An e-way bill is an online slip made on the GST portal before a vehicle carrying goods sets off. It gives a 12-digit EWB number. A weaving unit moves goods in three ways: a grey sale, takas to a process house / mill for job work, and a party's cloth going back after weaving.
The ₹50,000 rule — what counts
- If one invoice or challan has a consignment value above ₹50,000, an e-way bill is needed.
- The value includes GST (CGST + SGST or IGST). Look at the invoice total, not just the taxable value.
- For job work, the value written on the delivery challan counts — so always write a value on it.
Above ₹50,000 → e-way bill (subject to the exemptions below)
Exemptions within Gujarat
A Gujarat State Tax notification of 19-09-2018 (effective 1-10-2018) gives two exemptions:
- Within a city (intra-city): no e-way bill for any goods, at any value. "City" means within municipal limits (and notified villages). A sale from your godown to a trader inside Surat city falls here; a GIDC or village outside the city limits does not.
- Job work within Gujarat: no e-way bill for hank, yarn, fabric and garments sent for job work, at any value — for example grey takas to a Gujarat process house for dyeing or printing.
Even when exempt, the vehicle must carry the tax invoice or delivery challan. The notification dates from 2018 — check with your CA that it still applies unchanged.
Job work in another state — any value
A special rule in Rule 138: when the principal is in one state and the job worker in another state, an e-way bill is needed whatever the value. Either the principal or the job worker (if GST-registered) can generate it. So even ₹30,000 of grey sent from Surat to a process house in Maharashtra needs one.
Example
| Movement | Value (with GST) | E-way bill? |
|---|---|---|
| Sale to a trader inside Surat city | ₹1,51,720 | No (intra-city exemption) |
| Sale to a trader in Ahmedabad | ₹1,51,720 | Yes — above ₹50,000 |
| Sale to a party in Maharashtra (IGST) | ₹1,51,720 | Yes |
| Grey to a Gujarat process house, job work challan | ₹2,40,000 | No (Gujarat job work exemption) — carry the challan |
| Grey to a process house in another state, job work | ₹30,000 | Yes — at any value |
Work out the invoice total with GST in the GST calculator first — the ₹50,000 test uses that figure.
Part A and Part B
- Part A: your and the party's GSTIN, the delivery pincode, invoice / challan number and date, value, HSN, and the reason for transport (sale, job work…).
- Part B: the vehicle number (e.g. GJ05AB1234), or the transporter's LR / document number.
- Within Gujarat, if the distance from your premises to the transporter's godown is up to 50 km, the transporter can fill Part B later.
How long it is valid
Each further 200 km (or part): +1 day
A day runs to midnight of the next day; counted from when Part B is filled
Surat to a place 450 km away: 3 days. If the vehicle breaks down or is delayed, you can extend from 8 hours before to 8 hours after expiry.
Penalties — in general
If an e-way bill was needed and is missing, or the details are wrong, the officer can detain the vehicle and goods. To release them the penalty is generally 200% of the tax (when the owner comes forward), and a separate penalty can also apply.
Common mistakes
- Looking at taxable value only. ₹48,000 + 5% GST = ₹50,400 — an e-way bill is needed.
- Guessing the city limits. A GIDC, Kadodara or a village outside Surat may not be inside the city. Find out for sure.
- Treating inter-state job work like the ₹50,000 rule. There, any value needs an e-way bill.
- Vehicle changed, Part B not updated. If stopped on the way, the e-way bill is no good.
For the full GST sums, HSN and job bills see GST on grey fabric and job work, and for mill / job work challans see ITC-04.
How Loomiro helps
In a Grey Sale bill, open "Gaadi ki details (e-way ke liye)" — transport, LR no., vehicle no. and distance in km. After saving, press "E-way file download" on the bill's page: you get a JSON file in the NIC portal's bulk-upload format, with Part A, vehicle details, HSN, GST and round-off already filled. If your GSTIN, your or the party's pincode, the distance or the quality's HSN is missing, Loomiro tells you what to fill first. Upload the file on the portal to generate the e-way bill, then save the 12-digit EWB number and date on the bill — it prints on the invoice. The JSON is for sale and job bills; e-way bills are not generated directly through an API yet, and a mill challan's e-way bill is filled on the portal by hand.
This is general information, not tax or legal advice. Confirm the Gujarat exemptions, distance, validity and penalty rules with your CA.
Source: CGST Rules rule 138 (CBIC); Gujarat State Tax notification GSL/GST/RULE-138(14)/B.19, 19-09-2018; CGST Act sections 122 and 129.