Receipt, Payment and Refund Vouchers: Section 31(3)

Receipt explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.

An invoice documents a supply. These three documents each attach to a payment, and each has its own rule.

s.31(3)(d) — a receipt voucher on receipt of an advance, particulars in Rule 50. s.31(3)(e) — a refund voucher where the advance is refunded and no supply is made, particulars in Rule 51. s.31(3)(g) — a payment voucher at the time of making payment to a supplier on a reverse charge supply, particulars in Rule 52. Alongside them sits s.31(3)(f) — the self-invoice for a reverse charge supply from an unregistered supplier.

The receipt voucher — section 31(3)(d)

Issued on receipt of an advance payment with respect to any supply.

Rule 50 particulars:

• name, address and GSTIN of the supplier;
• a consecutive serial number not exceeding sixteen characters, unique for a financial year;
• date of issue;
• name, address and GSTIN or UIN of the recipient, if registered;
• description of goods or services;
• amount of advance taken;
• rate of tax — central, State, integrated, Union territory or cess;
• amount of tax charged in respect of taxable goods or services;
• place of supply with the State name and code, for inter-State supplies;
• whether the tax is payable on reverse charge basis; and
• signature or digital signature.

The two provisos deal with uncertainty at the time of the advance:

• where the rate of tax is not determinable, the tax shall be paid at the rate of eighteen per cent;
• where the nature of supply is not determinable, the same shall be treated as an inter-State supply.

When it is not needed. Since Notification No. 66/2017-CT, no tax is payable on advances for goods by most registered persons, so no receipt voucher arises for them. It remains required for advances against services, and for composition dealers and suppliers of specified actionable claims in respect of goods. No GST on advances for goods →

The refund voucher — section 31(3)(e)

Issued where, on receipt of an advance payment, a receipt voucher was issued but subsequently no supply is made and no tax invoice is issued in pursuance thereof.

Rule 51 particulars mirror Rule 50 and add:

• the number and date of the receipt voucher issued earlier;
• the amount of refund made;
• the amount of tax paid in respect of such goods or services; and
• whether the tax is payable on reverse charge.

The refund voucher is what allows the supplier to adjust the tax already paid on the advance. Without it, the tax paid on an advance for a supply that never happened has no route back — the adjustment is reported in GSTR-1 Table 11B.

The payment voucher — section 31(3)(g)

Issued by a registered person liable to pay tax under s.9(3) or s.9(4), at the time of making payment to the supplier.

Rule 52 particulars:

• name, address and GSTIN of the supplier, if registered;
• a consecutive serial number not exceeding sixteen characters, unique for a financial year;
• date of issue;
• name, address and GSTIN of the recipient;
• description of goods or services;
• amount paid;
• rate of tax;
• amount of tax payable in respect of taxable goods or services;
• place of supply with State name and code, for inter-State supplies; and
• signature or digital signature.

Two points that are frequently misunderstood:

It is issued at the time of payment, not at the time of supply or at the time of the self-invoice.

It is not a credit document. Credit on a reverse charge supply rests on the self-invoice under s.31(3)(f), prescribed by Rule 36(1)(b). The payment voucher evidences the payment. ITC on reverse charge →

The self-invoice — section 31(3)(f)

Issued by a registered person liable to pay tax under s.9(3) or s.9(4) in respect of goods or services received from a supplier who is not registered on the date of receipt of goods or services.

Rule 47A, from 01.11.2024: the self-invoice must be issued within thirty days from the date of receipt of the supply.

The particulars are those of Rule 46, with the registered person appearing as both issuer and recipient — and the unregistered supplier identified by name and address.

Where the supplier is registered and the supply is under s.9(3), the supplier's invoice is the document, marked as tax payable on reverse charge under Rule 46(p). No self-invoice is required.

Key takeaways

• Receipt voucher on an advance — Rule 50; 18% where the rate is undeterminable; inter-State where the nature is undeterminable.
• Refund voucher where the advance is refunded and no supply follows — Rule 51, referencing the receipt voucher.
• Payment voucher at the time of paying a reverse charge supplier — Rule 52.
• Self-invoice under s.31(3)(f) for supplies from unregistered suppliers, within thirty days under Rule 47A.
• The self-invoice, not the payment voucher, is the credit document.
• Receipt vouchers are largely confined to service advances after Notification 66/2017.

Read next

• Self-Invoice for Reverse Charge Purchases
• Payment Voucher Format for RCM Payments
• No GST on Advances for Goods
• ITC on Reverse Charge: Timing, Documents and the Cash Rule

Disclaimer: Positions stated as on 5 September 2026, based on the CGST Act and Rules as amended to 31 March 2026 (ICAI Bare Law, 12th edition) and the ICAI Handbook on Invoicing under GST (2025).