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Receipt › Advance receipt under GST
Advance receipt (receipt voucher) under GST
When a customer pays before you deliver, GST asks a registered business to issue a receipt voucher for that advance. Whether tax is due on it depends on whether you sell goods or services.
What a receipt voucher must show
The GST rules list these details for a receipt voucher:
- Your name, address and GSTIN.
- A serial number of up to 16 characters, unique for the financial year, and the date.
- The customer's name, address and GSTIN (if registered).
- A description of the goods or services the advance is for.
- The amount of the advance.
- The GST rate and the tax amount (CGST and SGST, or IGST).
- The place of supply, with the state name and code, for a supply to another state.
- Whether tax is payable on reverse charge.
- Signature of you or someone you authorise.
If the rate is not known when the advance comes in, the rules say to use 18%. If it is not known whether the supply will be within the state or to another state, treat it as going to another state.
Goods or services?
| Advance for services | Advance for goods | |
|---|---|---|
| GST due on the advance? | Yes, in the month you receive it | No, for regular taxpayers; tax is paid when the invoice is issued |
| Receipt voucher | Yes, showing the tax | Yes, as a record of the advance |
Composition taxpayers follow different rules for advances; ask your accountant.
A worked example
An event decorator in Punjab takes a ₹59,000 advance on 4 Nov 2026 for a wedding in Punjab on 20 Dec. The service is taxed at 18%, and the advance is treated as including tax: value ₹50,000, CGST 9% ₹4,500, SGST 9% ₹4,500. The decorator pays ₹9,000 GST with November's return. After the event, the tax invoice for the full ₹1,77,000 shows the advance, and only the balance tax is paid then.
If the order is cancelled
When an advance is returned and no supply happens, issue a refund voucher for it. Your accountant will adjust any tax already paid.
Doing it in the maker
Choose the type Advance received. The receipt prints "Advance received. A tax invoice will be issued on supply." with the amount in words, the payer's GSTIN and what the advance is towards. This maker does not yet split GST on an advance: for an advance for services, write the rate and the CGST + SGST or IGST amounts in Towards or the notes, or let your accountant prepare the tax entry. For goods, the advance receipt is usually enough. When you supply, make the tax invoice in the invoice maker and write "Less advance received ₹… vide RCT/26-27/007" in its notes.