GST late fee and interest: what a late return really costs

Missed a GST return deadline? The cost is made of two separate charges that people often confuse: a fixed late fee per day, and interest on the tax you owe. Here's exactly how each one works.

The late fee (per day)

The late fee accrues for every day past the due date until you actually file:

• Return with tax due: ₹50 per day — ₹25 CGST + ₹25 SGST.
• Nil return (no tax, no sales): ₹20 per day — ₹10 + ₹10.
• There are caps that vary with your turnover and the return type (commonly ₹5,000 for a normal return, ₹500 for nil). The fee stops growing once it hits the cap.

The interest (18% a year)

Separately, if you owed tax, interest runs at 18% per annum on the net tax paid late, for the number of days of delay: tax × 18% × days ÷ 365. A nil return has no tax, so it carries no interest — only the ₹20/day fee.

A worked example

Say you owe ₹50,000 of GST and file 30 days late. Late fee = ₹50 × 30 = ₹1,500. Interest = ₹50,000 × 18% × 30 ÷ 365 ≈ ₹740. Total extra ≈ ₹2,240 on top of the tax. The damage scales with both the delay and the tax, so filing sooner — even before you can pay in full — limits the late fee.

See the exact figure for your own delay before you pay:

While you're at it

Two quick habits that prevent late-fee surprises: compute your GST cleanly so you know what's owed, and validate any GSTIN before you raise an invoice against it.