All of you might be aware that now instead of VAT, GST is the norm in all our shopping bills. However, there may be few instances where shops or hotels may use fake GST Bill or GST number and may dupe you. Hence, let us understand how to identify or verify fake GST Bill and GST number.
We usually go for shopping. Do the shopping and get the bill for the same. But whether you cross checked the GST rate which is collected from you? Also, whether you cross check the genuineness of GSTIN?
As per the rule, shops or restaurants which not registered under GST must not be eligible for a collection of GST tax. However, few shops and restaurants not registered their business under GST regime (may be due to their less business or to avoid taxation issue). But generating GST Bill and collecting the money from customers.
How to verify fake GST Bill and GST number?
Following the below process, you can verify the verify fake GST Bill and GST number. Before proceeding further, let us understand the basics about GST number or GSTIN (Refer old post:-All about 15 digit GSTIN (Goods and Services Tax Identification Number) format).
GSTIN is a 15 digit unique code which is will be assigned to each taxpayer, which will be State-wise and PAN-based. The structure or format of 15 digit GSTIN (Goods and Services Tax Identification Number) will look like below.
First two Digits-The first digit of GSTIN is state code as per Indian Census 2011. The state codes are as below.
01-Jammu and Kashmir, 02-Himachal Pradesh, 03-Punjab, 04-Chandigarh, 05-Uttarakhand, 06-Haryana, 07-Delhi, 08-Rajastan, 09-UP, 10-Bihar, 11-Sikkim, 12-Arunachal Pradesh, 13-Nagaland, 14-Manipur, 15-Mizoram, 16-Tripura, 17-Meghalaya, 18-Assam, 19-West Bengal, 20-Jharkhand, 21-Orrissa, 22-Chattisgarh, 23-MP, 24-Gujarat, 25-Daman and Diu, 26-Dadar and Nagar Haveli, 27-Maharashtra, 28-Andhra Pradesh, 29-Karnataka, 30-Goa, 31-Lakshadweep, 32-Kerala, 33-Tamil Nadu, 34-Puducherry and 35-Anadaman and Nicobar Islands.
Next 10 Digits-It is the PAN number of a business entity like your shop, mall or company.
13th Digit-It indicates the number of registrations as a business entity has within a state for the same PAN. It will be an alpha-numeric number (first 1-9 and then A-Z) and will be assigned on the basis of the number of registrations a legal entity (having the same PAN) has within one state.
Let say the company ABC registered in the same state for 5 times for different businesses. In such case, this digit will be printed as 5. Let us assume, the same company registered for around 15 times, then it should be represented as F (1-9 numeric and later on 10th registration be named as A and 11th as B and so on up to Z).
Hence, a business entity can register the GSTIN within a single state for the maximum of 35 times (1-9 and later on A-Z).
14th Digit-It will be by default as Z.
15th Digit-The last digit will be a check code which will be used for detection of errors.
Now let us understand the process of identifying or verify fake GST Bill and GST number.
# Check the bill properly for shop or restaurant registered under GST or not.
It is easy to check. The business entity should print the GST Bill which also includes GSTIN and the tax rate should be as per GST slabs. Take the example of below bill. See the difference between earlier Bills (where VAT was in use and TIN number used to be mentioned) and the current bill under GST regime.
# Verify the genuineness of GST Number
Yesterday one of my blog readers shared this link to verify the genuineness of GST number of GSTIN.
Go to the said link and you will find the below screen.
# Cross check the GST rates
Once you checked the GST bill and the genuineness of the GST number or GSTIn, then cross check the GST rates applicable to the goods and service you purchased.
If you are familiar with rates, then it is fine. Otherwise, you can check it by visiting the GST Rates by visiting this LINK of Central Board of Excise and Customs.
# Complain against such fake or fraudulent practices
After going through all above process, if you found the bill, GST number or the rate taxed to you are fake or not in right format, then raise the complaint by using below contacting modes.
Email : [email protected]
Phone: 0120-4888999, 011-23370115
Twitter: @askGST_Goi, @FinMinIndia
Hope this information will be helpful for all of you.
Hi Sir, I was faced one issue with one of the restaurant in my area.
They mentioned one GST no in their bill and collected cgst, sgst -2.5%. But it not registered with the restaurant name , it was registered on another name that is registered on INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SOFTWARE SERVICE and COMMERCIAL TRAINING & COACHING.
Is this correct method or not?
Dear Vali,
It is wrong.
