Professional services

GST invoice format for a security guard agency

A security agency's invoice turns on who pays the GST. When an agency that is not a body corporate supplies security personnel to a registered body corporate client, the client pays 18% under reverse charge and the invoice shows no tax with an RCM note. Private limited agencies, and supplies to unregistered or non-corporate clients, charge 18% forward. The invoice should list guards by category and shift, the deployment site and month, the PSARA licence number, and statutory wage components where the contract passes them through.

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Sample security agency invoice

Description	HSN/SAC	Qty	Rate (₹)	Taxable (₹)	GST
Unarmed security guards, 12-hour shift, October 2026	998525	4 NOS	24,000.00	96,000.00	0%
Security supervisor, 12-hour shift, October 2026	998525	1 NOS	28,000.00	28,000.00	0%
Armed guard with licensed weapon, 12-hour shift, October 2026	998525	1 NOS	32,000.00	32,000.00	0%
CCTV monitoring and alarm response, monthly	998523	1 OTH	12,000.00	12,000.00	0%
Taxable value				₹1,68,000.00
GST (CGST + SGST, or IGST if inter-state)				₹0.00
Invoice total				₹1,68,000.00

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

Extra fields a security agency invoice needs

PSARA licence number: Private security agencies must be licensed under the Private Security Agencies (Regulation) Act. Clients and auditors check the licence before paying, so print it on every invoice.
Site and deployment month: Agencies deploy guards at several sites of one client. Naming the site and month lets facility managers check attendance against their own registers.
Category and shift: Unarmed guards, armed guards, supervisors and gunmen are billed at different rates, and 8- and 12-hour shifts differ. Listing each with headcount explains the totals.
Man-days: Billing should be based on actual man-days delivered. Showing the count, with absences deducted, prevents the most common dispute in this trade.
Wage and statutory components: Contracts often show minimum wages, PF, ESIC, bonus and service charge separately. Itemising them helps clients verify compliance, but GST applies on the total consideration, not only on the margin.
Reverse charge statement: Where the client pays GST under reverse charge, the invoice must say so clearly, or the client may also pay the tax charged on it.

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 security agency

Reverse charge on security services

Since 1 January 2019, security services supplied by any person other than a body corporate to a registered person are taxed under reverse charge, with listed exceptions such as recipients paying tax under composition and certain government entities registered only for TDS. In practice, a proprietor or partnership agency serving a registered company issues an invoice without tax and with a note that tax is payable by the recipient; the client pays 18% and claims credit. The sample lines above show 0 in the GST column for that case. A private limited agency is a body corporate and always charges 18% on its own invoice.

Tax on the full contract value

Agencies sometimes argue that wages, PF and ESIC are reimbursements and charge GST only on their service charge. GST law values the supply at the total consideration, and the wages paid to the agency's own employees are the agency's cost, not a pure-agent payment. The whole bill, including statutory components, is taxable at 18%. Itemise the components for transparency, but calculate GST on the total.

Codes for different security services

The official SAC list places guard services at 998525, security systems services such as alarm monitoring at 998523, investigation at 998521 and security consulting at 998522. Agencies supplying both guards and CCTV monitoring should split the codes. All are taxed at 18%.

Government clients and TDS

Government departments and notified bodies deduct GST TDS at 2% on contracts above ₹2.5 lakh, and most clients deduct income-tax TDS under section 194C. Reconcile both credits monthly, since thin agency margins mean unclaimed TDS quickly becomes a cash shortage.

Monthly billing and attendance

Security is a continuous supply billed monthly. Raise the invoice at the end of each month based on the attendance register signed by the client, and correct short supplies through a credit note rather than altering the next month's bill.

Common billing mistakes

A partnership agency charging 18% to a registered company that is also paying under reverse charge, so the tax is paid twice.
Charging GST only on the service charge and leaving wages, PF and ESIC out of the taxable value.
Billing the contracted headcount instead of actual man-days, leading to disputes and later credit notes.
Leaving the PSARA licence number off the invoice, which corporate and government clients often require before releasing payment.
Treating an unregistered residential society as liable under reverse charge, when RCM applies only to registered recipients and the agency must charge GST itself.

Security Agency GST invoice: FAQ

What is the GST rate on security services?

Security guard services under SAC 998525 are taxed at 18%.

When does reverse charge apply to security services?

When the agency is not a body corporate (a proprietor, partnership or similar) and the client is a registered person, other than notified exceptions, the client pays the 18% under reverse charge.

Does a private limited security company charge GST?

Yes. A company is a body corporate, so reverse charge does not apply and it charges 18% on its invoice.

Is GST payable on the PF and ESIC part of the bill?

Yes. GST applies on the full amount the client pays, including wages and statutory contributions for the agency's own staff.

Should an RCM invoice still show the GST amount?

The supplier's invoice shows the taxable value with tax payable under reverse charge stated clearly. Many agencies also show the amount the client must pay as an informational note, but must not add it to the invoice total collected from the client.

Can a security agency opt for composition?

An agency with turnover up to ₹50 lakh can choose the 6% services composition scheme, but it then cannot charge GST or pass input credit to corporate clients and cannot supply guards to sites in another state, which limits most growing agencies.

Sources: PIB — Recommendations of the 56th GST Council (Annexure III, services rate changes) · GSTN — Official HSN/SAC master list (SAC_MSTR sheet) · GST Council — Notification 11/2017-CT(Rate), services rates (consolidated)

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