GST Registration in India – Just ₹1499/- + GST

Who Must Register: Turnover Thresholds

GST registration becomes mandatory once a business crosses a prescribed aggregate turnover in a financial year. The limits differ depending on whether the business supplies goods, services, or both, and depending on the state where it operates.

Special category states include Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Puducherry, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttarakhand, and a few others where lower thresholds apply.

Businesses below these limits aren't compelled to register but can opt for voluntary registration to access ITC and build credibility with larger buyers.

What Counts as "Aggregate Turnover"

Aggregate turnover includes all taxable supplies, exempt supplies, exports, and inter-state supplies made under the same PAN across India. It excludes inward supplies taxed under reverse charge and the value of job-worked goods for a job worker. Businesses supplying goods that are wholly exempt, or agriculturists supplying only produce from cultivated land, generally fall outside the registration requirement altogether.

Categories That Must Register Regardless of Turnover

Some businesses must register under GST even if their turnover is well below the threshold:

• Inter-state suppliers of taxable goods (small inter-state service suppliers under the threshold are exempted, and handicraft suppliers get relief until they cross the limit)
• E-commerce operators and sellers on online marketplaces such as Amazon, Flipkart, and ride-hailing platforms like Ola and Uber
• Casual taxable persons who occasionally supply goods or services in a state without a fixed place of business, such as a fireworks stall set up only during Diwali or an event company running a trade fair
• Non-resident taxable persons supplying goods or services in India
• Persons liable under the Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM)
• TDS deductors and TCS collectors under GST
• Input Service Distributors (ISDs), who must register separately regardless of turnover
• Agents, including consignment agents and C&F agents, making supplies on behalf of a principal
• OIDAR service providers (Online Information and Database Access or Retrieval services) supplying from outside India to unregistered persons in India
• Suppliers of online money gaming from outside India to persons in India, a category added in more recent amendments

Types of GST Registration

GST registration isn't one-size-fits-all. Depending on how a business operates, it falls into one of the following categories, each with its own rules and filing obligations.

Normal Taxpayer

This is the default category and covers most businesses in India. Anyone crossing the turnover threshold, or falling into a mandatory category, registers as a Normal Taxpayer unless a more specific category applies. There's no expiry date attached to this registration, and it continues until the business voluntarily cancels it or the department cancels it for non-compliance.

Composition Scheme

The Composition Scheme exists to ease compliance for small taxpayers, mainly small retailers, restaurants (excluding those serving alcohol), and small manufacturers. Instead of charging GST on every invoice and filing monthly returns, a business under this scheme pays a fixed percentage of its annual turnover as tax.

Eligibility for the Composition Scheme:

• Must already be a registered taxpayer
• Annual turnover must be up to Rs 1.5 crore in most states (the limit is lower, around Rs 75 lakh, for a few North-Eastern states and Himachal Pradesh)
• Available to manufacturers, traders, and restaurants not serving alcohol; a separate composition option with a lower turnover cap also exists for certain service providers

Benefits include filing a single quarterly return instead of multiple monthly ones, a lower effective tax rate, and simpler books of account. The trade-off is that a composition dealer cannot collect GST separately from customers or claim Input Tax Credit on purchases. If you're a small trader or manufacturer weighing this option, it helps to pair it with an MSME/Udyam registration, which unlocks separate benefits like collateral-free loans and delayed-payment protection.

Casual Taxable Person

A Casual Taxable Person is someone who supplies goods or services occasionally in a state where they have no fixed place of business. For example, an event management company organizing a three-day trade exhibition in a state where it doesn't normally operate needs to register as a Casual Taxable Person for that specific state before the event begins. The same applies to a consultant based in Delhi who takes on a short project requiring on-site work in Rajasthan; registration is needed for that state, even for a temporary engagement.

Casual and non-resident taxable persons must apply at least 5 days before starting business, and the registration typically comes with a validity period tied to the duration of the activity.