Actually we are receiving bills of implants ia printed proforma in which GST number, name address of seller is everything printed but the amount and details of the implant and GST deduction are written by hand. GST number and all has been verified but there is a possibility that the seller might be having the GST number registered but he have printed the proforma and issuing the invoice and the same GST might not have been deposited in GST account else he would have issued online generated invoice. How can we schek such type of invoice as multiple invoices we are receiving and in such cases there is a possibility that he may give back dated invoice too. so please guide how it can checked . whether by asking for GST challan from the seller we can verify it or by any other means because our is a bill settling unit and chances of fake invoice cannot be ruled out.
Dear Zafar,
It is hard to check (as per me).
Sir, I staied in a hotel for 3 days and it was a GST transection. However hotel is not provided GST bill against the subject transection. After many phone calls, they provided the certificate without signature. Afterwards they didn’t pick my phone call also.
Is that certificate valid??? If that is not valid, how can I proceed further????
Dear karthik,
I doubt.
Hi Sir,
I have team of 15 sales person ,
They always submit the genuine food bills with valid GST no ( KFC, other GSTIN registered Restaurant )but I am suspecting the bill no and bill amount claimed.
Is there any way out if want to check that the bill is fake or genuine..
Dear Kush,
Cross check with the issuer of the bill.
Sir..
I have been issued a bill with a valid registered GST number but I strongly suspect that the bill amount is fake…on searching the portal the GST IS VALID BUT THE PORTAL DOESNT SHOW RETURN FILED OF MARCH 2018..THE MONTH IN WHICH BILL WAS ISSUED..IS THAT BILL FAKE?? Any way to check validity??
Dear Navreet,
Sadly there is no such portal where you can cross check that particular person or company filed proper IT returns or not.
Dear basava raj ji..the portal shows gst returns of that company after may 2018 but the bill was issued in Feb 2018..does that not prove that the bill z fake…
Dear Navreet,
YES. In that case you can complain against company with IT Dept.
sir i have bought mobile phone in my name with gst paid and sold to another client now client want bill in his own name can i make same bill with that client name my number 9321550255.
Dear Dhanesh,
If you are not the GST registered individual, then how can you create a bill?
one who registered as works contractor, but he supplies cement and broken stone as per his bill . in which he collected gst. Is it allowed
Dear Moosa,
I think nature of business not a big concern as long as he is doing it with valid transactions.
Hello Sir,
I bought a new house in Hyderabad and i paid GST Rs 300000 and he gave tax invoice which is mentioned Tax invoice no, GSTIN and My flat no 401. I want to check the status weather he really paid GST on my name and flat no 401(which includes my name). Please Suggest
Dear Raju,
As per my knowledge, it is not possible.
Dear sir,
I need your help again I got my GSTIN and changed username, password etc and on 14 April we found that my current account was in my name not my shop the bank manager apologise and told us that it was his mistake, is there any way to change our current account number in GSTIN or shall I cancel my gstin and apply new one? (transaction cannot be made through my current account as gstin we closed account and create new current account in my shop name
Anthony-I am not an expert in that. Better to consult the IT Dept Helpdesk.
Telangana State code is 36 not added in the list…please make a correction
Naveen-Thanks for you sharing.
A person has submitted a original GST bill, purchased from online. But in the invoice he changes the name to some other person. Now how to check the bill to know the actual billing person name.
Bibeik-That is hard to find on public domain.
How could I find in any other domain to check? Please reply
Sir if motor cycle service centre gave ordinary bill after servicing where to be complain?
Dilip-You can use the above numbers to complain.
A hotel give me a bill with GSTN printed but GST break up ot printed. Confirm its a fake bill?
Prince-“but GST break up ot printed”-MEANS?
I FROM PRINTING SERVICES SHOP
CUSTOMER SAY GIVE ME GSTIN BILL
BUT AM NOT IN SLAB ON GSTIN
THAT CAN I DO??
HE SAY THAT IF YOU CAN NOT PROVIDE ME GSTIN BILL
OTHERWISE GET SERVICE WITH YOU.
that why i want to get GSTIN NO.
its OK or NOT
What can i do..??
Ali-You can register with GSTIN and issue the bill.
IF I AM REGISTER WITH GSTIN
CAN I ALSO CHARGE CGST & SGST or NOT??
i am register with GSTIN only for bill purpose sir
and not charge GSTIN is it possible.. only for GSTIN.
Ali-You can register your business under GST but taxation will be based on the slab they set.
Sir, my query is thay suppose I purchased something & got bill/invouce with gstin …
After one month i checked in the portal & found the Gst no correct. But i wanted to know the invoice no. & amount in the portal.
Can i find the details pls guide
Chandra-Those details will not be available to all public.
Thanks
One more doubt
I have no business entity or registration no & no gst. Becoz I am running a small home based retail business of spicy items. The transaction hardly toyches 2000/- per day.
