The implementation of GST in India has brought significant changes to the taxation system, one of which is the introduction of e-way bills when transporting goods inter or intra-state. In this complete guide to e-way bills, we will discuss the key aspects of e-way bills, including the following:

• What is an E-Way Bill?
• Format of an E-Way Bill
• When to generate an E-way bill?
• How to generate an E-way bill?
• Who should generate an E-way bill?
• Documents required to generate an E-way bill
• Validity of an E-way bill
• Situations when an E-way bill is exempted
• Implementation of E-way bill across India

What is an E-Way Bill?

An E-Way Bill is a mandatory document that all transporters need to carry when they are transporting goods with a value greater than ₹50,000. The transport can be inter-state or intra-state. E-Way bills contain details of the goods being transported, the consignor, the recipient as well as the transporter.

Certain updates have been made to the above rules, as follows:

• For intra-state transport within the states of Delhi, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, E-Way bills are required only when the value of the goods being transported is more than ₹1 lakh.
• Additionally in Delhi, an E-Way bill is not required when the seller of the goods is a GST registered person but the buyer is not, as long as both parties are in Delhi.

Format of an E-Way Bill

An E-Way Bill is divided into 2 parts – Part A and Part B. Both these parts contain information that needs to be entered by the person generating the E-way bill.

The following details are required in Part A:

• GSTIN of Recipient
• Place of Delivery
• Invoice or Challan Number
• Invoice or Challan Date
• Value of the Goods
• HSN Code
• Reason for transportation
• Transport Number and Name
• Transport Document Number and Date

Part B only contains the registration number of the vehicle transporting the goods.

Apart from the above, there is also information that is auto-generated at the time of generating e-way bills. These details are:

• E-Way Bill Number
• E-Way Bill Date
• Name of the Party Who Generated the E-Way Bill

When to Generate an E-way Bill?

A valid E-Way bill with all the required details mentioned above must be generated for the following events:

• When goods are being supplied
• When goods are being transacted on a non-supply basis, for example:
  • Import/export
  • Goods being returned
  • Job Work
  • Line Sales
  • Sale based on approval
  • Goods being supplied in a semi knocked down or completely knocked down state
  • Goods being supplied for trade exhibitions, fairs etc.
  • Goods being used for personal consumption

Who Needs to Generate an E-way bill?

The following situations necessitate the generation of an E-way bill by a person who has a GST registration and is undertaking the transportation of goods:

• One of the consignor, the consignee, the recipient or the transporter should generate an e-way bill, if the transport is being done through their own or hired means.
• In cases where an unregistered seller is supplying goods to a registered buyer, the buyer is responsible for ensuring that all requirements are met.
• If both, the supplier and the buyer, have failed to generate an e-way bill, the transporter must do so to move the products by land, air, rail, etc.

In the two cases mentioned below, an e-way bill is required even if the consignment value does not exceed ₹50,000:

• An intra-state transport of goods from from a Principal to a Job Worker
• An inter-state transfer of handicraft goods by a supplier who has been granted exemption from GST registration.

How to Generate an E-way Bill?

The following methods are available to the supplier or the carrier for creating the E-way bill:

• Generating E-Way Bills on the GSTN
• Generating E-Way Bills through SMS
• Generating E-Way Bills through E-Invoicing
• Generating E-Way Bills automatically using an E-Way Bill Software

The GST E-Way Portal allows for the creation of e-way bills. You must be registered as a transporter and under GST to utilise the platform.

Once the e-way bill is generated, the e-way bill number is provided to all parties: the recipient, the supplier and the transporter.

Form GST EWB-01

Form GST EWB-01 is the document that needs to be carried by the transporter moving goods worth more than ₹50,000. Information regarding who needs to fill the form and when are provided below:

No.	Who needs to fill?	When to fill?	Which part to fill?
1	Registered Person	Before transfer of goods	Part A
2	Registered Person i.e. supplier or recipient. The transport vehicle can be either owned or hired.	Before transfer of goods	Part B
3	Registered Person i.e. supplier or recipient when the goods are handed over to the transporter	Before transfer of goods	Part B
4	Transporter of goods	Before transfer of goods	Part A
5	Unregistered Person if the recipient is GST registered	If transport is by air, sea or rail	Part A

To know more, you can read our detailed guide to how to generate an e-way bill.

