The full form of eWay bill is electronic way bill. The GST eWay Bill is the key document used to track goods being transported as part of the Goods and Services Tax system. Currently an eWay bill can be easily generated online on the GST Portal and the process is governed by the e-Way Bill rules.
An e-Way Bill has to be generated by any GST-registered entity supplying, receiving or transporting goods under the Goods and Services Tax regime.
What is an eWay Bill?
EWay Bill is an Electronic Way bill for movement of goods to be generated on the eWay Bill Portal. A GST registered person cannot transport goods in a vehicle whose value exceeds Rs. 50,000 (Single Invoice/bill/delivery challan) without an e-way bill that is generated on ewaybillgst.gov.in.
Alternatively, Eway bill can also be generated or cancelled through SMS, Android App and by site-to-site integration through API entering the correct GSTIN of parties. Validate the GSTIN with the help of the GST search tool before using it.
When an eway bill is generated, a unique Eway Bill Number (EBN) is allocated and is available to the supplier, recipient, and the transporter.
When Should an e-Way Bill be Generated?
- Generating e-Way bill is mandatory if the value of goods being transported exceeds Rs. 50,000. If the value of goods being transported is less than Rs. 50,000, creation of eWay bill is optional.
- E-way bill is also mandatory if the supplier is not GST-registered but the receiver is GST-registered. The GST registered person is required to ensure compliance in such cases.
- If the supplier has not generated the eWay bill, the transporter is required to generate the same irrespective of whether the mode of transport is road, air or water.
When Should eWay Bill be issued?
eWay bill will be generated when there is a movement of goods in a vehicle/ conveyance of value more than Rs. 50,000 (either each Invoice or in aggregate of all invoices in a vehicle/conveyance) –
- In relation to a ‘supply’
- For reasons other than a ‘supply’ ( say a return)
- Due to inward ‘supply’ from an unregistered person
For this purpose, a supply may be either of the following:
- A supply made for a consideration (payment) in the course of business
- A supply made for a consideration (payment) which may not be in the course of business
- A supply without consideration (without payment)In simpler terms, the term ‘supply’ usually means a:
- Sale – sale of goods and payment made
- Transfer – branch transfers for instance
- Barter/Exchange – where the payment is by goods instead of in money
Therefore, eWay Bills must be generated on the common portal for all these types of movements. For certain specified Goods, the eway bill needs to be generated mandatorily even if the value of the consignment of Goods is less than Rs. 50,000:
- Inter-State movement of Goods by the Principal to the Job-worker by Principal/ registered Job-worker
- Inter-State Transport of Handicraft goods by a dealer exempted from GST registration
The transporters need not generate the Eway bill (as Form EWB-01 or EWB-02) where all the consignments in the conveyance
- Individually(single Document**) is less than or equal to Rs 50,000 BUT
- In Aggregate (all documents** put together) exceeds Rs 50,000
**Document means Tax Invoice/Delivery challan/Bill of supply
Unregistered Transporters will be issued Transporter ID on enrolling on the e-way bill portal after which Eway bills can be generated.
| Who | When | Part | Form |
| Every Registered person under GST | Before movement of goods | Fill Part A | Form GST EWB-01 |
| Registered person is consignor or consignee (mode of transport may be owned or hired) OR is recipient of goods | Before movement of goods | Fill Part B | Form GST EWB-01 |
| Registered person is consignor or consignee and goods are handed over to transporter of goods | Before movement of goods | Fill Part B | The registered person shall furnish the information relating to the transporter in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01 |
| Transporter of goods | Before movement of goods | Generate e-way bill on basis of information shared by the registered person in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 | |
| An unregistered person under GST and recipient is registered | Compliance to be done by Recipient as if he is the Supplier. | 1. If the goods are transported for a distance of fifty kilometers or less, within the same State/Union territory from the place of business of the consignor to the place of business of the transporter for further transportation, the supplier or the transporter may not furnish the details of conveyance in Part B of FORM GST EWB-01. 2. If supply is made by air, ship or railways, then the information in Part A of FORM GST EWB-01 has to be filled in by the consignor or the recipient |
Cases when eWay bill is Not Required
- The mode of transport is non-motor vehicle
- Goods transported from Customs port, airport, air cargo complex or land customs station to Inland Container Depot (ICD) or Container Freight Station (CFS) for clearance by Customs.
- Goods transported under Customs supervision or under customs seal
- Goods transported under Customs Bond from ICD to Customs port or from one custom station to another.
- Transit cargo transported to or from Nepal or Bhutan
- Movement of goods caused by defence formation under Ministry of defence as a consignor or consignee
- Empty Cargo containers are being transported
- Consignor transporting goods to or from between place of business and a weighbridge for weighment at a distance of 20 kms, accompanied by a Delivery challan.
- Goods being transported by rail where the Consignor of goods is the Central Government, State Governments or a local authority.
- Goods specifed as exempt from E-Way bill requirements in the respective State/Union territory GST Rules.
- Transport of certain specified goods- Includes the list of exempt supply of goods, Annexure to Rule 138(14), goods treated as no supply as per Schedule III, Certain schedule to Central tax Rate notifications
How to generate eWay Bill on portal
E-Way Bill and the e-way bill number can be generated on the e-Way Bill Portal.
SMS e-way bill generation on mobile
You can generate e-way bills via SMS using registered mobile phone. All can begin by enabling SMS e-way bill generate facility. Register the mobile phone to be used for SMS facility of e-way bill generation. Thereafter, send simple SMS codes to a particular mobile number managed by the e-way bill portal/GSTN to generate, manage and cancel e-way bills.
Validity of eWay Bill
An e-way bill is valid for periods as listed below, which is based on the distance travelled by the goods. Validity is calculated from the date and time of generation of e-way bill-
| Type of conveyance | Distance | Validity of EWB |
Other than Over dimensional cargo | Less Than 200 Kms | 1 Day |
| For every additional 200 Kms or part thereof | additional 1 Day | |
For Over dimensional cargo | Less Than 20 Kms | 1 Day |
| For every additional 20 Kms or part thereof | additional 1 Day |
Validity of Eway bill can be extended also. The generator of such Eway bill has to either eight hours before expiry or within eight hours after its expiry can extend Eway bill validity.
Documents or Details required to generate eWay Bill
- Invoice/ Bill of Supply/ Challan related to the consignment of goods
- Transport by road – Transporter ID or Vehicle number
- Transport by rail, air, or ship – Transporter ID, Transport document number, and date on the document
FAQs
Should I generate e-way bills against invoices raised for supply service?
No, e-way bill rules do not apply to service oriented transactions.Hence, you need not generate an e-way bill against the supply of services.
Whether eway bill is required when the goods is billed within 10 km surroundings?
Goods that are moved inside a state need no e-way bill if the distance is up to 10 km. The limit has now been increased to 50 km.