Question 1

Can one document cover both taxable and exempt items sold together?

Accepted Answer

Yes, in one specific situation. Rule 46A permits a registered person supplying both taxable and exempt goods or services to an unregistered recipient to issue a single invoice-cum-bill of supply covering the entire transaction. This saves retail counters from splitting every mixed basket into two documents. The concession applies only when the buyer is unregistered; for a registered buyer, you must still issue a tax invoice for the taxable items and a separate bill of supply for the exempt items. Supermarkets and pharmacies with mixed inventories use this format daily, and billing software handles the split automatically once configured.

Question 2

I declare income under Section 44ADA. Does that mean I am exempt from GST?

Accepted Answer

No, this is a common myth. Section 44ADA is a presumptive taxation scheme under the Income Tax Act that lets professionals declare fifty percent of gross receipts as income; it has nothing to do with GST. GST liability depends solely on aggregate turnover crossing the registration threshold and the nature of your supplies. In fact, the two departments now cross-match data, so gross receipts reported in your ITR and Form 26AS that exceed the GST turnover you declared are a known trigger for notices. Treat the two laws as parallel obligations, each with its own limits and filings.

Question 3

What GST rate applies to cars and two-wheelers now?

Accepted Answer

Small cars, meaning petrol cars up to 1200cc and diesel cars up to 1500cc with length not exceeding 4 metres, attract 18 percent GST, down sharply from the earlier 28 percent plus cess. Larger cars, SUVs above these specifications, attract the 40 percent rate, but with the compensation cess gone, the overall burden on most of them is still lower than before. Motorcycles up to 350cc are at 18 percent, while those above 350cc attract 40 percent. Electric vehicles continue at a concessional 5 percent. Dealers must also apply these rates to demo vehicle sales.

Question 4

Is GST payable on my YouTube AdSense earnings?

Accepted Answer

AdSense payments come from a Google entity located outside India and are remitted in convertible foreign exchange, so for an Indian creator this revenue generally qualifies as export of services, zero-rated when supplied under an LUT after registration. The income still counts towards your Rs.20 lakh aggregate turnover, so a creator whose combined receipts cross the threshold must register even if the entire revenue is export. Brand sponsorships from Indian companies, by contrast, are domestic supplies taxable at 18 percent. Keep the remittance advices safely, as they establish the forex receipt if you later claim a refund of input tax credit.

Question 5

We conduct training programmes and events in different cities. Which state's GST applies?

Accepted Answer

Two rules operate. For admission to an event, including tickets to exhibitions or conferences, the place of supply is where the event is held. For organising an event or providing training, the place of supply is the registered recipient's location when the client is registered; if the client is unregistered, it shifts to the venue where the event or training is actually performed. So a Medavakkam trainer running a workshop in Hyderabad for a registered Chennai company charges CGST plus SGST of Tamil Nadu, but the same workshop sold to unregistered individuals is taxed in Telangana. Invoice each engagement after checking the client's registration.

Question 6

How do I file Form PMT-09 to move money between heads in my cash ledger?

Accepted Answer

Log in and open Services, then Ledgers, then Electronic Cash Ledger, and select File GST PMT-09 for transfer of amount. The screen shows your balance under each major and minor head. Choose the transfer-from head and amount, choose the transfer-to head, add the details to the table, preview and file with DSC or EVC. The transfer reflects in the ledger immediately and an ARN is generated for your records. There is no limit on how often PMT-09 can be filed, and no government fee applies, so it is always the first fix for a wrong-head deposit.

Question 7

I returned an advance because the deal was cancelled. What document do I issue?

Accepted Answer

It depends on how far the paperwork went. If you had issued only a receipt voucher and no tax invoice, you issue a refund voucher under Rule 51 when returning the advance, and the tax paid on that advance can be adjusted. If a tax invoice had already been issued, the cancellation is handled through a credit note under Section 34 instead. The refund voucher records the original receipt voucher reference, the amount refunded and the tax involved. Event managers and contractors see cancellations regularly, and using the wrong document between these two is a common reconciliation error.

Question 8

The GST rate on my product changed. Which rate applies to pending orders and invoices?

Accepted Answer

Section 14 of the CGST Act decides this by looking at three events: the date of supply, the date of invoice and the date of payment. Broadly, if any two of the three events fall after the rate change, the new rate applies; if two fall before, the old rate applies. So goods delivered in Medavakkam before 22 September 2025 but invoiced and paid for afterwards attract the new rate, while goods delivered and invoiced earlier keep the old rate even if payment came later. Document dates carefully during any transition window, because officers test these invoices in scrutiny.

Question 9

Where is the place of supply for services connected to a building or land?

Accepted Answer

Services directly relating to immovable property, including those of architects, interior decorators, engineers, surveyors, construction and works contract services, renting, and accommodation in hotels, are supplied where the property is located, under Section 12(3). The recipient's location and registration are irrelevant. So a Medavakkam architect designing a factory in Coimbatore charges CGST plus SGST of Tamil Nadu, but for a project in Kochi the place of supply is Kerala and IGST applies. For hotels, the state where the hotel stands is always the place of supply, which is why accommodation is invariably billed with that state's local taxes regardless of where the guest's business is registered.

Question 10

What are OIDAR services under GST and who pays the tax on them?

Accepted Answer

OIDAR means Online Information Database Access or Retrieval services, delivered over the internet, such as cloud services, e-books, streaming, online advertising and automated e-learning. When a foreign OIDAR provider supplies these to unregistered persons in India, the foreign provider itself must take a simplified registration in Form REG-10 and file monthly return GSTR-5A. From 1 October 2023, the definition was widened, so almost every unregistered Indian recipient is covered. When the Indian recipient is GST-registered, the tax instead falls on the recipient under reverse charge as an import of services.

Question 11

We hire cabs monthly for employee transport in Medavakkam. Who pays the GST?

Accepted Answer

If the cab operator is not a body corporate, charges 5 percent, and your business is a body corporate, the liability shifts to you under reverse charge. The entry covers renting of motor vehicles designed to carry passengers where the cost of fuel is included in the consideration. If the operator is itself a company, or bills at the higher rate with full ITC, 18 percent since the September 2025 rate rationalisation, forward charge applies and the operator collects the tax. Remember that even after paying RCM, the ITC on employee transport in vehicles seating up to thirteen is blocked under Section 17(5) unless providing the transport is obligatory for the employer under a law.

Question 12

What are the most common mistakes Chennai businesses make with GST refunds and ITC?

Accepted Answer

The recurring ones we see across Medavakkam are: missing the two-year limitation for RFD-01, mismatches between GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and shipping bill data that stall export refunds, forgetting the April LUT renewal, claiming ITC on invoices absent from GSTR-2B, ignoring blocked credits under Section 17(5), breaching the 180-day supplier payment rule, and treating deficiency memos as rejections instead of refiling within limitation. Each of these is preventable with a simple monthly checklist and a year-end reconciliation. ChennaiGST builds exactly this discipline into its retainer engagements; call +91 - 9600 606 444 if any of these sounds familiar.

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