Overview
What is GSTR-1?
GSTR-1 is the monthly (or quarterly, under the QRMP scheme) return of outward supplies that every regular GST-registered business must file. It reports every sale you made in the period — invoice by invoice for B2B, and in aggregate for small B2C sales — so that your buyers' GSTR-2B can be auto-populated and they can claim Input Tax Credit.
The return is organised into tables: B2B invoices (Table 4A), large inter-state B2C invoices above ₹2.5 lakh (5A), small B2C supplies aggregated by state and rate (7), credit/debit notes (9B), exports (6A), an HSN-wise summary of everything sold (12), and the serial-number ranges of documents issued (13). Misclassifying an invoice — or missing one — blocks your buyer's ITC and invites notices.
Most small businesses either re-enter every invoice on the GST portal manually or hand a shoebox of PDFs to their CA each month. Because ZapInvoice already knows each invoice's GSTIN, place of supply, rates and HSN codes, it can build the entire GSTR-1 summary automatically — and export it as the JSON the portal's offline tool accepts, plus a flat CSV register your CA can verify at a glance.
Use Cases
Who needs GSTR-1 (and when)
- Every regular GST-registered business — filing is mandatory even for nil returns.
- Monthly filers: due by the 11th of the following month.
- QRMP scheme (turnover ≤ ₹5 Cr): quarterly filing by the 13th of the month after the quarter, with optional monthly IFF for B2B invoices.
- Composition dealers do NOT file GSTR-1 — they file CMP-08/GSTR-4 instead.
- Late filing attracts a late fee per day and blocks your buyers from claiming ITC on your invoices.
Fields
What goes into each GSTR-1 table
Table 4A — B2B
Invoice-wise supplies to GST-registered buyers, grouped by their GSTIN. ZapInvoice routes any invoice with a client GSTIN here.
Table 5A — B2C Large
Inter-state invoices to unregistered buyers above ₹2.5 lakh, reported invoice-wise by place of supply.
Table 7 — B2C Small
All other B2C supplies, aggregated by state and tax rate — no invoice detail needed.
Table 9B — Credit/Debit Notes
Notes issued against earlier invoices, split between registered (CDNR) and unregistered (CDNUR) recipients.
Table 6A — Exports
Export invoices, split by with-payment-of-IGST vs LUT/bond (zero-rated).
Table 12 — HSN Summary
Quantity, taxable value and tax per HSN/SAC code across all supplies in the period.
Table 13 — Documents Issued
Serial-number ranges and counts of invoices, notes and vouchers issued in the period.
How it works
Generate in 3 simple steps
Invoice as usual
Create your invoices, credit notes and export invoices in ZapInvoice through the month — GSTIN, place of supply, rates and HSN are captured as you go.
Preview the summary
Open GSTR-1 in your dashboard, pick the month, and see every table — B2B, B2C, notes, exports, HSN — classified automatically. The preview is free.
Export JSON + CSV
On Pro, download the GSTN-shaped JSON for the portal's offline tool and a flat CSV register for your CA. Verify, upload, file.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about gstr-1 export generation.
Is the GSTR-1 preview really free?+
Yes. Any signed-in user can preview their full GSTR-1 summary — all tables, totals and the HSN breakdown — for any month, free. Exporting the JSON and CSV files is part of the Pro plan (₹199/month).
Can I upload the JSON directly to the GST portal?+
The JSON follows the GSTN offline-tool shape, so it is designed as an upload-ready starting point. Always load it in the official GST Offline Tool first to validate against the current portal schema before filing — schemas change periodically.
How does ZapInvoice know which table an invoice belongs to?+
From the invoice data itself: a client GSTIN routes it to B2B (4A); an inter-state unregistered invoice above ₹2.5 lakh goes to B2CL (5A); other B2C supplies aggregate into B2CS (7); credit/debit notes go to 9B; export invoices to 6A. The HSN summary (12) and document ranges (13) are computed across everything.
What is the B2C Large threshold?+
Inter-state invoices to unregistered buyers above ₹2.5 lakh are reported invoice-wise in Table 5A. Everything below that (and all intra-state B2C) is aggregated in Table 7 by state and rate.
Does it handle credit notes and exports?+
Yes. Credit and debit notes are classified into CDNR (registered recipients) or CDNUR (unregistered), and export invoices are split by with-IGST vs LUT/bond — matching how the portal expects them in Tables 9B and 6A.
What about advances and nil-rated supplies?+
Tables 11 (advances) and 8 (nil-rated/exempt) are not yet included in the export — most service freelancers and small businesses don't need them. If you do, tell us; it's on the roadmap.
Free to use
Preview your GSTR-1 free
Create your invoices in ZapInvoice and the GSTR-1 summary builds itself — B2B, B2C, credit notes, exports and HSN, all classified automatically. Preview free; export JSON + CSV on Pro.
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