Invoicing as a Freelancer in India (GST Guide)

A freelancer in India who is registered for GST must issue a tax invoice with your name, address and GSTIN, a serial number unique for the financial year, the date, your client's name, address and GSTIN, the SAC code of the service, a description, the taxable value, the GST rate and amount (CGST + SGST for a client in your state, IGST for a client in another state), the place of supply and whether reverse charge applies. If your turnover is below the registration limit and you haven't registered, you invoice without GST and without a GSTIN.

This guide walks through each rule as it applies to a one-person services business: designers, developers, writers, consultants, marketers. It ends with a worked example. Need an invoice right now? The free India invoice generator works without an account and gives you a PDF.

Do you need GST registration?

For a business that supplies services, registration becomes mandatory once your aggregate turnover in a financial year exceeds ₹20 lakh. In Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura the limit is ₹10 lakh. Aggregate turnover is counted for your PAN across India, not per client or per state.

Three points freelancers often miss:

• Clients in other states don't force you to register. Inter-state supplies normally require registration whatever your turnover, but suppliers of services below the ₹20 lakh / ₹10 lakh limit are exempt from that rule.
• You can register voluntarily. Many freelancers do it because business clients want a GSTIN on the invoice to claim input tax credit. Once registered, you charge GST on every taxable invoice and file returns, even if your turnover stays low.
• You have 30 days to apply once you become liable. Turnover is counted over the Indian financial year, 1 April to 31 March.

Not registered? Then you don't charge GST and you don't put a GSTIN on your invoices. A clear invoice with your name, address, PAN, a number, a date, a description and the amount is still what your client's accounts team will ask for.

What a GST tax invoice must show

Rule 46 of the CGST Rules lists the details. For a freelancer billing services, these are the ones that apply:

1. Your name, address and GSTIN.
2. A consecutive serial number, in one or more series, unique for the financial year. It may contain letters, digits, hyphens and slashes, for example 2026-27/014.
3. The date of issue.
4. Your client's name, address and GSTIN (or UIN) if they're registered.
5. For an unregistered client, their name and address and the name and code of their state, when the taxable value is ₹50,000 or more.
6. The HSN code or, for services, the SAC code.
7. A description of the service.
8. The taxable value, after any discount.
9. The rate and amount of tax: CGST and SGST (or UTGST), or IGST, plus cess if any.
10. The place of supply with the name of the state, for inter-state supplies.
11. Whether tax is payable on reverse charge.
12. Your signature or digital signature. It isn't needed on an electronic invoice issued under the Information Technology Act, 2000.

There is no prescribed layout. A logo, bank details and a due date are optional, but adding your bank account or UPI ID gets you paid faster.

Two copies and the 30-day rule

For services, the invoice is prepared in duplicate: the original marked ORIGINAL FOR RECIPIENT, the copy marked DUPLICATE FOR SUPPLIER. With PDF invoices that usually means keeping your own copy of the same file.

You can invoice before or after the work, but if you invoice after, it must be within 30 days of the date of supply. On a monthly retainer where the contract fixes a payment date, the invoice is due on or before that date.

CGST + SGST or IGST?

GST on a service is split according to where the supply takes place compared with where you're registered:

For most business-to-business services, the place of supply is where your registered client is located. A designer in Pune billing a company in Mumbai charges CGST + SGST; billing a company in Bengaluru, they charge IGST and write Place of supply: Karnataka (29) on the invoice.

Which GST rate?

Most freelance services, such as software development, design, consulting, marketing, writing and translation, are charged at 18%. The GST Council's rate reform that took effect on 22 September 2025 moved to two main rates, 5% and 18%, and shifted some services to 5% without input tax credit, for example gyms, salons and hotel rooms up to ₹7,500 a day. If your work isn't a typical professional service, check the rate for your SAC code before you send the first invoice.

HSN code vs SAC code

The query "HSN code meaning" comes up a lot, and the answer is short. HSN (Harmonised System of Nomenclature) classifies goods. SAC (Services Accounting Code) classifies services, and it's the one most freelancers need. Both go in the same column of a GST invoice.

How many digits you must show depends on your aggregate turnover in the previous financial year:

• Up to ₹5 crore: 4 digits. On invoices to unregistered clients you may leave the code out.
• Above ₹5 crore: 6 digits on every invoice.

Services codes start with 99. Professional, technical and business services, for instance, fall under heading 9983. You can look up your exact code with the HSN/SAC search on the GST portal.

