e-Invoice: Registration and Generation – A Step-by-Step Guide

e-Invoicing, or electronic invoicing, is a system where all B2B invoices are uploaded and verified electronically through a dedicated portal. e-Invoice registration under the GST system is quite simple. However, if the taxpayer is already registered on the e-way bill portal, they can use the same login details to access the e-invoicing portal.

e-Invoice registration is mandatory for taxpayers whose overall revenue exceeds a designated threshold, as outlined in the latest GST notifications. Currently, businesses with annual aggregate turnover above or equal to Rs.5 Crore are required to generate e-invoices for all B2B transactions. This article will explore the e-invoice registration process with a step-by-step guide on how to register for an e-invoice in the GST portal.

Where to Register for e-Invoicing?

Eligible taxpayers can initiate their e-invoice registration process with their GSTIN on the e-invoice portal at https://einvoice1.gst.gov.in/. If you already have e-way bill login credentials, there is no need to register again. 

How to Register for e-Invoicing – A Step-by-Step Guide

Here is a step-by-step guide on the e-invoice registration process – 

• Step 1- Visit the official e-Invoice portal for registration at https://einvoice1.gst.gov.in/. 
• Step 2: Under the ‘Registration’ option, click on the portal login to access the e-invoice registration form. First-time GSTIN users can select the e-invoice registration option, leading to the e-invoice registration form.
• Step 3: Enter your GSTIN and the displayed captcha code, then click ‘Go’ to submit your request. Upon submission, you’ll be directed to the e-invoice registration form.
• Step 4: As per the entered GSTIN, the e-invoice Registration Form will be auto-populated with the registered business details, including the applicant’s name, trade name, address, mobile number, and email ID, as recorded on the GST portal.
• Step 5: If the auto-populated details are correct, click ‘Send OTP.’ If the details are incorrect or changed, click on ‘Update from GST Common Portal’ to update the details. 
• Step 6: Enter the OTP in the e-invoice registration form and click ‘Verify OTP.’
• Step 7: After successfully verifying the OTP, you can choose a username (with 6-15 characters) and set a password.
• Step 8: Confirm the password by entering it again and clicking ‘Save’. You can now log into the e-invoice system using the created credentials.

How to Generate e-Invoices on GST e-Invoice Portal

Once you register for e-invoicing, the next question that comes to your mind is ‘How to generate an e-invoice’. The einvoice portal offers multiple methods to generate e-invoices – Using the free tool provided by the portal, through direct API integration, and API integration through GSP. The guide below explains the step-by-step process to generate e-invoices using the free excel-based tool provided by the einvoice portal. 

Step-by-Step Guide to Generate e-Invoices on GST e-Invoice Portal

Here are the different steps involved in creating e-invoices on the GST portal. 

Step 1: Create a JSON File of the Final Invoices

Even before generating an e-invoice, you need to have a regular GST invoice that is usually created to record a sale. You can either use a manual invoice or an invoice generated using billing software. However, you cannot report a normal invoice directly to the GST portal. Instead, you need to create a JSON file before uploading it to the portal for e-invoice generation. Now, the question is how to create a JSON file. Here is a detailed guide. 

• Using GePP Tool to Generate JSON Files

If you generate invoices manually, either pen & paper-based or MS Word or Excel-based invoices, use the free offline tool provided by the e-invoice portal, ‘the GST e-Invoice Preparing and Printing (GePP) Tool’ to convert multiple invoices (up to 10) into a single JSON file.

The GePP Tool is a simple Excel-based tool designed to assist businesses not using any software or ERP solution to generate invoices. It enables businesses to create e-invoices and print them with QR codes. More suitable for businesses issuing 10 to 12 invoices per day. You need to have MS-Excel 2010 (or above) installed on your PC to use this tool. 

Here is a detailed guide to creating JSON files from manual invoices using the GePP Tool.

