GST nil return filing is for a period in which you had no sales, no purchases and no tax to pay. A registered person must still file the return: a nil GSTR-1 and a nil GSTR-3B, either on the portal or by SMS. The late fee for a nil return is lower, ₹20 a day and at most ₹500. We check that the period is really nil and file it.
A nil return is a GSTR-1 or GSTR-3B for a period in which there was nothing to report. Sections 37 and 39 of the CGST Act require these returns from every registered person, so a month or quarter without business still needs one. Turnover decides whether you must register, not whether you file.
These are the conditions on the GST portal for filing by SMS. They also describe a real nil period.
For a nil GSTR-1 or GSTR-3B only (Rule 67A for GSTR-3B). Your mobile number must be registered on the portal as that of an authorised signatory.
No revision: A nil GSTR-3B filed by SMS cannot be revised. Check the period before you send the confirmation.
Lower than the ₹50 a day for a return with business.
Enter the due date from your GST portal return calendar.
Quarterly filers (QRMP): A nil GSTR-1 is filed once for the quarter, and the SMS period is the last month of the quarter. The optional invoice upload in months 1 and 2 (IFF) is not needed when there is nothing to upload.
GST registration certificate
Filing nil when there was a sale: A nil return with business behind it leads to notices. If there was a credit note or an advance, the return is not nil.
There is no government fee for filing. Any late fee you owe is paid to the government and is separate. We confirm the exact amount before filing. GST is extra on our fee.
Yes. Every registered person files GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B for each period, or CMP-08 and GSTR-4 under composition, even when there is nothing to report.
When there were no outward supplies in the period, including reverse charge, zero-rated and deemed export supplies, no amendments to earlier supplies, no credit or debit notes, and no advances to declare.
When there were no outward supplies, no reverse charge liability, no input tax credit being claimed, and no tax, interest or late fee outstanding, with all earlier GSTR-3B returns filed.
Send NIL R1 or NIL 3B, your GSTIN and the period as MMYYYY to 14409, then confirm with CNF R1 or CNF 3B and the six-digit code, which expires in 30 minutes. Your mobile number must be registered on the portal for an authorised signatory.
A nil GSTR-3B filed by SMS cannot be revised, so check the period and GSTIN before you confirm.
₹20 a day (₹10 CGST + ₹10 SGST), at most ₹500 per return, for a nil GSTR-1 or GSTR-3B (Notifications 19/2021-CT and 20/2021-CT). There is no interest where no tax is due.
A nil GSTR-1 is filed once for the quarter. For SMS filing the period is the last month of the quarter. No invoice upload (IFF) is needed in months with nothing to upload.
They file a nil CMP-08 for a quarter with no sales and GSTR-4 for the year, not GSTR-1 or GSTR-3B. See our composition returns page.
They have to be filed too, oldest first. A nil GSTR-3B by SMS needs all earlier GSTR-3B returns filed. Earlier periods are priced under our pending returns service.
Our professional fee starts at ₹799 plus GST. Any late fee you owe is paid to the government and is separate. StampMitra is a filing assistance platform; it is not the GST department.