Non-Resident Taxable Person (NRTP)

An NRTP is a foreign business or individual that occasionally supplies goods or services in India without having any fixed place of business here, such as a foreign company participating in a one-time trade exhibition in India. This is different from a Casual Taxable Person, who is a resident operating temporarily outside their home state. Like the CTP category, NRTP registration must be applied for at least 5 days before starting business and is tied to a specific validity period.

Input Service Distributor (ISD)

An ISD is typically a head office or branch that receives invoices for input services on behalf of other branches and distributes the available Input Tax Credit among them. This registration is mandatory regardless of turnover, since its entire purpose is credit distribution, not making outward taxable supplies itself.

SEZ Developer and SEZ Unit

Businesses operating inside a Special Economic Zone need a registration separate from any unit the same entity may run in the Domestic Tariff Area, even within the same state. This keeps supplies to and from the SEZ correctly tracked for the zero-rated benefits SEZ transactions typically get.

TDS Deductor

Government departments, local authorities, and certain notified entities that are required to deduct tax at source on payments to suppliers must register separately as a TDS Deductor, even if they aren't otherwise engaged in taxable supply.

TCS Collector (E-commerce Operator)

Platforms like Amazon and Flipkart that facilitate sales for other sellers and collect tax at source on those transactions register under this category. This is distinct from the registration an individual seller needs for selling on the same platform.

OIDAR Service Provider

Foreign entities supplying Online Information and Database Access or Retrieval services, such as streaming subscriptions or downloadable software, to consumers in India must register under this simplified category, even without a physical presence in the country.

Documents Required for GST Registration

Getting the paperwork right the first time avoids a query notice from the department, which can add days to the process. The exact list depends on your business structure, but most applications need the following.

• 1. PAN Card of the business or applicant: GSTIN is directly linked to the PAN of the business, so this is the starting point for every application.
• 2. Identity and address proof of promoters or partners: PAN, passport, driving license, Aadhaar card, or voter ID of every director, partner, or proprietor, submitted for both identity and address verification.
• 3. Business registration proof: This varies by entity type:
  • Private Limited Company: Certificate of Incorporation, Memorandum of Association (MOA), and Articles of Association (AOA) — if you haven't incorporated yet, this is where a Pvt Ltd Company Registration needs to happen first
  • LLP: Certificate of Incorporation and the LLP Agreement
  • Partnership firm: Partnership Deed
  • Proprietorship: no separate registration document, since the proprietor's PAN and Aadhaar serve as proof
• 4. Address proof for the place of business: Rent agreement or sale deed, along with a recent electricity bill, property tax receipt, or municipal khata copy for the registered office or principal place of business.
• 5. Bank account proof: A scanned copy of the first page of the bank passbook or a cancelled cheque showing the account number, IFSC code, and the business name, for the account declared in the application.
• 6. Digital Signature Certificate (DSC): Companies and LLPs must sign the application using a Class 2 or Class 3 DSC. Proprietorships and partnerships can instead use an Electronic Verification Code (EVC), an OTP sent to the registered mobile number and email, so a DSC isn't mandatory for them.

GST Registration Process: Form by Form

For New GST Registrations

• Step 1: Visit the official GST portal at gst.gov.in and go to the Registration tab.
• Step 2: Fill Part A of Form GST REG-01 with PAN, mobile number, email ID, and state.
• Step 3: Verify the OTP sent to your mobile and email. A Temporary Reference Number (TRN) is generated.
• Step 4: An acknowledgement is issued electronically in Form GST REG-02.
• Step 5: Log back in using the TRN and complete Part B of Form GST REG-01, signed digitally through DSC or verified through EVC.
• Step 6: Upload the documents required for your business type (PAN, address proof, bank details, incorporation documents, and so on).
• Step 7: If the officer needs more information or clarification, they issue Form GST REG-03, and you must respond in Form GST REG-04 within 7 working days of receiving it.
• Step 8: If the application has errors or the response isn't satisfactory, it can be rejected through Form GST REG-05.
• Step 9: Once everything checks out, the registration certificate is issued in Form GST REG-06, and your GSTIN becomes active.

Low-risk applicants who complete Aadhaar authentication can now be approved through a faster route within about 3 working days. Standard applications, or those flagged for manual review, typically take up to 7 working days for the officer to raise a query or grant approval.

