GST registration is mandatory for businesses that cross specific turnover thresholds or fall into certain categories, regardless of their turnover. Getting this wrong in either direction costs you money — register too late and you face penalties; register unnecessarily early and you add compliance burden without benefit. This guide covers every scenario: who must register, who should register voluntarily, and what happens if you do not.
Turnover thresholds for mandatory GST registration
For suppliers of goods, GST registration is mandatory once aggregate annual turnover exceeds 40 lakh (20 lakh in special category states: Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Puducherry, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand). For suppliers of services, the threshold is 20 lakh (10 lakh in special category states). These thresholds apply to aggregate turnover from all taxable, exempt, and nil-rated supplies across India under the same PAN.
Mandatory GST registration regardless of turnover
Certain businesses must register even if below the threshold: businesses making inter-state taxable supplies of goods, e-commerce operators and sellers on platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, businesses liable under reverse charge mechanism, input service distributors, casual taxable persons, non-resident taxable persons, and persons required to deduct TDS under GST. If you sell on any e-commerce marketplace, you must register regardless of sales volume.
Frequently Asked Questions
5 questions answered by our legal experts
1Can I register voluntarily for GST below the threshold?
2What is the penalty for not registering for GST when mandatory?
3Do freelancers need to register for GST?
4How long does GST registration take?
5Can a business have multiple GST registrations?
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