Read before you apply: This is an optional route with strict conditions, and the registration can be cancelled automatically if the operator withdraws consent and you do not amend within 30 days. This post is based on the CGST (Amendment) Rules, 2026 (Notification 05/2026-Central Tax) as reported, and the FAQs published with the 57th GST Council recommendations. Please check the official text on the CBIC website before filing.
Why Rule 14B was needed
GST registration is State-wise, and each registration needs a place of business in that State. Anyone supplying goods through an e-commerce operator that collects tax at source must register, whatever the turnover. For a small seller whose stock sits in a marketplace warehouse in another State, this meant renting premises there just to hold a GSTIN.
The 57th GST Council meeting recommended a simpler route for small sellers, and Rule 14B, inserted by Notification 05/2026-Central Tax dated 26 October 2026, puts it into law from 1 November 2026. For the rest of that notification, see our post on CGST Amendment Rules 2026, and for the Council’s other decisions, our summary of the 57th GST Council meeting.
Who can use Rule 14B
| Condition | What it means |
|---|---|
| Home-State registration | You must already hold a regular registration in a State where you have a physical presence, and declare that GSTIN in the application. If you are registered under Rule 14A, you must first withdraw from it (see below) |
| Goods through operators only | You must supply goods only through e-commerce operators that collect TCS under Section 52. You cannot make non-marketplace supplies on this registration |
| Monthly limit | Output tax on supplies to registered persons must not exceed ₹2.5 lakh per month |
| Operator consent | The operator must agree to its warehouse being declared as your principal place of business |
| Aadhaar | Biometric-based Aadhaar authentication and document verification are required, followed by physical verification of your home-State place of business |
| One per State | Only one Rule 14B registration per PAN in a State or Union territory |
If you are registered in your home State only under the simplified Rule 14A, you must first withdraw from it using FORM GST REG-32 before applying under Rule 14B.
The ₹2.5 lakh limit: what is counted
The test in the rule is on output tax liability on supplies made to registered persons, adding CGST, State or UT tax and IGST together. Supplies to your own registrations on the same PAN, such as stock transfers to the warehouse, are left out. Sales to consumers do not count towards this test.
The official FAQs describe the same idea as sellers who pass on less than ₹2.5 lakh of input tax credit in a month. The rule’s own wording is the output-tax test, so that is the figure to work to. The rule makes it a condition of the option, so check it month by month.
How to apply: step by step
- Agree with the operator first. Confirm which warehouse address you will declare, and that the operator will consent. The operator has 7 working days after the application reaches it. If it does not consent, the application is not processed further.
- File FORM GST REG-01 on the GST portal, declaring your home-State GSTIN, the operator’s warehouse as principal place of business in the new State, and any other warehouses there as additional places of business.
- Operator consent is given online on the portal.
- Home-State checks: the jurisdictional officer completes biometric-based Aadhaar authentication and document verification, if not already done.
- Physical verification of your home-State place of business, if not done earlier.
- Grant: registration is granted electronically. If the officer does not complete physical verification within 30 days of the application reference number, the application is deemed approved. If verification shows you carry on no business in the home State, it is deemed rejected, with intimation in FORM GST REG-05A.
After registration
- Your certificate will show the operator’s warehouse as the principal place of business, along with your home-State address.
- You must keep your books of account at your home-State principal place of business and produce them when the officer asks.
- You do not need to display the registration certificate or GSTIN on a name board at the operator’s warehouse.
- Each State registration is a separate GSTIN, so plan for its own returns and TCS credit tracking, alongside your home-State filings.
Traps to avoid
- Operator withdraws consent. If the operator withdraws permission for a warehouse you declared as principal place of business, or its own registration is cancelled, you have 30 days to apply for amendment in FORM GST REG-14. If you do not, the registration is deemed cancelled by the system (FORM GST REG-38).
- Address changes at the warehouse. If the operator’s warehouse address changes, you must apply for amendment in FORM GST REG-14, and the operator’s consent applies again. If the operator’s change of your principal place of business address is approved and you do not file the amendment within 30 days, the registration is deemed cancelled. If permission is withdrawn for a warehouse declared only as an additional place of business, that place is deleted from your certificate if you do not apply for amendment in 30 days.
- Home-State registration cancelled. Your Rule 14B registrations depend on it.
- Silence is a “no”. There is no deemed consent from the operator.
- Exiting the scheme. Withdrawal has its own procedure in FORM GST REG-32, with proof of your physical presence, and the form’s instructions say you must have filed returns for at least one tax period first.
- No Aadhaar, no registration, except for persons notified under Section 25(6D).
Should you use Rule 14B?
It suits sellers who stay under the monthly tax limit, sell only through marketplaces, and want warehouses in several States without renting offices. It may not suit you if you sell offline or on your own website, if you pass on more than ₹2.5 lakh of output tax to registered buyers in a month, or if your marketplace relationship is unstable. In those cases, an ordinary State registration with proper premises may be safer.
Whichever route you take, the real work is monthly: reconciling marketplace settlements, GST TCS and TDS with your returns in each State. See our guides on Amazon seller accounting in India and our accounting and GST services for Amazon and Flipkart sellers.
Checklist for sellers
- Work out your monthly output tax on supplies to registered persons, excluding same-PAN stock transfers, against the ₹2.5 lakh limit.
- Confirm that your home-State registration is regular, and that Aadhaar authentication is complete.
- If you are on Rule 14A, plan the REG-32 withdrawal first.
- Get the marketplace to confirm the warehouse address and its consent process before you file.
- File FORM GST REG-01 and track the 30-day verification period.
- Set a reminder to act within 30 days if the operator changes a warehouse or withdraws consent.
- Keep books at your home-State place of business and keep the notification on file.
FAQs
What is GST Rule 14B?
Rule 14B is a new optional registration route in the CGST Rules, in force from 1 November 2026. It lets a seller registered in a home State get registration in another State, where it has no physical presence, by declaring an e-commerce operator’s warehouse as its principal place of business.
Who can register under Rule 14B?
A person with a regular registration in a home State who supplies goods only through e-commerce operators collecting TCS under Section 52, whose output tax on supplies to registered persons does not exceed ₹2.5 lakh a month, and who gets the operator’s consent.
What is the ₹2.5 lakh limit under Rule 14B?
It is the total of CGST, State or UT tax and IGST payable on your supplies to registered persons in a month, leaving out supplies to registrations on the same PAN. It is a tax test, not a turnover test.
What if the e-commerce operator does not give consent?
The operator must consent within 7 working days. If it does not, the application is not processed further, so agree the warehouse details with the operator before you apply.
What happens if the operator later withdraws its consent?
You have 30 days to apply for amendment in FORM GST REG-14. If you do not, the registration is deemed cancelled by the system in FORM GST REG-38.
Can I sell offline or on my own website with a Rule 14B registration?
No. The registration is meant for supplying goods through e-commerce operators that collect TCS under Section 52. Other supplies cannot be made on it.
I am on Rule 14A. Can I also use Rule 14B?
You must first withdraw from the Rule 14A option in FORM GST REG-32, and have a regular registration in your home State, before you apply under Rule 14B.
We can check whether Rule 14B suits you and handle registration and monthly GST for your marketplace business. Call +91-85888-99292 or email contact@metaccounts.in for a free consultation.
Based on the FAQs on the simplified registration scheme for ECO sellers published with the 57th GST Council recommendations (PIB), and reports on Notification 05/2026-Central Tax dated 26 October 2026. Details may change, so please check the official notification on the CBIC GST website and the GST portal before filing. This post is for general information and is not tax or legal advice.