Amazon India GST Setup for Sellers [2026 Updated]

Why GST Setup Is the Most Important First Step

Amazon India will not let you sell most categories without a valid GST registration tied to your seller account. Beyond compliance, getting GST setup right at the start prevents the cash-flow disasters that come from disabled payouts, mis-calculated tax invoices, and reverse charges that surprise you at year-end.

This guide covers the GST setup specifically as it relates to Amazon India in 2026.

Who Needs GST Registration

Under current Indian tax law:

• All Amazon sellers selling taxable goods are required to register for GST, regardless of turnover (the standard ₹20 lakh threshold does not apply to inter-state e-commerce sellers)
• Sellers in only one state who sell only intra-state can use Composition Scheme if turnover is under ₹1.5 crore (but Composition sellers cannot collect GST from buyers — typically not viable for Amazon)
• Sellers of GST-exempt goods (some books, some food items) can list under specific exemption rules

For practical purposes: assume you need a standard GST registration before listing.

Registration Walk-Through

The registration happens at gst.gov.in, not on Amazon directly:

• Visit gst.gov.in and click Services → Registration → New Registration.
• Select Taxpayer and Regular.
• Enter PAN, mobile, and email. You will receive an OTP.
• Complete Part A — basic business details.
• After receiving the Temporary Reference Number (TRN), complete Part B — business address, bank details, principal place of business, authorized signatory.
• Upload supporting documents (PAN, address proof, bank statement, photograph).
• Submit and wait for verification — typically 7–15 business days.

Once your GSTIN is issued, add it to your Amazon Seller Central account under Settings → Tax Settings.

HSN Codes: The Hidden Trap

Every product on Amazon must be tagged with an HSN code (Harmonized System Nomenclature) that determines its GST tax rate. Wrong HSN codes are the most common reason Amazon flags listings for tax mismatches.

Common Amazon categories and typical HSN codes:

Get a CA to verify HSN codes for your specific products. A wrong HSN can mean you under-collect or over-collect GST, and the government can demand back-payment with interest after assessment.

Tax Settings in Seller Central

Inside Amazon Seller Central, the relevant tax settings are at Settings → Tax Settings:

• Default Product Tax Code (PTC). Amazon-specific tax code that maps to GST behavior. Examples: A_GEN_TAX, A_GEN_NOTAX. For most goods, use the PTC that matches your product category.
• GSTIN. Your registered GSTIN tied to your business name on PAN.
• State of registration. Where your business is registered.
• Tax-inclusive vs tax-exclusive pricing. Whether the listing price already includes GST or not. Amazon India defaults to tax-inclusive pricing for B2C transactions.

Multi-State Implications

If you sell from one state and ship to another:

• Within-state sales (intra-state). CGST + SGST applies, both at half the total GST rate. Example: 12% GST = 6% CGST + 6% SGST.
• Across states (inter-state). IGST applies at the full GST rate.
• For FBA sellers. Once your inventory is in an Amazon warehouse in another state, sales from that warehouse are "intra-state" from that warehouse's perspective. This complicates accounting — multi-state FBA sellers typically need GST registration in each state where they hold inventory.

Multi-State GST Registration (When You Need It)

Many growing Amazon India sellers will eventually face this — Amazon stores your FBA inventory in multiple state warehouses for faster delivery, but each state where inventory is held may require its own GST registration.

Triggers for additional state GST registration:

• Amazon stores your FBA inventory in a state warehouse
• You operate a physical office or warehouse in another state
• You exceed ₹50 lakh turnover in a specific state

When triggered, register in the new state via gst.gov.in. Each new GSTIN is tied to a single state. You will manage multiple GSTINs in your accounting system — most sellers use accounting software like Tally or Zoho Books to consolidate.

GST on Returns

Returns get complex because GST originally collected has to be reversed:

• Buyer returns within 30 days → seller issues credit note → GST originally collected is reversed in the return filing
• Amazon withholds GST on commission and shipping at TCS rates (1% under Section 52)
• The TCS appears on your monthly Amazon Tax Report — reconcile against your GST returns

The cleanest workflow: use Amazon's monthly Tax Report download (Reports → Tax Document Library) as your source of truth, then have a CA reconcile against your GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B filings monthly.

Common Mistakes That Cost Money

1. Listing under the wrong HSN. Under-collecting GST means back-payment with interest later. Over-collecting hurts price-competitiveness.

2. Forgetting to update GSTIN after state registration. New state inventory but old GSTIN on the account triggers Amazon to suppress sales from that warehouse.

3. Not reconciling TCS with monthly returns. TCS withheld by Amazon should be claimed as credit in GSTR-3B. Missing this is leaving free money on the table.

4. Treating composition scheme as a shortcut. Composition sellers cannot collect GST from buyers, which means you absorb the tax cost yourself. Rarely viable on Amazon.

5. Skipping a CA. GST is complex enough that even a basic CA on retainer (₹3,000–10,000 per month) saves 10× that in errors.

The Bottom Line

GST setup for Amazon India sellers is not optional. The correct HSN codes, tax categories, and multi-state registration plan should be in place before your first listing goes live — fixing GST mistakes after the fact is expensive and slow. Spend the time and the consulting fee up front, and the rest of the seller journey is straightforward.