Reconciling GSTR-2B against your goods receipts before you claim credit
Most input credit problems are not tax problems. They are receiving problems that show up in the tax return two months later.
GSTR-2B tells you which invoices your suppliers have reported against your GSTIN. Your purchase register tells you which invoices you have booked. The usual reconciliation compares those two lists. That catches missing invoices, but it misses the more expensive question: did the goods on that invoice actually arrive?
Three lists, not two
A useful reconciliation compares three things for every purchase invoice:
- The supplier invoice as reported in GSTR-2B
- The purchase voucher in your books
- The goods receipt note raised at your gate
When all three agree, the credit is clean. When the invoice appears in 2B and in your books but there is no goods receipt, you are claiming credit on material that may never have reached you. That is the case most worth catching early.
The four mismatches that matter
In practice, almost every difference falls into one of four types:
- In 2B, no GRN: invoice raised, goods not received or not recorded
- GRN, not in 2B: goods received, supplier has not reported the invoice yet
- Quantity or rate difference: short supply, or invoice rate above PO rate
- Wrong GSTIN or place of supply: invoice issued against another registration
The first type puts credit at risk. The second needs a follow up with the supplier before the return period closes. The third needs a debit note. The fourth needs the supplier to amend.
Why this belongs at the gate
All four mismatches start at receiving. If the store records a GRN against the PO when the lorry arrives, with short and rejected quantities noted, then the reconciliation is mostly done before the bill arrives. The accountant reviews exceptions instead of matching hundreds of lines.
A note on responsibility
Foundepth prepares the reconciliation and the GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B workings for review. It does not file returns. The decision on what credit to claim, and the filing itself, stays with your accountant or tax professional, who has the full picture of your position.
What to try this month
Take last month's 2B and filter for your ten largest suppliers. For each invoice, find the GRN. Count how many you cannot find within five minutes. That number is a good measure of how much your tax reconciliation depends on memory.