Glossary · GST and compliance (India)

What is an e-invoice (IRN) under GST?

An e-invoice under GST is a business-to-business tax invoice reported to the government's Invoice Registration Portal (IRP) as it is issued. The IRP returns a unique Invoice Reference Number (IRN), a digitally signed e-invoice and a QR code, which go on the invoice you hand over.

Also called E-invoicing, GST e-invoice, Invoice Reference Number, IRP · GST and compliance (India) · Last reviewed 25 September 2026 · General information, not legal or tax advice

Who has to e-invoice

Since 1 August 2023, e-invoicing applies to registered businesses whose aggregate turnover exceeded ₹5 crore in any financial year from 2017-18 onwards (Notification 10/2023 – Central Tax cut the threshold from ₹10 crore). Turnover is counted on the PAN, across every GSTIN under it.

It covers invoices to registered businesses (B2B), exports and supplies to SEZs, and the credit and debit notes on them. A bill to an ordinary consumer (B2C) is not reported to the IRP. GSTN's FAQ lists the entities that are exempt — SEZ units, insurers, banks and NBFCs, goods transport agencies, passenger transport, and cinema admission in multiplexes — and hotels, restaurants and shops are not on it. So a hotel above the threshold that bills a company must e-invoice that bill.

An e-invoice is not an e-way bill: the e-way bill is a separate document for moving goods.

Example

A resort with ₹7 crore turnover last year bills a company with a GSTIN ₹85,000 for a conference stay. Before the invoice goes out it is reported to the IRP; the IRN and the signed QR code come back and are printed on it. The same resort's bill to a family on holiday is an ordinary B2C invoice.

How Nivasik handles it

Nivasik does not generate e-invoices. It does not connect to the IRP, so it cannot obtain an IRN or the signed QR code, and it does not produce e-way bills. It issues GST invoices, and it exports the GST data — GSTR-1 data and a Tally import file (CSV) — for your accountant; it does not file returns. A business above the threshold needs to report its B2B invoices to the IRP another way, on the portal or through software that connects to it.

Sources

  1. e-Invoice System — the Invoice Registration Portal (IRP): what it returns (IRN, signed e-invoice, QR code) — checked 25 September 2026
  2. Notification No. 10/2023 – Central Tax, 10 May 2023 (₹5 crore from 1 August 2023) — GST Council — checked 25 September 2026
  3. e-Invoice FAQs: applicability, supplies covered, exempt entities — GSTN — checked 25 September 2026

General information, last reviewed on 25 September 2026. It is not legal or tax advice: rules change by notification, so check the source, or ask your accountant or lawyer, before you rely on it.

Questions people ask

Is e-invoicing mandatory for a small hotel?

Only if its aggregate turnover exceeded ₹5 crore in some financial year from 2017-18 onwards, and then only for B2B invoices, exports and SEZ supplies. Bills to ordinary guests are not e-invoiced.

See it on your own place, free for 45 days.

We set it up for you — your rooms, menu or stock list, your staff and your prices — and walk it end to end on your phone. No card, and we invoice only if you stay.