# GST year-end checklist: 12 things to do before 31 March

> Before 31 March, reconcile your sales and input tax credit with the GST portal, issue pending credit notes, pay small suppliers on time and count your stock. From 1 April, start a new invoice series, renew your LUT and check whether e-invoicing or 6-digit HSN codes now apply to you.

## Before 31 March

**1. Match your sales.** Compare taxable sales and tax in your books with what you reported in
GSTR-1 and paid in GSTR-3B, month by month. Report any invoice left out in the March return.

**2. Match your input tax credit.** Compare the purchase bills in your books with
[GSTR-2B](/glossary/gstr-2b). Ask suppliers to report what is missing, and reverse any credit you
took on a bill that never appeared.

**3. Reverse credit on bills unpaid for 180 days.** If you have not paid a supplier within 180
days of the invoice date, the credit on that invoice must be reversed with interest. You take it
again when you pay.

**4. Issue pending credit notes.** Returns, rate differences and discounts agreed during the year
need a [credit note](/glossary/credit-note) dated in the year. GST on it can be adjusted only if
it is reported by 30 November.

**5. Pay micro and small suppliers on time.** A bill from a registered micro or small enterprise
that is unpaid beyond 45 days is not allowed as an expense until the year you pay it. See the
[45-day payment rule](/blog/msme-45-day-payment-rule).

**6. Count your stock.** Do a physical count on or near 31 March and correct differences. Credit
on goods lost, stolen, destroyed, written off or given as free samples must be reversed.

**7. Work out your aggregate turnover.** Add up all supplies under your PAN for the year. Several
rules for next year depend on it: e-invoicing, HSN digits, QRMP and the composition scheme.

## From 1 April

**8. Start a new invoice series.** Set new number series for invoices, credit notes, challans and
vouchers for the new financial year.

**9. Renew your LUT.** Exporters and suppliers to SEZs file a fresh
[Letter of Undertaking](/glossary/lut) for the new year before the first export.

**10. Check e-invoicing and HSN digits.** If aggregate turnover crossed ₹5 crore in any year,
[e-invoicing](/blog/gst-e-invoicing-threshold-2026) applies from 1 April. Above ₹5 crore you also
need 6-digit HSN codes on every invoice.

**11. Choose your return scheme.** Opt in to or out of [QRMP](/glossary/qrmp-scheme) by 30 April.
To move to the [composition scheme](/glossary/composition-scheme) for the new year, file the
intimation by 31 March.

**12. Lock the old year.** Once March returns are filed and your CA has passed the closing
entries, lock the period in your books so nothing is posted to it by mistake.

## Dates to keep in view after the year ends

| What | By when |
|---|---|
| GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B for March | 11 April and 20 April |
| QRMP choice for the April to June quarter | 30 April |
| GSTR-4 for composition dealers | 30 June |
| Credit notes and input tax credit of the year | 30 November |
| GSTR-9 annual return | 31 December |

As of October 2026. The government can extend a date by notification; check the
[GST due dates](/tools/gst-due-dates) page and the portal.

## Questions

### Must I start a new invoice number series on 1 April?

The rules require invoice numbers to be unique for a financial year, so most businesses start a new series with the year in it, such as INV/27-28/0001. It keeps the years apart and avoids a number repeating.

### What is the last date to claim input tax credit of the year?

30 November after the end of the financial year, or the date you file that year's annual return if that is earlier. Credit on an invoice of 2026-27 not claimed by 30-11-2027 is lost.

### When do I choose between monthly and quarterly returns?

For the April to June quarter, you can opt in to or out of the QRMP scheme from 1 February to 30 April. If you do nothing, your current choice continues.

### When does e-invoicing start if my turnover crossed ₹5 crore this year?

From 1 April of the next financial year. Check your aggregate turnover on your PAN in March, so that your first invoice in April carries an IRN.

### When is the annual return due?

GSTR-9 for a financial year is due by 31 December of the next year. Businesses with aggregate turnover up to ₹2 crore have been exempted from filing it in recent years; confirm the position for the year with your CA.

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Source: https://www.easedesk.com/blog/gst-year-end-checklist · Updated 2026-10-02 · EaseDesk