Government Services · India · GST

How to File GSTR-3B: The Monthly GST Return (2026)

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

GSTR-3B is the monthly summary return every normal GST registered taxpayer files. It is not an invoice-level return; it is a summary of your outward supplies, the input tax credit you are claiming, and the net tax you have to pay for the month. You file it on the GST portal and pay any balance in cash through the electronic cash ledger. GSTR-3B works alongside GSTR-1, which carries the invoice detail, and GSTR-2B, the auto-drafted statement that tells you how much input tax credit you are eligible to claim. This page walks through the full flow: the due date and who files monthly versus quarterly under QRMP, the main tables of GSTR-3B, how input tax credit is matched against GSTR-2B, how to offset the liability and pay, what happens if you file late, and the show-cause and appeal route if a mismatch later turns into a demand. Last verified October 2026.

01What GSTR-3B is and when it is due

GSTR-3B is a self-declared summary return. In it you report, for the month, the total value of your outward supplies and the tax on them, the input tax credit you are claiming, any reverse charge tax, and the net tax payable after setting off credit. You do not upload invoices here; that is GSTR-1.

• Monthly filers: due by the 20th of the following month.
• QRMP filers (small taxpayers under the Quarterly Return Monthly Payment scheme): file GSTR-3B quarterly, due on the 22nd or 24th of the month after the quarter depending on the state, while paying tax monthly through a simple challan.

A return once filed cannot be revised, so the figures must be right before you submit. Errors are corrected in a later month return, not by amending the filed one.

02Before you file: GSTR-1 and GSTR-2B

GSTR-3B does not stand alone. File it in the right order:

• GSTR-1 first. This carries your invoice-level outward supplies. The portal auto-populates much of the GSTR-3B outward supply table from your GSTR-1, so file GSTR-1 for the period first.
• Check GSTR-2B. This is the auto-drafted input tax credit statement built from your suppliers filings. Your claim in GSTR-3B should match the eligible credit in GSTR-2B. Credit that is not reflected in GSTR-2B, because a supplier did not file, is usually not available to you, so chase the supplier rather than over-claim.

Matching your claim to GSTR-2B is the single most important habit, because a gap between what you claimed and what GSTR-2B allows is the first thing the department looks at.

03Step by step on the GST portal

The flow on gst.gov.in is:

• 1. Log in and go to Services, then Returns, then Returns Dashboard. Pick the financial year and the return period.
• 2. Open GSTR-3B and choose to prepare online. Many fields are auto-filled from GSTR-1 and GSTR-2B; review each one.
• 3. Table 3.1 and 3.2: outward supplies and tax, including zero-rated and exempt, and inter-state supplies to unregistered persons.
• 4. Table 4: input tax credit. Claim eligible credit, reverse what is not eligible, and keep it in line with GSTR-2B.
• 5. Table 5 and 6.1: exempt and non-GST inflows, and the final payment of tax.
• 6. Save, then proceed to payment. The portal shows the net liability after credit.

After paying, submit and file the return with a digital signature (DSC) or electronic verification code (EVC). The portal generates an acknowledgement reference number (ARN).

04Paying and offsetting the liability

GST is paid from two ledgers on the portal:

• The electronic credit ledger holds your input tax credit. It is set off first against the output tax, in the order the law prescribes (IGST credit before CGST and SGST, and so on).
• The electronic cash ledger holds money you deposit by challan. Any tax left after credit, and all interest and late fee, is paid in cash.

Create a challan under Services, Payments, Create Challan, pay by net banking, card or NEFT/RTGS, and the cash ledger updates. Then offset the liability in GSTR-3B and file. You cannot file the return until the full liability is covered.

05Late filing, interest and late fee

Filing late has real costs:

• Interest runs on the net tax paid in cash late, at the rate the Act prescribes, from the due date to the date of payment.
• Late fee accrues per day of delay, with a cap, and a lower fee for nil returns.
• You cannot file the current month until the previous month is filed, so one missed return blocks the next.
• Long non-filing can lead to the department cancelling your registration.

06If a mismatch turns into a demand: the appeal route

The most common GST dispute starts as a mismatch: the credit you claimed in GSTR-3B does not match GSTR-2B, or your GSTR-3B does not reconcile with your GSTR-1, or with the annual return. The department may first send a system notice such as a GST ASMT-10 scrutiny notice, and then a show-cause notice. A demand for a non-fraud shortfall is raised under section 73, and for a fraud or suppression case under section 74. For the financial year 2024-25 onward the law has moved to a combined section 74A for these demands, so check which provision your notice cites. For the detail, see GST section 73, section 74 and the first appeal under section 107.

If a demand order is passed, your first appeal is to the appellate authority under section 107, and from there to the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT). See the GST Appellate Tribunal explained.

Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.

If a GSTR-3B mismatch turns into a section 73, 74 or 74A demand and then an appeal, you can create a FREE Claw account and track that matter across the forum that hears it. Claw covers 9,102 courts, benches and forums in India, including the GSTAT benches, so there is a real tracking home for the orders and next dates. Judgment search spans 30 crore+ judgments, with Supreme Court decisions from 1950 and High Court decisions from 1990, and results return in under 5 seconds, which helps you or your tax consultant see how similar input-credit and mismatch disputes were decided. Claw does not train its AI models on your documents. This is general information and not legal advice, and a GST appeal still needs a professional for the arguments.

To see what is already filed in a forum, you can run a case search across Indian courts by party name.

07Sources and further reading

• GST portal: gst.gov.in
• GST system tutorials: tutorial.gst.gov.in
• eCourts (case status): ecourts.gov.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This page is general information for readers in India, not legal advice. Due dates, rates, late fees and section numbers can change, so confirm the current details on the official GST portal before you file.

08Frequently asked questions