GST e-invoicing extended to reverse charge and imported services from 2027
From the first day of January 2027, GST e-invoices also cover reverse charge purchases from unregistered sellers and imported services.
- Document
- Central Tax 04/2026-Central Tax
- Dated
- 26 Oct 2026
- Effective
- This notification shall come into force on the first day of January, 2027.
- Act by
- the first day of January, 2027
This page was written by Patron Accounting’s AI from the official release and reviewed before publishing. It explains the document in plain language. It is not the document itself. Where this page and the original differ, the original governs.
The short version
- Notification 04/2026-Central Tax adds two supply types to GST e-invoicing from 1 January 2027.
- Reverse charge purchases from unregistered sellers now need e-invoices.
- Imported services now need e-invoices.
- Earlier, e-invoicing covered only supplies to registered persons and exports.
- The document does not mention any turnover limit or how these invoices are issued.
In short
This notification, Central Tax 04/2026, extends GST e-invoicing to two more kinds of supply from the first day of January 2027. Goods and Services Tax (GST) e-invoicing is the rule that requires certain invoices to be issued electronically. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) issued it to widen that list.
What has changed
How it worked before
Under Notification 13/2020-Central Tax, dated 21 March 2020, e-invoicing applied only to supplies of goods or services to a registered person, and to exports. Purchases from unregistered sellers and imported services were not on that list.
What has changed
The first paragraph of Notification 13/2020-Central Tax is replaced with four categories: supplies to a registered person, exports, reverse charge supplies received from an unregistered person, and import of services. The last two are new.
Who this affects
If you run a business registered under GST, and you buy goods or services from sellers not registered under GST where you pay the tax yourself, or you buy services from abroad, this affects you. The document does not say who is within e-invoicing scope; existing rules decide that.
An example
A Pune garment wholesaler registered under GST pays a design firm in another country for creative services, and it already issues GST e-invoices for its sales. From the first day of January 2027, those imported services fall within the e-invoicing categories, so the wholesaler must prepare for e-invoicing of them. The document gives no figures or thresholds, so the amount it pays does not change the outcome in this notification.
What you should do
If you already issue or handle GST e-invoices, check whether you buy from unregistered sellers under reverse charge or import services. If you do, prepare your billing and accounting systems for these purchases from the first day of January, 2027. The document does not explain how the e-invoices are to be generated for these cases.
Deadline · the first day of January, 2027If you do nothing
The document does not state any penalty, interest or notice for failing to e-invoice these new categories. It only sets out which supplies fall within e-invoicing from the first day of January 2027. Ask your accountant how existing e-invoicing penalties would apply.
The terms explained
- e-invoicing
- The rule that certain GST invoices must be issued electronically, as the government prescribes.
- reverse charge
- A rule where the buyer, not the seller, pays the GST on certain purchases.
- unregistered person
- A seller or supplier who is not registered under GST.
- import of services
- Buying a service from a provider located outside India.
The original document
| Issued by | GST |
|---|---|
| Document | Central Tax 04/2026-Central Tax |
| Full title | Seeks to notify category of supplies for purpose of e-invoicing. |
| Issued on | 26 October 2026 |
| Effective | This notification shall come into force on the first day of January, 2027. |
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