In India, holding a tax invoice is not enough by itself to secure input tax credit (ITC). First check whether the supplier reported the invoice and it appears in your GSTR-2B. If it does appear but the supplier fails to file the corresponding GSTR-3B, Rule 37A sets a separate monitoring, reversal and possible re-availment process. These are different problems, with different checks and deadlines.
First identify what the supplier failed to do
Supplier invoice reporting and supplier return filing are not interchangeable. Section 16(2)(aa) of the CGST Act makes supplier furnishing of invoice or debit-note details, and communication of those details to the recipient under section 37, relevant to ITC eligibility. Rule 36(4) addresses the related requirement that supplier-furnished details be communicated in GSTR-2B. Rule 37A addresses a later step: a supplier reported the invoice, but did not file the corresponding GSTR-3B within the prescribed period.
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| Situation | What to check | Main provision | Practical significance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invoice is absent from GSTR-2B | Whether the supplier furnished the invoice or debit-note details in GSTR-1, GSTR-1A or IFF, and whether the details were communicated in GSTR-2B | Section 16(2)(aa) of the CGST Act; Rule 36(4) | A paper invoice alone does not establish that the supplier-reporting and communication conditions have been met. |
| Invoice appears in GSTR-2B, but the supplier did not file the corresponding GSTR-3B | Whether that return was filed by 30 September following the financial year in which you availed the ITC, and whether a reversal is due by 30 November | Rule 37A | Track the return-filing and reversal deadlines separately from the invoice match. |
| You have not paid the supplier | Whether value plus tax was paid within 180 days, subject to the law’s terms and exceptions | Rule 37 | This is a separate payment-related condition, not the supplier non-filing mechanism in Rule 37A. |
What to do when an invoice is missing from GSTR-2B
- Reconcile invoice by invoice. Compare your purchase register with GSTR-2B. Record the supplier GSTIN, invoice number and date, taxable value, tax amount, and the relevant reporting period. Do not rely only on a total-level reconciliation.
- Find the type of mismatch. Check whether the supplier has not uploaded the invoice, used the wrong GSTIN or invoice details, or reported it in a different period. A timing difference and an incorrect identifier need different follow-up.
- Ask the supplier to furnish or correct the details. Request confirmation of the return or statement period in which the correction will be made, and keep dated correspondence and the supplier’s response. This is a useful control, not a guarantee that the supplier will file or that the invoice will appear by a particular date.
- Recheck GSTR-2B after the supplier’s correction. Keep a record of when the item appears and match it back to the purchase-register entry before updating your ITC reconciliation.
- Do not treat the 5% figure as an automatic allowance. Rule 36(4) limits credit for invoices not furnished by suppliers to 5% of eligible credit on invoices that were furnished. It is not a blanket entitlement to claim every missing invoice: the relevant statutory conditions and other ITC restrictions still apply.
The CBIC Tax Information portal publishes section 16(2)(aa) and Rule 36(4); the official GST Portal’s GSTR-1 guide explains that GSTR-1 is the supplier’s outward-supplies statement. Those provisions and mechanics make the portal reconciliation important, but a recipient’s possession of an invoice does not itself cure missing supplier reporting.
What to do when the invoice appears but the supplier has not filed GSTR-3B
Use Rule 37A only for this distinct fact pattern: the supplier furnished the invoice details in GSTR-1 (including amendments in GSTR-1A) or IFF, you availed the related ITC, and the supplier did not file the corresponding GSTR-3B by 30 September following the financial year in which you availed that credit.
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- Record the financial year in which you availed the ITC. Rule 37A’s clock is tied to that year, not simply to the invoice date or the supplier’s reporting period.
- Monitor filing of the matching GSTR-3B. Check whether the supplier filed the return corresponding to the reported invoice by 30 September following that financial year.
- Reverse the relevant ITC by 30 November if the supplier has not filed by 30 September. The reversal is made in a GSTR-3B return. Rule 37A provides that an amount not reversed by that deadline is payable with interest under section 50.
- Re-avail after the supplier files the corresponding return. Rule 37A permits the recipient to re-avail the amount in a later GSTR-3B. Retain a clear link between the original credit, the reversal, the supplier’s filing and the later re-availment.
For example, if you availed the credit in financial year 2025–26, the Rule 37A check is whether the supplier filed the corresponding GSTR-3B by 30 September 2026; if not, the stated reversal deadline is 30 November 2026. The example follows the deadline pair in Rule 37A and does not replace a check of the current rule text or other applicable conditions.
Keep an invoice-level audit trail
Maintain a record that lets your finance team show what was purchased, how the invoice was reconciled, what the supplier did, and how any reversal or re-availment was handled. A practical file can include:
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- The tax invoice, purchase order or contract, and proof of receipt of goods or services.
- Supplier GSTIN and invoice identifiers, plus the purchase-register entry and the relevant GSTR-2B reconciliation.
- Payment records and dated supplier follow-up, including any confirmation of the return period in which the supplier will report or correct the invoice.
- A calendar or control log recording the financial year in which ITC was availed, the supplier’s corresponding GSTR-3B filing status, the 30 September check and any 30 November reversal deadline.
- Where Rule 37A applies, evidence tying the reversal to the later supplier filing and re-availment.
This is a recommended monitoring and evidence workflow, not a verbatim statutory checklist. Apply your organisation’s approval and reconciliation controls, and preserve the underlying records in line with its record-retention practices.
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A supplier’s failure to file GSTR-3B under Rule 37A is not the same as a recipient’s failure to pay the supplier within 180 days under Rule 37. If both circumstances arise, assess each under its own provision rather than treating one deadline or remedy as resolving the other. Other eligibility conditions, blocked credits, tax periods, notices and legal changes can also affect an individual claim.
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Rule 37A was inserted by Notification No. 26/2022–Central Tax dated 26 December 2022. The deadline mechanics described here are reflected in a November 2025 bare-law compilation from the Telangana Commercial Taxes Department / GST & Indirect Taxes Committee. Check the current CGST Act and Rules and applicable notifications for any later changes. For a substantial credit, a notice, or a disputed fact pattern, have an Indian GST practitioner assess the records and current law; these provisions do not establish a universal defence for every recipient.
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