E-way bill system goes live today: All you should know
The e-way bill regime, devised as a tool to check tax evasion under GST, is rolling out nationwide today. Registration under the new system will be mandatory for all movement of goods from one place to another, subject to conditions. Over 6,70,000 taxpayers have already registered during the trials that ended yesterday. Here's all you need to know about e-way bills.
What is an e-way bill?
An e-way bill is an electronic waybill that transporters need to carry for moving goods under the GST regime. No e-way bill is required for transportation of goods through non-motorized conveyance, or if they are moved from the port/airport/land customs station to an inland container for clearance by Customs, or if the consignment is worth less than Rs. 50,000.
How can you generate an e-way bill?
Visit www.ewaybill.nic.in and log in with your GSTIN. Enter details of the goods to be moved, transporter ID, pin codes and more. If the vehicle breaks down, the vehicle number can be updated. The bill number will be sent to the supplier, receiver, and transporter.
Terms and conditions of the e-way bill system
An e-way remains valid for 24 hours and has to be cancelled within a day of being generated. This is for a distance of 100km. For every 100km thereafter, validity will be one additional day. The recipient has the option of rejecting an e-way bill within 72 hours of it being generated. Under this system, hold-up of a consignment for over 30 minutes is prohibited.
More than 2.84L e-way bills generated during 14-day trials
The system was launched on trial basis on January 16. Since then, over 2.84mn e-way bills have been generated, officials say. On January 30, Karnataka took the lead with 1.4L bills being generated. The system is designed to handle 50L bills every day, 10L for interstate and 35-40L for intra-state, but in the initial days, 7-8L bills are expected to be issued daily.
Industry body seeks relaxation but GST Council not ready
The Confederation of Indian Industry demanded relaxation in rules, including making e-way bills mandatory only for consignments worth over Rs. 5L, extending validity to at least five days, and more time for cancellation. However, the GST Council has refused the demands.
