The GST Council, in its 26th GST Council meeting, gave a go-ahead for rolling out E-way Bill. The E-way Bill  mandate initially kicked-off with inter-state transactions, followed by intra-state movement of goods. Here are three important things to be aware of E-way bill mandate.

1. Key dates and timelines of E-way Bill implementation

• E-way bill mandate for interstate movement of goods started from 1^st April 2018
• While the E-way bill system was initially only applicable for inter-state movement of goods, states have adopted and implemented the system in a phased manner and mandated the generation of E-way Bills for intra-state movement of goods as well. E-way bill mandate for intrastate movement of goods started from 15^thApril 2018 in a phased manner.
• States for intrastate implementation were divided into 4 lots to execute a phase-wise rollout.
• 1^stJune 2018 was the stipulated date by which all states had to start using EWB portal for intrastate movement of goods. Different States had introduced e-way bill for intra-State movement of goods at different times. However, all States have introduced the e-way bill latest from 16th June 2018.
• There are certain states such as Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal where the threshold limit for intra-state movement is kept as  Rs. 1 lakh instead of Rs. 50,000.

2. Transactions for which an E-way bill needs to be generated

Even if the movement of goods is caused due to reasons other than supply, an e-way bill is required to be issued. The reasons other than supply include movement of goods due to:

• Export/Import
• Job Work
• Semi Knocked Down (SKD)/Complete Knock Down (CKD)
• Recipient (Unknown)
• Line Sales
• Sales Returns
• Exhibition or Fairs

3. Generating E-way bill for values less than Rs. 50,000

For certain specified goods, the e-way bill under GST needs to be generated mandatorily even if the value of the consignment of goods is less than Rs.50,000

• Interstate movement of goods by the principal to job worker and from job worker to the principal
• Interstate transport of handicraft goods by a dealer exempted from GST registration

4. When an E-way Bill is Not Required?

• Movement of Goods in non-motorized vehicle
• Movement of Goods from Port/ land custom station to ICD (Inland Container Depot) or CFS (Container Freight System)
• Movement within the area notified by the government
• For movement of exempted goods under GST except for de-oiled cake
• When there is no supply of goods in accordance with Schedule III of the CGST act
• Supply of Goods not covered under GST (Alcoholic liquor for human consumption, petroleum crude, etc.)
• Movement of specified  goods,  like Gems, Jewellery, precious stones, Currency,  Used personal and household effects, Kerosene oil sold under PDS, Coral worked or unworked

**Note: No Part B to be filled in E-way Bill, when the distance between the place of business (supplier) to the transporter is less than 50 KM within State or Union Territory OR  when the distance between the place of transporter and recipient is less than 50KM within State or Union Territory.

IRIS is an established GST Suvidha Provider (GSP) and was one of the first GSPs to complete the integration with NIC’s E-way Bill System. Our E-way Bill solution, branded as IRIS Topaz, is an end-to-end solution for entire E-way Bill operations. IRIS Topaz can be accessed through the web, desktop utility, and APIs.