1. Visit the e-invoice portal at https://einvoice1.gst.gov.in/
2. Navigate to Help > Tools > Bulk Generation Tools 
3. On the GePP Tool page, click on ‘Download’.
4. You will be asked to fill out a form with the following details – type of user (taxpayer, tax professional, or others), GSTIN, Trade Name, Name, e-Mail ID, mobile number, and OTP. Once all the fields are filled, the tool will be downloaded to your PC. 
5. Open the tool. On the left-side menu, you will find two options: ‘e-Invoice Menu’ and ‘Masters Menu’. The e-Invoice Menu has options to create and upload invoices, check pending invoices & payment details, import QR codes, print, generate, & search e-invoices. 
6. The ‘Masters’ menu has ‘Supplier Profile’, ‘Recipient Master’ and ‘Product Master’. For first-time users, it is mandatory to enter the supplier, receipt, and product details, so the same will be auto-generated while creating invoices. 
7. To enter supplier details, click on ‘Supplier Profile’ and enter Supplier GSTIN, Trade Name, Legal Name, Address, Phone Number, e-mail ID, etc. You can also add your company logo here so that the same will be printed on the e-invoice. 
8. To enter receipt details, click on ‘Receipt Master’ and enter the receipt’s GSTIN, legal & trade names, address, and other details and click on ‘Update’. You can add multiple receipts in this tab. 
9. To enter your product details, click on ‘Product Master’ and enter the details of your product, including description, unit, price, GST rate, state CESS, etc., and click on ‘Update. You can update the details of existing products whenever necessary using the ‘Product Master’.
10. Once all these tabs are filled with the required information, you can now enter your invoice details to create JSON files. 
11. Go to the main page, under the e-Invoice Menu, and click on ‘New Invoice’.
12. e-Invoice Entry page with different fields to enter document details, ‘Bill To’ details, Transaction details, payment details, etc., will appear.
13. Enter all the details using the data from your existing invoices. You can also enter the e-Way bill details, if applicable. Some fields like ‘Bill To’ and ‘Item Details’ will be auto-populated by entering the first three letters and by selecting the related option.
14. Once all the details are entered correclty, click on ‘Submit’ to see the preview of the e-invoice. You may confirm the entry or edit, if required. 
15. On confirmation, the e-invoice entry file gets created and the same will be available under the ‘Pending Invoices’ option. 
16. You can enter a maximum of 10 invoices and keep them pending for IRN generation. 
17. Once you’re ready for IRN generation, go to ‘Pending Invoices’ and click on ‘Validate’. 
18. Once the tool validates the data, click on ‘Prepare JSON’
19. The JSON file will be generated for all the pending invoices in the same file where your tool is located on your PC. If there are any errors in the entry, the same will be displayed in this step. Correct them and click on ‘Prepare JSON’ option again. 

Step 2: Upload JSON File to e-Invoice Portal

Once the JSON file is ready, you can upload it to the e-Invoice portal to generate e-invoices for all the invoices. Here is the detailed guide to generating e-invoices on the e-invoice portal. Please note that this step is applicable only for manual invoices converted to JSON using the GePP tool or other tool. For those using billing software, this step is not required as the software directly generates e-invoices. 

1. Visit the e-Invoice portal at einvoice1.gst.gov.in/ or einvoice2.gst.gov.in/
2. Click on the ‘Login’ button, enter your login credentials and click ‘Login’
3. Once logged in, from the left side menu, select ‘e-Invoice > Bulk Upload’
4. You will be redirected to the ‘Invoice Bulk Upload’ page, where you can upload the JSON file.
5. Click on the ‘Browse’ option to choose the JSON file and click on ‘Upload’.
6. Once the file is uploaded, the system processes the JSON file and generates the IRNs (Invoice Reference Number) for each invoice separately. 
7. You will find the details of individual invoices with IRN and other details under the ‘Successfully Uploaded Invoice Details’ table in the portal. 

Step 3: How to Download & Print e-Invoice

Once the portal returns the invoices with unique identifiers or IRNs, you will have the option to either ‘Download the Signed JSON’ or ‘Download Excel’.

1. Choose the ‘Download Excel’ option. 
2. Once the JSON Excel is downloaded, go back to the GePP tool, select ‘Import QR Code’, and choose the downloaded JSON Excel to auto-import the IRN data from the sheet. 
3. On successful updation, you will see a message ‘We imported X IRNs’ with X representing the number of IRNs imported to the tool. 
4. The ‘Generated e-Invoices’ tab in the tool will then be auto-updated with the ‘Acknowledgement Number, Acknowledgement Date, and the IRN’ of the e-invoices. 
5. You can print the e-invoices individually by clicking on the ‘Print’ option. 
6. The printed e-invoice contains
   • QR Code
   • IRN
   • Acknowledgement Number
   • Acknowledgement Date
   • Document Details like invoice category, number, date, type
   • Seller and Receipt’s GSTIN, Full address, contact details
   • Item Details like the serial number, product description, HSN code, quantity, unit price, discount, price break-up, total amount, etc.
   • At the bottom, it also contains the ‘Generated by’, ‘Print Date’, and e-Sign or digital signature by the National Informatics Centre (NIC).  

Experience Hassle-Free e-Invoicing with myBillBook e-Invoicing Software

Have you noticed that it takes 19 steps to create a JSON file, 6 steps to upload it to IRP, and another 5 steps to view the e-invoice? Even though there is a ‘Bulk IRN Generation‘ option available, it may require the same amount of steps to generate e-invoices in bulk. This feels like an additional task that needs to be done every time an invoice is generated. Don’t you think so? What if I told you that you can generate e-invoices with just one click, without having to go through all these steps?

With the help of e-invoicing software like myBillBook, you can generate e-invoices with just one click. myBillBook’s e-Invoicing feature makes it easy for its users to generate e-invoices without leaving the application. By partnering with Masters India Pvt, the GST Suvidha Provider (GSP) for e-invoicing, myBillBook enables its users to generate e-invoices effortlessly. 

Generate e-Invoices with One Click on myBillBook e-Invoicing Software

To generate e-invoices on myBillBook, you need to have a valid subscription on myBillBook. Once you’re an active user, enable e-invoicing on myBillBook application. You can then register your GSTIN for API through GSP by visiting e-invoice portal. Watch this video for a detailed guide on GSP registration on e-Invoice portal. 

Once you register your GSTIN, you can start generating e-invoices directly from myBillBook. 

Here is a detailed video explaining how you can easily create e-invoices on myBillBook e-invoicing software. 

Click here for a step-by-step process guide for the same.

FAQs