Suddenly one of my customer has purchased 30,000/- items from me & asked for bill.
Can I issue him a hand bill? If not , how i can justify the billing problem since i am not coming under taxation.
Is there any alternate for this?
Pls clarify
Chandra-You can issue the bill why to stay away from there when your business not under purview of GST?
I read your above article and followed your instructions under “verify genuineness of gst number”.
I used the link you have indicated and fed in the number on the bill of the eatery. On clicking search, it came this number is invalid, in red, right under the box in which I had fed the number.
I am giving the number in question……34AFPPM2457F1Z8.
Kindly check yourself and let me know.
Ameeta-Now it is confirmed that it is invalid, then using above contact details, you can complain against that business entity.
I checked the gst number printed on the bill of an eatery and got response saying that that number is INVALID !
Does this indicate that the eatery has printed a fake gstin number and is fooling the public on the premise that usually no one will check the number ?
How can I be sure of this before I lodge a complaint ?
Ameeta-How you found it invalid?
Hi , I recently purchased snacks from a popular chain at Chennai and was charged GST of 12 % when the items purchased were listed . A CGST and SGST of 6 % to the sub total of the rates of the total items purchased and a further CGST and SGST OF 9 % ( DONT KNOW ON WHAT ) which projected my entire bill to 305 from the 270 it earlier was ..
Please help me guys to know if i was duped 🙁
Deepika-It is illegal if they charged over and above 12%. You can raise the complaint directly using above shared contact details.
If some one in need of bill with out purchase, shopowner provides him bill by paying gst tax amount, is it an offence. Please advise.
Vibin-YES, both for purchaser and seller. As a customer rights and best practices, we have to ask for original bill where GSTIN mentioned and it is the duty of seller to provide the same.
Hello Sir,
I purchased a mobile and printed bill shows GST rate 5% and the amount of tax is also charged at this rate only.
But when I checked with a CA he told me that GST rate for mobile is 12%.
But the GSTIN printed on the invoice is correct.
What is the current rate for MoBiles
Deep-Check with GSTIN portal for the rates.
Sir it is 12%.
Does it means bill is fake?
Or Shall I inform the same to department?
Deep-Check the % of GST rate for this item. If it is wrongly collected from you, then YES you have to complain.
Sir.. Im from kerala.. i got one bill from a kerala restaurant..Amount is 850..and sgst&cgst is 20.25&20.25.total amount is 890.50. But in that bill there is no GSTIN number.Is it fake?
Amal-YES.
Dear sir,
I purchased an CAR and get Gst bill from company. It is possible that the company may changed billing amount after few days or during online return filling ?
As i am consumer and i cant check that data ….
Manish-If the bill is generated with invoice number, then they can’t.
Sir if bill was generated in tally with manual voucher numbering than they can change it…..
Manish-Possibility is there. But do you think it may be easy? Stocks matching and all those stuff they have to change. But few can go to any extent and do this. However, now it is tough to cheat easily.
Sir,
I have registered for a technical course & the institution charged CGST & SGST both 9% each.
There is no GSTIN printed in the bill.
What should I do? Should I pay gst?
Can I question them?
Arun-You request them to issue a bill which mention GSTIN.
Sir,
Thank you for the response.
I will ask for the gstin mentioned bill.
But 2 b frank I doubt their genuinety. Don’t know whether I’m right – bcoz education doesn’t come under gst. When I took my admission, I have asked the institution counsellor why I have to pay gst. He answered that this is a service & I have to pay.
I will ask for the gstin mentioned bill tomorrow itself. If they are cheating, I request ur support to go forward bcoz there are other students who r not aware of this & how huge the institution(may be the counsellor himself) is obtaining.
Arun-Forget about the service comes under GST or not. First let them issue the bill with GSTIN. Then you have a proof to fight against them. Let them issue it.
Hi,
What if you get a bill with no GST number or GST details or breakup between value of service and GST?
Where to complain against such businesses? What is the complaint procedure?
Anurag-Complain using above contact details.
If we see a GSTIN no. on the bill and verify the same from the Govt. website, how do we still know if the GSTIN no. is of the same person/ company.
For example, I have a bill with GSTIN – 33AHSPR8959E1ZL. This is a Restuarent named ‘MeatEat’ in Coimbatore, but if you verify the GSTIN it just shows a name – Subramaniam Ranganathan. In this case how do we confirm if we are paying to right shop. Does the GST no. Should show the shop name instead?
Ive a question?i did my hair cut in an AC saloon and they asked me to pay GST for the hair cut.can they do that? Are they suppose to do that?GST is applicable only with the bill?or i should have asked for bill?
Please reply or advice?me..
Nigil-You should ask the bill.
