E-invoicing does not mean emailing a PDF. It means every B2B invoice is registered on the government portal before it is valid, and comes back with an Invoice Reference Number and a QR code.
Who it applies to
It is turnover based, and the threshold has come down in stages since it started. Once your aggregate turnover in any financial year since 2017-18 crosses the notified limit, it applies to you permanently. Turnover falling later does not take you back out.
Check the current threshold with your CA. It has moved several times and is likely to move again.
What changes on day one
An invoice without an IRN is not a valid tax invoice. Your customer cannot claim credit on it. In practice you cannot raise a bill from a notebook any more, because the number has to come back from the portal.
This is the part that catches businesses out. It is not a filing change, it is a billing change. It affects the moment of sale, not the end of the month.
What it quietly fixes
Once invoices are registered at source, GSTR-1 populates itself and the e-way bill can be generated from the same data. The reconciliation work that used to eat the first week of every month largely disappears.
Your customers see your invoice in their GSTR-2B almost immediately, which removes one of the most common reasons for a delayed payment.
Getting ready before it is compulsory
Businesses that move to proper invoicing software before the threshold reaches them have a boring transition. Businesses that wait until the month it becomes compulsory spend that month arguing with a portal instead of selling.
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