E-way Bill: Meaning, Process, Validity And Rules

Key Takeaways 
 

• An E-way bill is an electronic bill. When a goods is transported from one place to another, and its price is more than ₹50,000, E-way bill can be generated from the GSTN portal. 
   
• The generation of Eway bills starts before the movement of goods. 
   
• Every e-way bill contains a unique e-way bill number. Which is useful for tracking the good.
   

If you send something to your friend from your state to Haryana, goods are applicable under GSt. In this case you have to generate an e-way bill. The E-way bill seems complex at first but it is simple when you understand it.

Bonus tip - Do you know ? From 1 January 2025, the GST system restricts generation of an e-Way Bill for invoices older than 180 days, and the validity of an e-way bill (including extensions) cannot exceed 360 days from the original generation date, as enforced by the portal.

Example 

Last month I sent a gift worth ₹1 Lakh to my aunt. When I went to the courier office and talked to the attendant. I found out that I need to generate an e-way bill since I'm sending this to Rajasthan. She said if you do not generate this bill you may get penalised. I opened ewaybillgst.gov.in, registered myself, entered my PAN number, then entered OTP and by filing a form I got a 15-digit Enrolment ID. It took me only 15-20 minutes to generate an e-way bill.

How to Use E-way bill 

The Electronic way bill (E-way bill) is normally a bill that is generated online for movement of goods across the country. It can be generated by the Online GSTN portal ewaybillgst.gov.in. If you are transporting goods and its value is more than ₹50,000 then generating e-way bills becomes important. No matter whether you are sending Good in state or across the state, this bill is mandatory. This helps reduce tax evasion and you can track your goods by the unique number that is on e-way bills. This bill shows that you are moving your goods under rule 138,  CGST Rules, 2017.

For movement of goods Inter-state more than ₹50,000 value this bill is important. And if you move goods across the state, its limit varies. 

GST is applicable on every transportation of goods, other than this every state has different taxes like entry tax, permits, octroi. 

If goods move from one place and reach the desired location, they have to face checkpoints and a lot of paperwork. E-way bills help you save from this task. E-way bills monitor the whole track of your goods and it is valid across the country, plus it is electronic so no worries about losing it. 

Highlights of the E-way

When a businessman based in Surat, Gujarat sells his products to the retailer in Delhi he needs to track all the movement of his goods. To avoid tax, envision a government launched system that generates e-way bills. This bill contains all the information about goods. It is mandatory to generate e-way bills if you are a consignor, transporter, consignee, or recipient. 

How is an e-way bill generated?
 

Follow these steps to generate e-way bills.
 

• E-way bill is generated through online GSTN portal. 
   
• To generate e-way bills, you should have information about invoice, challan, bill, and TRANSIN.
   
• Then choose the type of transaction, purchase or sale. For purchase choose inward and for sale choose outward. 
   
• Add information about supplier and receiver, document type, date, GSTN, destination location.
   
• Then add the transporter details name, document number, and vehicle. 

After completing this form click on submit button and request an E-way bill.

Pro Tip: for bulk transportation you can use API integration.

History and Background of E-way bill 

The E-way bill was introduced on April 1, 2018 first and it was mandatory only for inter state supplies and on April 25, 2018, it added some States. Like, Meghalaya, Sikkim, and Puducherry, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh. 

On 1, January 2025, new stricter regulations were uploaded for the e-way bill.

Conclusion 

E-way bill is introduced to make the process of goods transportation more transparent and easy. This bill is generated through the GST framework. It helps to reduce tax envision and make logistics smooth. By generating this bill businesses can avoid panelties. 

FAQs

 Is an e-way bill required for goods valued below ₹50,000?

No. An E-way bill not required for those goods whose value is below ₹50,000. But if someone wants to generate it can do it. Many businesses generate this bill even if their goods value is below ₹50,000 to maintain proper record.

What happens if an e-way bill expires during transit?

If an E-way bill expires during transit then transporters have to face penalties while inspection. If a transporter wants to avoid penalties, he can create a new e-way bill by updating transportation details. If planning is done timely, it is possible to avoid such panelties.

Can one e-way bill be used for multiple deliveries?

No, one e-way bill is for only one consignment. If there are different invoices then different e-way bills are needed. You can not generate one e-way bill for multiple deliveries. 

Who is responsible for generating an e-way bill?

Anyone who is supplying the goods is responsible for generating e-way bills. If the supplier doesn't generate it then the transporter can generate this bill.