E-invoicing for E-commerce Operators

E-invoicing for e-commerce operators is slightly different than for the rest of the industries. To begin with, e-commerce operators generate an IRN on behalf of their suppliers. Regardless of that, the e-commerce platform must register itself under GST as an e-commerce operator. 

According to the e-invoicing mandate, all B2B invoices must be registered by the taxpayer on the Invoice Registration Portal. The Invoice Registration Portal, or IRP, is the official e-invoicing portal of India. Once the e-invoice under GST is registered on the IRP, it will generate a unique Invoice Reference Number, or IRN. To further streamline the billing process, the Government of India has also incorporated e-way billing under the same platform. 

E-invoicing for E-Commerce Operators

The services provided by an e-commerce organization fall under the category of Reverse Charge Mechanism, or RCM. Usually, the supplier collects the Goods & Services Tax (GST) from the recipient and pays to the government. In some situations, however, the recipient, instead of the supplier, is liable to pay tax. This is referred to as the Reverse Charge. You can know more about RCM, its criteria, and its applicability here.  

For e-commerce operators, the supplier turnover is more important. This is because the transactions made through the e-commerce platform are by the supplier. As per the e-invoicing mandate, the e-invoicing turnover limit will determine whether generating e-invoices is necessary or not for the suppliers. Either the supplier generates the e-invoice or the e-commerce platform does it on the supplier’s behalf. From a broader perspective, however, the process and criteria of assigning an IRN to the e-invoices under GST remain the same.

Example: If you buy an HP laptop from Amazon, you will receive the invoice from Amazon. The generation of Invoice Reference Number (IRN) and the e-invoice under GST, however, would be between HP and Amazon. So, while registering the e-invoice, Amazon’s GSTIN would be listed as the e-commerce GSTIN and HP would be the supplier.

Now, if the e-commerce platform is also the seller, then they will be considered as a supplier and would not be treated as an e-commerce platform. In this case, the annual turnover of the organization as a whole comes into picture. If it falls under the e-invoice turnover criteria, then it must adhere to the rules of e-invoicing under GST.

On the other hand, if the products sold are by another supplier through the e-commerce platform, then the e-commerce platform is treated as the supplier of services. Even in this case, the annual turnover of the e-commerce organization comes into picture. If it is above INR 10 crores, then it must register the e-invoice under GST on the Invoice Registration Portal and generate an IRN.  

If the e-invoice is generated through the e-commerce platform, then the data will also flow to the IRP of the seller. Based on the IRNs generated by both e-commerce platforms and the suppliers, this is the scope applicable.