When is an e-Way Bill required?
For anyone despatching goods and unsure whether this consignment needs one.
An e-Way Bill is an electronic document for the movement of goods, generated on the government's own portal before the goods move. The rule most people remember is the fifty-thousand-rupee consignment value - which is right as far as it goes, and misses the parts that actually catch people out.
The basic rule
An e-Way Bill is generally required where goods of consignment value exceeding ₹50,000 are moved - whether that movement is a sale, a branch transfer, a job-work despatch or goods sent for repair. It is not only about sales.
Consignment value means the invoice value including tax, for the goods in that one movement.
The parts that catch people out
States set their own rules for movement inside the state, and several use a different threshold or exempt certain goods. An inter-state movement follows the central rule; an intra-state one follows your state's, and they are not always the same number.
Some categories need one regardless of value - inter-state movement of goods for job work is the common example. And an e-Way Bill has a validity period based on distance; goods still moving after it expires are a problem at the checkpoint, not a paperwork detail to sort out later.
- Check your own state's intra-state threshold rather than assuming ₹50,000.
- Branch transfers and job-work despatches count as movement, even though nothing is sold.
- Validity runs by distance. Plan for it on a long haul, and extend it if the vehicle is delayed.
- Part B - the vehicle details - has to be filled before the goods actually move.
When it is not required
There are exemptions: certain goods listed in the rules, movement by non-motorised conveyance, movement within a short distance in specified circumstances, and goods moving to or from a customs port under customs supervision, among others.
The list is specific, and 'I thought it was exempt' is not a defence at a checkpoint. If the consignment is near a threshold or on an unusual route, generating one is cheaper than being wrong.
Getting the file accepted
Most rejections are formatting, not substance. The unit of measure has to be the portal's own UQC code - KGS rather than KG, DZN rather than DOZ, LTS rather than LTR - and a JSON that names a unit any other way is rejected with an error that does not explain itself.
The other frequent one is the recipient GSTIN or state code not matching the place of supply on the invoice.
How Zembook handles it
e-Way Bill exports in the NIC format with the portal's own UQC codes already translated, so the unit that goes out is the one the portal accepts regardless of what your item master calls it. You generate the bill on the portal with that file.
Zembook does not generate or cancel an e-Way Bill on the portal for you. Software that claims to without holding your portal credentials is describing something it is not doing - and an e-Way Bill you believe is cancelled while it is still live is a compliance problem, not a convenience one.
Reviewed August 2026. This describes general GST practice and is not tax advice. Thresholds, due dates and rules change by notification, and several vary by state — confirm anything that decides a filing on gst.gov.in or with your accountant.
Questions people ask
- Is an e-Way Bill needed for a branch transfer?
- Yes, where the consignment value crosses the threshold. The rule is about movement of goods, not about whether a sale took place.
- Who generates it - the seller or the transporter?
- The supplier normally generates Part A. Part B, the vehicle details, is filled by whoever is arranging the transport, which may be the transporter. Goods must not move with Part B blank.
- What happens if it expires while the goods are in transit?
- Validity can be extended within a window around the expiry. Do it before rather than after - goods moving on an expired e-Way Bill are exposed to detention and penalty.
Zembook does this part for you
Generate e-Way Bill JSON in the NIC format straight from your invoice, with the portal's own UQC unit codes, plus e-Invoice IRN export. No re-typing on the portal.