E-Commerce Business: Everything You Need to Know About E-Way Bills
Did you know that 1.259 billion e-way bills were generated between April 2024 and December 2024? Looking at this number, you can imagine how important it is for businesses to stay compliant with GST regulations. Since e-commerce involves interstate commerce more frequently than any other business, you must know everything about it.
This blog will walk you through e-way bill compliance for e-commerce businesses. Read further to know more.
Details Required to Generate E-Way Bill for E-Commerce Business
Have these documents ready to generate your e-way bill faster:
Tax invoice or Delivery challan: Either of them is required to fill out Part A of the e-way bill form.
Registered Mobile Number: Ensure the registered mobile number is handy because all OTPs/verification codes will be delivered to this number.
Goods details: You may require details about the goods, such as description, price, and quantity.
Recipient details: Provide the address on which goods will be delivered.
Transporter details: Provide the necessary transporter details, such as vehicle number, and double-check the vehicle information to ensure accuracy. In case of a mistake in vehicle details, the e-way bill stands invalid.
Tip: You can skip a major part of the process and make the e-way bill generation faster with Munim Accounting and Billing software.
Determining E-Way Bill Responsibilities Among Various E-Commerce Stakeholders
Seller: In cases where an e-commerce platform acts only as a facilitator without taking ownership of the goods.
Marketplace: If an e-commerce platform acts as a marketplace but holds ownership of goods during the transaction.
Supplier: When an individual seller directly fulfils orders and transports goods to customers.
E-Way Bill Generation Process
Step #1: Initiating the process: Sign in to the e-way bill portal with your valid credentials.
Step #2: Providing required details: Enter the required information such as invoice value, date, invoice number, transporter information, vehicle number, etc.
Step #3: Creating the e-way bill: Once the required information is entered and verified, the system will assign a unique e-way bill number to the supplier.
Step #4:Forward to the transporter: Once you have generated the e-way bill and are verified for the accuracy, forward the same to the transporter so that they can proceed with goods transportation.
E-Way Bill Validity at a Glance
| Means of Transport | Distance | E-waybill validity |
| Over Dimensional Cargo | Less than 20 Km | 1 Day |
| For every additional Kms Over 20 Km | Additional 1 Day | |
| Except for dimensional Cargo | Less than 100 Km | 1 Day |
| For every additional Kms Over 100 Km | Additional 1 Day |
Read More: Form ENR-03: Generating GST E-Way Bills for Unregistered Businesses
E-Way Bill Exemption in Goods Sold Through E-Commerce
There are certain goods sold via e-commerce that do not require an e-way bill while transporting to the end-user; the list of such goods is as follows:
- Precious or semi-precious stones
- Natural or produced pearls,
- Used personal and household products
- Unworked and worked co-rail
- Cereals
- valuable metals
- metals covered with precious metal
- Gold jewellery
- Silver jewellery
- Currency
- Curd, lassi, buttermilk
- Fresh milk and pasteurized milk not containing added sugar or other sweetening substances
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Educational items (books, maps, periodicals)
- Live animals, plants, and trees
- Meat
- Unbranded rice and wheat flour
- Salt
- Unprocessed tea leaves and unroasted coffee beans
These goods are exempted from the e-way bill requirement primarily due to their nature, perishability, or essential status.
Apart from the above mentioned goods, if the case is where multiple goods are delivered in a single journey, e-way bill is exempted.
Also, Know everything about GST E-Way Bills and how they impact your business transactions.
E-Way Bill Compliance Obligation for E-Commerce Business in India
E-way bill compliance for e-commerce is an important aspect in adhering to GST rules and regulations. It ensures smooth movement of goods so that it can reach the customers without any hindrance and in a lawful manner. Here are the detailed compliance obligations involved with e-way bills.
Mandatory e-way bill generation:
If the goods to be transported are worth more than ₹ 50,000, it is mandatory to generate an e-way and carry the same during the transportation.
Not complying with the e-way bill regulations may attract legal consequences or penalties.
Interstate Transportation
In interstate commerce, where goods are transported, interstate requires an e-way bill.
To facilitate the smooth movement of goods, transporters must produce valid e-way bills at various checkpoints.
Example: Your place of business is located in Maharashtra and delivery location is Andhra Pradesh
Intrastate Transportation
Some of India’s state regulations require e-way bills for intrastate transportation.
Companies involved in intrastate goods transportation must know and abide by their respective states’ regulations.
Example: Your place of business is located in Maharashtra and delivery location is also within Maharashtra.
Summing Up
So, this was all about e-way bill compliance for e-commerce businesses. We hope you will abide by them to stay compliant and prevent unnecessary scrutiny. If you are looking for e-way bill generation software, Simplify your GST compliance with Munim — sign up today and generate e-way bills faster than ever! It helps you stay compliant with e-way bill regulations for e-commerce and aids you in accounting, billing, inventory management and e-invoicing generation.
FAQs on E-Way Bill Compliance
1. When is an e-way bill not required?
Cases where e-way bill is not required:
If the goods are being transported via non-motorized medium
If the goods’ worth is less than Rs. 50,000
If the goods are in transit from Nepal or Bhutan
If the goods are in transit to the weighbridge within 20 KMs of the place of business, carrying delivery challan
If the goods are transported to/from the Ministry of Defence
2. How do I update e-way bills?
Once an e-way bill is generated, it cannot be edited. If there is a mistake in the e-way bill, you can cancel it and generate a new one with updated details.
3. How do you cancel an e-way bill after 10 days?
An e-way bill cannot be canceled after 10 days in whatsoever conditions.
4. How to unblock the e-way bill?
The E-way bill system gets blocked when the taxpayer has not filed GSTR-3B. Once they file the return, the e-way bill system gets unblocked automatically.