Need a clearification:-
1. When I check the GSTIN printed on the bill from the gst checking site, the “Legal business name” shown on the gst site and the restuarant name on bill is different.
2. On checking the GSTIN it shows “Taxpayer type: Composition”, does this mean that the restaurant is availing gst composition scheme? If it is availing composition scheme they aren’t suppose to charge any tax from customer but they are charging CGST and SGST.
Mane-May be due to the transaction limit of the concerned business entity. Yes, if the entity is registered under Composition Scheme, then they can’t collect the tax from you. Thanks for bringing into this to my notice. I will update it soon.
Like 2A return even a end user ( customer) should have an option to upload invoice so that can be cross checked with the shopkeeper invoice based on the GSTIN in the invoice. Any tax evaders can be caught. Hope some sought of this provision exists
Murali-Not sure of this.
Sir
What if the shopkeeper or buisinees man is giving original GST bill and collecting GST from customers and not paying it to the govt. DO the customer have any option to check the invoice given to him is uploaded in GST portal
Murali
Murali-As of now NO. Because paying tax is personal matter and hence can’t be available in public domain to cross verify.
When Shopkeeper given to customer bill as a printer printed paper without shop stamp and no GST no. print on the bill. In that case gov. how check the shopkeeper he paid the to GST to gov. or not. Shopkeeper has not genuine GST or not how customer check this and why, how anyone shopkeeper do this.
Gajendra-If in the bill GSTIN is printed then for us the customers it is valid if he deducted the correct GST rates. If the bill is printed or not, that is not mandatory.
Hi. Good information.
Just a doubt. I am paying gst to a club on 18% for months, but gstin is not in the bill. Just says gst is 9+9%
. How can i verify their gstin?
Am i eligible for asking it to them?
Or is it mandatary for them to print it on the bill? Can i question them.
Sonat-They must show the GSTIN on the bill. If it is not printed, then it is a wrong thing they are doing. You can upfront ask them to provide the bill which shows GSTIN. Being a customer, you have rights to ask the GSTIN bill.
Hi,
Hotel charged me GST, but the HOST charged against GST number is not correct and he said the number printed incorrectly by mistake. (Instead of 1, I is printed on bill)
What can be done in such cases?
Regards,
Nitin Dhage
Nitin-Let them correct the GSTIN bill and issue you new one. I don’t think it is a mistake but a deliberate act.
We we spend Rs.160/- against two meals below mentioned hotel.
MANEATWORKS INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED,KALOOR,eRNAKULAM DISTRICT ,KERALA. THEY NOTED IN GST NUMBER IN BILL—32AAKCM1677J1Z9 ( BILL NO.12446–DATED-18/10/2017)
THEY CHARGED 6% gst AND sgst
MY CONCERN IS WHETHER THIS AMOUNT PAID OR NOT IN FUTURE.
PLEASE CONFIRM THE SAME.
RAJU ALAPATT
Raju-Simple is check the GSTIN. This is the only thing that is in your hand.
very useful information sir
Jyothi-Pleasure 🙂
How can we check whether this gst collected from us is paid to the government bill wise ?
Jacob-Hard to check as its up to the shopkeeper and IT Dept.
This should be avoided and then only the benefit will get to the colors and people. If the business man can evade gst collected then what is the use of the new system?
Jacob-I understand your concern. But let us hope for the best.
what if restaurant provides bill without gstin and charges gst charges and on cross questions shares gstin separately .
is it ok to share bill without gstin printed on it and charging gst charges ?
Sanchit-It is still illegal. The GSTIN should be printed on the bill.
what further action can be taken for it .
i have mailed all details to [email protected]
Sanchit-Then let us wait for their reply.
Hi , support team says its not the correct platform to raise the gst concern .
Please raise to.concerned department .
Can u help.on this ..where to.raise
Sanchit-Instead of call use email and try to communicate.
Hi
I have mailed at [email protected]
And.they have responded that please contqxt with concerned department
Hi,
What can be done, if in case of a B2B transaction, supplier charged me GST with proper GSTIN and rate – but is not showing the same in GSTR1, hence its not getting auto-populated as input credit in my GSTR2?
Vishwas-Please check the same with GST expert.
A grocer gives me a bill with proper GST number and proper GST break up.
How can I be sure that the grocer declares the same and pays it to government ?
Mahantsh-That as a customer can’t check it. Your responsibility ends when he issues GST Bill against the goods and services you purchased.
Thanks for the info sir..
The information provided for the verification of genuineness of GST is really very knowledgeable. Thanks for the information.
Anil-Thanks a lot.
Lovely information, its very useful in our day to day life
Rajas-Pleasure 🙂