For Dealers Migrating from Earlier Tax Laws

Businesses already registered under VAT, Excise, or Service Tax before GST rolled out followed a separate migration path:

• 1. Validate email ID and mobile number on the common portal using the PAN already on record.
• 2. Submit Form GST REG-24 with the required information and documents within the notified window.
• 3. A provisional registration certificate is issued in Form GST REG-25.
• 4. If multiple registrations existed under one PAN under the old law, only one provisional registration is granted per dealer; centralized service tax registrations get a single provisional registration in the state where they were originally registered.
• 5. Once the department is satisfied with the details, the final certificate is issued in Form GST REG-26.
• 6. If the submitted details aren't satisfactory, a Show Cause Notice is issued in Form GST REG-27, followed by a hearing before any cancellation of the provisional registration.

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GST Registration Certificate & Display Requirement

Every registered business must display its GST registration certificate at its principal and any additional places of business, and show the GSTIN on its signboard.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Operating without registration, or getting the paperwork wrong after registering, carries real financial consequences:

Beyond these fixed penalties, unpaid tax also attracts interest, and repeated non-compliance can lead to cancellation of registration by the proper officer.

The Nature of GST Registration

GST registration is PAN-based and state-specific. A business must register separately in every state or Union Territory from which it makes supplies.

A single PAN-based entity ends up with one GSTIN per state of operation, not one registration for the whole country. This is a departure from the old centralized service tax system, where a single registration often covered operations across India.

A few nuances worth knowing:

• A person registered in one state is treated as unregistered in any other state.
• A unit inside a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and a unit in the Domestic Tariff Area within the same state must take separate registrations.
• A supplier wanting to distribute credit to other units under the same PAN must additionally register as an Input Service Distributor.
• The GSTIN structure includes the state code (first 2 digits), the PAN of the entity (next 10 digits), an entity code, and a checksum digit.
• One registration covers all GST components — CGST, SGST/UTGST, IGST, and applicable cesses — so there's no need for tax-specific registrations.

What's New in GST Registration and Compliance

GST registration rules haven't changed dramatically in structure, but several compliance-side updates now directly affect newly registered and existing taxpayers:

• Rationalized tax slabs: the GST rate structure is now mainly 0%, 5%, 18%, and 40%, with the earlier 12% and 28% slabs largely phased out for most goods and services.
• Mandatory bank account details: furnishing verified bank account details at the time of registration, or shortly after, is now compulsory. Skipping this can trigger automatic suspension of the GSTIN.
• Three-year time-bar on return filing: GST returns older than three years from their original due date can no longer be filed on the portal, a hard cutoff enforced from December 2025 onward.
• Stricter e-invoicing timelines: businesses with aggregate annual turnover above Rs 10 crore must report e-invoices to the Invoice Registration Portal (IRP) within 30 days of the invoice date, or the IRN cannot be generated at all.
• Lower e-invoicing threshold: e-invoicing now applies to businesses crossing Rs 5 crore turnover, widening the pool of taxpayers who must issue e-invoices.
• Simplified registration route review: taxpayers who used the 3-working-day fast-track registration route under CGST Rule 14A, meant for small suppliers with modest monthly output tax liability, now have a clearer exit process if they no longer qualify.
• Turnover reassessment: businesses are expected to recheck their aggregate annual turnover at the start of each financial year, since crossing the threshold makes registration mandatory even if it wasn't required earlier.

Because GST rates, thresholds, and procedures get revised periodically by the GST Council, it's worth cross-checking the latest position on the official GST portal (www.gst.gov.in) or the CBIC website before making a registration decision.

Amendment, Cancellation, and Suspension of Registration

• Amendments: routine changes, like email, mobile number, or day-to-day authorized signatories, can be updated by the taxpayer directly on the portal without approval. Core changes, such as legal name or a change in the state of business, require an application within 15 days, with the officer expected to approve within the next 15 days.
• Cancellation: a taxpayer no longer needing registration can apply for voluntary cancellation, while a proper officer can initiate cancellation on specified grounds, such as not conducting business from the registered address. Voluntary registrations can now be cancelled at any time, without waiting out a minimum period.
• Suspension: registration is deemed suspended from the date a cancellation application is filed, pending final disposal, during which the taxpayer cannot make taxable supplies and is generally expected to keep filing returns.
• Revocation of cancellation: if registration was cancelled by the officer's own action, the taxpayer can apply for revocation within 30 days of the cancellation order, provided any pending returns and dues are cleared first.