Documents Required to Generate an E-way Bill

Documents needed to generate an e-way bill are:

• Relevant invoice, bill of supply, or challan for the shipment of goods.
• If a mode of road transport is involved, the vehicle number or the transporter ID.
• Transporter ID, Transport document number, and date—whether by ship, rail, or air.

Validity of an E-way bill

An e-way bill’s validity is determined by its generated date and time. Based on the distance the items have travelled, an e-way bill is valid for the duration specified below:

1. If the type of conveyance is other than over-dimensional cargo and the distance is-
   1. Less than 200 km, the e-way bill will be valid for one day
   2. For every additional 200 km or part there forth, the e-way bill will be valid for one additional day.
2. If the type of conveyance is for over-dimensional cargo and the distance is-
   1. Less than 20 km, the e-way bill will be valid for one day
   2. For every additional 20 km or part there forth, the e-way bill will be valid for an additional one day. 

The validity of an e-way bill may also be extended. To extend the validity of an e-way bill, the generator must do so either eight hours before or eight hours after the bill’s expiration.

Situations When an E-way Bill is Exempted

An e-way bill is not required in the following situations:

• Petroleum gas that has been liquefied for delivery to consumers who fall under the NDEC’s non-domestic exempted category;
• Kerosene sold with a PDS;
• Postal luggage moved by the Postal Service;
• Precious or semi-valuable stones, natural or cultured pearls, precious metals, and metals plated with precious metals;
• Jewellery, goods made of gold or silver, and other items;
• Currency;

• Used domestic and personal items;
• Coral, both worked and unworked
• E-way bills are not necessary for transporting goods to an inland container depot or a container freight station for customs clearance from a customs port, airport, air cargo complex, or land customs station.
• E-way bill generation is unnecessary when goods are transported by non-motorized transportation.
• Alcohol intended for human consumption, petroleum crude, high-speed diesel, petrol, fuel for an aircraft turbine;
• Under customs bond from an inland container depot or container freight station to a customs port, airport, air cargo complex, and land customs station, or one customs station or customs port to another customs station or customs port;
• Where certain notifications exempt the transported items from paying taxes;
• No E-way bill is necessary when the Central Government, State Government, or local government acting as a consignor transports goods by rail.
• There is no need for an E-way bill where a defence formation acting on behalf of the Ministry of Defence is the consignor or consignee.
• In the case of transporting empty freight containers, an E-way bill is not necessary.
• E-way bill generation is unnecessary when items are being transported for weighing, and the distance between the consignor’s business and the weighbridge is less than 20 km. However, a delivery challan is required to be present while moving items.
• Other than for the transportation of de-oiled cake, the items listed in the schedule annexe to Notification No. 2/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017 do not require the generation of an e-way bill.

Implementation of E-way Bill Across India

Since its implementation started on 1 April 2018, there has been an increase in the production of e-way bills for interstate-transit commodities. With all States and Union Territories joining the league in the generation of e-way bills for the movement of products inside the State/UT, the state-by-state deployment of the e-way bill system has had a good response.

However, several states have given their citizens respite by exempting them from the creation of e-way bills if their financial constraints fall below a threshold amount or in the case of specific designated things. For instance, Tamil Nadu has exempted its residents from generating e-way bills if the item’s price is less than Rs. 1 lakh.

Conclusion

E-way bill is a document used to track the movement of goods, prevent tax evasion, and guarantee that commodities being transported adhere to the GST Law. Since the advent of e-way bills, documenting transactions has become much more streamlined.

There are multiple ways to generate e-way bills, but the fastest and most convenient way is to use an e-way bill generation software like BUSY. After a quick one-time setup, you can auto-generate e-way bills in just a few clicks, even when you need to generate them in bulk.