable person who transports any taxable goods without the cover of specified documents / e.way bill shall be liable to pay a penalty of Rs.10,000/- or an amount equivalent to the tax evaded. As per section 129 of CGST Act.2017, where any person transports any goods or stores any goods while they are in transit in contravention of the provisions of this Act or the rules made thereunder, 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 to recover applicable tax and penalty from the person transporting goods and the owner of the goods.