Why Choose LegalDev for Your GST Registration

• Getting Form GST REG-01 right the first time: Filling out Form GST REG-01 correctly the first time is harder than it looks. A wrong document, a mismatched address proof, or an incomplete Part B is usually what triggers a REG-03 query notice and adds another week to the process. This is where working with a team that handles GST filings every day, instead of doing it once for your own business, makes the difference.
• End-to-end handling, not just form-filling: LegalDev doesn't just submit your application and leave you to handle the follow-up. From checking which documents apply to your specific business structure, to responding if the officer raises a query under REG-03, the process is managed from start to finish, so you're not the one deciphering government notices at 11 PM.
• Guidance on the registration type that actually fits your business: Not every business needs a standard registration. A small trader might save more under the Composition Scheme. An event company running a one-off exhibition in another state needs a Casual Taxable Person registration, not a regular one. LegalDev's team reviews your business model first and recommends the registration type that matches it, rather than pushing a one-size-fits-all form.
• Fewer rejections, fewer delays: Most registration delays come down to document mismatches, an address proof that doesn't match the application, or missing bank details. Because documents are reviewed by someone who has seen thousands of GST applications, errors get caught before submission rather than after a rejection notice.
• Support that continues after the GSTIN is issued: Getting the GSTIN is the starting point, not the finish line. Businesses still need to file returns, meet the e-invoicing threshold if applicable, keep bank details verified, and respond to any amendment requirements. LegalDev's support extends beyond the registration certificate to help with these ongoing compliance needs.
• Transparent pricing, no hidden charges: GST registration through the government portal is free, but the drafting, document review, and follow-up that professional services add come at a cost. LegalDev keeps this upfront, so you know what you're paying for before you start, with no surprise charges once the application is already in process.
• Built for every business type: Whether you're a proprietorship applying for the first time, a private limited company, an LLP, or an existing VAT/Service Tax dealer migrating to GST, the document checklist and process differ. LegalDev's team is familiar with all these paths and adjusts the process to your specific entity type instead of applying a generic checklist.

If you're planning to register for GST, or if an existing application has run into a query notice, getting it right the first time saves both time and the back-and-forth with the department. That's the gap LegalDev is built to close.

Already selling food products? Pair your GST registration with an FSSAI Registration to stay compliant on both fronts, and consider a Trademark Registration once your brand starts scaling on e-commerce platforms.

Related Guides

If you found this helpful, explore these related resources:

• FSSAI Registration – mandatory for every food business, alongside GST
• MSME/Udyam Registration – for small businesses and manufacturers, including composition dealers
• Trademark Registration – protect your brand name before scaling on e-commerce platforms
• Trade License – required alongside GST for most local municipal approvals
• ISO Certification – for businesses formalizing quality and safety standards
• Pvt Ltd Company Registration – incorporate first if GST registration needs a Certificate of Incorporation

Get Your GST Registration Today

Whether you're registering for the first time, switching to the Composition Scheme, or migrating from an older VAT/Service Tax registration, our team handles document review, form filing on the GST portal, and query resolution — start to finish.

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Final Thoughts

GST registration is the entry point into India's indirect tax system. It's what makes a business visible to the tax authorities and lets it take part legally in the flow of Input Tax Credit. The basic thresholds — Rs 40 lakh for goods and Rs 20 lakh for services, with lower limits in special category states — have stayed broadly the same. What has tightened heading into 2026 is everything around registration: bank verification, e-invoicing timelines, and a hard cutoff on filing old returns. Whether you're registering for the first time or already hold a GSTIN, it helps to treat GST compliance as an ongoing responsibility rather than a one-time form you fill out and forget.