Advances, deposits and retainers

Asking for 50% up front is common, and GST treats it in a specific way. When you receive an advance, you issue a receipt voucher, and for services GST is payable on the advance when you receive it, not when you finish the job. The receipt voucher shows your details, its own serial number, the date, the client, a description, the amount of the advance and the tax.

If the job is then cancelled and no invoice follows, you issue a refund voucher for the amount you pay back.

Templates for asking for that first payment politely are in our guide to deposit request emails.

Clients outside India: exports and LUT

Working for a client abroad is an export of services when, among other conditions, you're in India, the client is outside India, and you're paid in convertible foreign exchange (or in rupees where the RBI allows it). Exports are zero-rated, and you have two ways to handle the GST:

1. Under a Letter of Undertaking (LUT), filed online in form GST RFD-11 before you export. You invoice without IGST.
2. Paying IGST on the invoice and claiming it back as a refund.

Most freelancers use the LUT route because no money gets tied up. On the invoice, add a line such as "Supply meant for export under LUT without payment of IGST" and your client's full address abroad. Your chartered accountant can confirm the exact wording for your case.

Does e-invoicing apply to you?

Probably not. E-invoicing, where each B2B invoice is reported to the Invoice Registration Portal and gets an IRN and QR code, is mandatory for businesses with aggregate turnover above ₹5 crore in any financial year since 2017-18 (the limit applies from 1 August 2023). A freelancer below that limit issues normal tax invoices.

Worked example

Priya is a UX designer in Pune, Maharashtra, registered for GST. In October she redesigns a checkout flow for a company in Bengaluru, Karnataka, for ₹80,000.

• Invoice number: 2026-27/014 · Date: 06/11/2026
• From: Priya Kulkarni, Pune, Maharashtra · GSTIN 27XXXXX0000X1Z5
• To: Client Pvt. Ltd., Bengaluru, Karnataka · GSTIN 29XXXXX0000X1Z2
• Place of supply: Karnataka (29) · Reverse charge: No
• Line: UX redesign of checkout flow, October 2026 · SAC 9983 · ₹80,000

If the same client were in Mumbai, the invoice would show CGST 9% ₹7,200 and SGST 9% ₹7,200 instead of IGST, with the same total of ₹94,400.

Your client may deduct TDS under the income-tax rules before paying you. That doesn't change the invoice: you bill the full amount and reconcile the TDS credit in your income-tax filing.

Making GST invoices in KipBill

You can build this invoice in the free generator without signing up. If you invoice every month, a free KipBill account keeps your clients, numbering and history in one place:

• GSTIN: choose India as your country and enter your GSTIN as your tax ID; your client's GSTIN goes in their tax ID field. Both print on the PDF.
• CGST + SGST: a line can carry two taxes, so set CGST 9% and SGST 9% for clients in your state, or one IGST 18% line for other states. The PDF shows a total for each tax.
• SAC code: write it in the line description, e.g. "UX redesign · SAC 9983".
• Place of supply, reverse charge, LUT note: add them to the invoice notes; you can save default notes for your business.
• Numbering: set your own prefix, such as 2026-27/.

KipBill doesn't generate an IRN, connect to the GST portal or file GSTR-1 for you. Your accountant or the GST portal handles returns.

Create your free account to save clients and send invoices by email. For the broader basics of payment terms, follow-ups and records, see our complete invoicing guide for freelancers.

FAQ

Do I need GST registration as a freelancer earning under ₹20 lakh?

No, unless you choose to register. Suppliers of services below ₹20 lakh of aggregate turnover a year (₹10 lakh in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura) don't have to register, even if their clients are in other states.

Can I issue an invoice without a GSTIN?

Yes, if you're not registered. Don't charge GST and don't show a GST rate. Once you're registered, every tax invoice must carry your GSTIN.

What does an HSN code mean on an invoice?

It's the classification code of the goods sold. For services you use the SAC code instead. Up to ₹5 crore of turnover you show 4 digits, above that 6.

What invoice number format should I use?

Any format, as long as each number is consecutive and unique within the financial year. Letters, digits, "-" and "/" are allowed, for example 2026-27/001.

Do I charge GST to a client in the US or UK?

Not if the work qualifies as an export of services and you've filed an LUT: the invoice carries no IGST. Without an LUT you charge IGST and claim a refund.