GST on Imports — How IGST Is Charged on the Bill of Entry, Basic Customs Duty and Cess, Taking Credit of Import IGST Through ICEGATE and GSTR-2B, Import of Services Under Reverse Charge, and Getting the IGST Back When You Export

Import of goods is treated as an inter-state supply, so IGST is charged — but by Customs, at the port, on the bill of entry, under section 3(7) of the Customs Tariff Act, not under the GST Act directly. The IGST rate is the rate applicable to the same goods sold in India. It is computed on the assessable value (CIF value plus 1% landing charges in practice, as assessed) plus basic customs duty, plus social welfare surcharge (10% of BCD), plus any anti-dumping, safeguard, AIDC or other duty. GST compensation cess applies to notified goods on the same base. Basic customs duty itself is a cost; IGST and cess are creditable.

1. 1Quote your GSTIN on the bill of entry — the customs broker files it on ICEGATE; the IGST paid is transmitted to the GST system and appears in GSTR-2B (Table 'Import of goods from overseas' and 'from SEZ') by port code, bill of entry number, date and IGST amount.
2. 2If the bill of entry is missing in 2B, use 'Search BoE' on the GST portal to fetch it from ICEGATE (fetch is allowed for bills up to a set age); a wrong GSTIN on the BoE can be amended through the customs broker under section 149.
3. 3Claim in GSTR-3B Table 4(A)(1) 'Import of goods' the IGST and cess shown; the document evidencing credit is the bill of entry, not an invoice.
4. 4Conditions: goods received, used for business, claimed within the section 16(4) limit (30 November of the following year); no 180-day payment rule applies because the tax is paid to Customs, but section 17(5) blocked categories still apply.
5. 5Goods in a customs bonded warehouse: IGST is paid at ex-bond clearance; sale of goods while still in bond is neither supply nor import until cleared. High-sea sales are also outside GST until the final buyer files the bill of entry.

• •Services received from a supplier outside India (software subscriptions, consultancy, online advertising, royalties, foreign commission agents) are taxed in India under reverse charge: the Indian recipient pays IGST in cash through GSTR-3B Table 3.1(d) and claims credit in Table 4 the same month.
• •The value is the invoice value converted at the RBI/CBIC exchange rate on the date of the foreign invoice; time of supply is the earlier of payment or 60 days from the invoice.
• •Raise a self-invoice within 30 days of receipt (rule 47A) and a payment voucher — audits ask for both.
• •Services from a related party or own establishment abroad are taxable even without consideration (Schedule I); OIDAR services to consumers are taxed in the hands of the foreign supplier who must register in India.
• •No TDS interplay with GST, but withholding under the Income-tax Act (section 195) and Form 15CA/15CB apply to the same remittance.

• •Bill of entry register vs GSTR-2B every month — port code, BoE number, date, IGST; unmatched items are usually a GSTIN or PAN-based IEC mismatch.
• •Export invoice value in GSTR-1 Table 6A vs shipping bill FOB value — a mismatch ('SB003/SB005' errors) stops the automatic IGST refund until amended.
• •Realisation of export proceeds within the FEMA period (9 months) and e-BRC closure — refunded IGST must be repaid with interest if proceeds are not realised.
• •GSTR-9 Table 6E and Table 8 carry import IGST separately; keep the BoE-wise working for the audit.
• •Avoid claiming both a drawback at the higher (customs + GST) rate and the IGST refund — the higher rate bars the refund.