Shops and retail

GST invoice format for a book shop (bookseller)

A bookseller mostly sells exempt goods. Printed books, children's picture and colouring books, newspapers, periodicals and maps are exempt under Notification 10/2025, so a shop selling only these issues a bill of supply. Many bookshops also sell diaries, calendars, greeting cards and gift items that are taxable, which turns the bill into an invoice-cum-bill of supply. Beyond the standard fields, show ISBN, title, author or publisher, edition and the discount off printed price for each book.

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Sample book shop invoice

Description	HSN/SAC	Qty	Rate (₹)	Taxable (₹)	GST
Printed novel, paperback (ISBN 978-xx-xxxx-xxx-x)	4901	2 PCS	399.00	798.00	0%
Children's colouring book	4903	3 PCS	120.00	360.00	0%
Road atlas of India, printed	4905	1 PCS	450.00	450.00	0%
Monthly magazine, current issue	4902	2 PCS	100.00	200.00	0%
Executive diary 2027, hard bound	4820	1 PCS	350.00	350.00	18%
Printed wall calendar 2027	4910	2 PCS	150.00	300.00	18%
Taxable value				₹2,458.00
GST (CGST + SGST, or IGST if inter-state)				₹117.00
Invoice total				₹2,575.00

Sample prices are illustrative. Check the GST rate for your exact item or service before billing.

Extra fields a book shop invoice needs

ISBN: The ISBN identifies the exact edition and format of a book. Printing it on the bill makes returns, replacements of damaged copies and institutional orders traceable, and helps match sales to publisher invoices.
Title, author and publisher: Customers and libraries check bills against their order lists. Title, author and publisher on each line confirm what was supplied and allow quick reordering of the same edition.
Edition and year: Textbooks and guides change every year. Recording the edition prevents disputes when a student needs the current syllabus edition and the shop supplied an older one.
Printed price and discount: Books carry a printed price and are usually sold at a discount, especially to libraries. Showing printed price, discount percentage and net price gives a clear record of the trade terms.
Library or institution order number: Schools, colleges and public libraries buy against purchase orders. Quoting their order number links the bill to the purchase file, which helps payment by government institutions.
Exempt and taxable sub-totals: When diaries, calendars or gift items are sold with books, separate sub-totals for exempt books and taxable goods keep the bill legally correct and the return figures accurate.

Standard GST invoice fields

Rule 46 of the CGST Rules applies to every tax invoice, including this one:

Supplier name, address and GSTIN
Consecutive invoice number (max 16 characters, unique for the year)
Date of issue
Customer name, address and GSTIN (if registered)
Place of supply with state name
HSN/SAC code per item
Description, quantity and unit
Taxable value after discounts
GST rate and CGST + SGST or IGST amounts
Signature or digital signature

GST rules that matter for a book shop

Which printed goods are exempt

Notification 10/2025-Central Tax (Rate) exempts printed books including Braille books (4901), newspapers, journals and periodicals (4902), children's picture, drawing or colouring books (4903), printed or manuscript music (4904), and maps, atlases, wall maps and printed globes (4905). These exemptions continued after the September 2025 rationalisation. Not every printed item is exempt, though: brochures and leaflets of heading 4901 are listed at 5% in Notification 9/2025, and calendars (4910), greeting cards (4909) and other printed matter (4911) are at 18%. A bookshop should therefore classify each printed product, not assume that anything with pages is a book.

Registration and bill of supply

Section 23 of the CGST Act says a person engaged exclusively in supplying goods that are wholly exempt is not liable to register. A bookshop that sells only books, newspapers and maps can therefore stay unregistered regardless of turnover, and if it registers voluntarily it issues a bill of supply under Rule 49 rather than a tax invoice. Once the shop starts selling diaries, calendars, stationery, gifts or bags, its taxable turnover is counted with the exempt turnover in aggregate turnover, and registration may become compulsory when the threshold is crossed.

Input tax credit on exempt sales

Because printed books are exempt, a bookseller cannot claim input tax credit on purchases used for selling them. A shop that sells both exempt books and taxable gift items must reverse credit attributable to exempt sales under Rule 42, typically by apportioning common credit such as rent, electricity and billing software by turnover. Keeping exempt and taxable sales clearly separated on every bill is the simplest way to make this apportionment accurate and defensible. A periodic check of the ratio, done before filing the annual return, avoids surprises at audit.

Selling to libraries and institutions

Libraries and government institutions often buy books in bulk at a negotiated discount. Since the books are exempt, the bill carries no tax, but institutions still need a properly numbered bill of supply with their order reference, discount terms and the bookseller's GSTIN if registered. For large consignments, check whether an e-way bill is needed under Rule 138 and its annexure of exempted goods before dispatch, and carry the bill of supply or a delivery challan with the cartons. Government buyers may also deduct TDS under section 51 only where taxable supplies exceed the limit, so exempt book bills normally attract none.

Common billing mistakes

Charging GST on printed books because the shop's billing software applies a default 18% to every new item code. and nobody reviews it.
Treating diaries, calendars and greeting cards as exempt books when they are taxable printed goods at 18%. and simply skipping tax on them.
Claiming full input tax credit on rent and services without reversing the share relating to exempt book sales. at the shop.
Issuing a tax invoice titled as such for a sale of books only, instead of a bill of supply. which is the document Rule 49 prescribes.

Book shop GST invoice: FAQ

Is GST charged on books in India?

Printed books, including Braille books, children's picture and colouring books, newspapers, periodicals and maps are exempt under Notification 10/2025-Central Tax (Rate). No GST is charged on them. Diaries, calendars, greeting cards and other printed stationery remain taxable, mostly at 18%.

Does a bookshop need GST registration?

Not if it sells only exempt goods such as books, newspapers and maps, because section 23 exempts such persons from registration. If it also sells taxable items like stationery or gifts and the aggregate turnover crosses the threshold, registration becomes mandatory and taxable items must be billed with GST.

What HSN code is used for printed books?

Printed books fall under heading 4901, children's picture and colouring books under 4903, newspapers and periodicals under 4902, and maps and atlases under 4905. Print the HSN on each line so that exempt supplies report correctly in your HSN summary.

Are e-books exempt like printed books?

No. Electronic books delivered online are not goods of heading 4901; they are supplied as a service and are taxable. A bookshop selling e-book codes or digital access must treat them separately from printed books and charge the applicable service rate.

Sources: CBIC — Notification 10/2025-Central Tax (Rate), exempted goods · CBIC — Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), goods rate schedules · CBIC — CGST Act and Rules (sections 15, 23, 31, 34; Rules 46 and 49)

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