GST on Reddit ads and imported services: self-invoice, RCM and refund

A foreign supplier’s bill without Indian GST can still create a GST liability for your business. For a taxable import of services covered by reverse charge, you pay the IGST to the Indian government. Where the supplier is unregistered, you also create a self-invoice. Eligible credit can then enter your export-refund calculation; the supplier bill alone does not establish that credit. Notification 10/2017-Integrated Tax (Rate), entry 1, CBIC Circular 211/5/2024-GST.

This guide covers purchases by an Indian GST-registered business from an unrelated overseas supplier. If you are invoicing your overseas customer, use the separate export-service invoice guide.

1. Check the actual supplier before deciding on RCM

What your advertising invoice shows	Treatment to investigate
Google or Meta’s Indian supplying entity, its GSTIN, your GSTIN and Indian GST charged normally	A domestic purchase invoice; reconcile supplier-reported credit. The overseas brand does not make this an import.
A Reddit or other supplier located overseas, unregistered for Indian GST, with no Indian GST charged	Apply the import-of-services and reverse-charge checks below.
Supplier identity, location or tax treatment is unclear	Resolve the invoice and billing-account details before preparing the tax entry.

An import of services requires the supplier outside India, recipient in India and place of supply in India. Check the relevant place-of-supply provision and any exemption; “foreign company” alone is insufficient. Entry 1 of Notification 10/2017 places covered services on the recipient under reverse charge. IGST Act section 20 applies the relevant CGST invoicing, timing, credit and payment provisions. IGST Act, sections 2(11), 5(3), 13 and 20, RCM notification, entry 1.

2. Create the self-invoice and retain the foreign bill

Section 31(3)(f) requires the registered recipient to invoice covered supplies received from an unregistered supplier. Since 1 November 2024, Rule 47A gives 30 days from receipt of the supply to issue that invoice. The overseas commercial bill remains supporting evidence. CGST Act, section 31(3)(f), Notification 20/2024-Central Tax, clause 4.

If you have already confirmed the treatment, classification and rate, use the free RCM self-invoice and PDF pack maker to choose from common SAC descriptions, create the recipient-issued invoice and combine it with the supplier bill and payment evidence. The tool works in your browser and does not upload the files.

Fictional example: advertising received on 10 April 2026; self-invoice issued on 15 April; supplier paid on 20 April. The example assumes monthly GSTR-3B filing, an already-determined INR taxable value of ₹20,000 and 18% IGST: ₹3,600. Confirm classification, rate and any foreign-currency valuation first. All example dates, values and references are invented.

Self-invoice field	Example entry
Document heading	Self-invoice under section 31(3)(f) — import of services
Number / date	RCM/26-27/001 / 15 April 2026
Issuer and recipient	[YOUR REGISTERED LEGAL NAME], [REGISTERED ADDRESS], [YOUR GSTIN]
Overseas supplier	[LEGAL ENTITY FROM FOREIGN BILL], [OVERSEAS ADDRESS AND COUNTRY]
Supplier Indian GSTIN	Not registered — no GSTIN
Original bill reference / date	FOREIGN-EXAMPLE-001 / 10 April 2026
Description / receipt	Digital advertising for 1–10 April 2026 / received 10 April 2026
SAC	[VERIFIED SERVICE CLASSIFICATION CODE]
Place of supply	[INDIAN STATE AND STATE CODE]
Taxable value	₹20,000
IGST rate / amount	18% / ₹3,600
Total including recipient-paid IGST	₹23,600
Reverse charge	Yes — IGST payable by recipient to government
Authentication	[AUTHORISED SIGNATORY AND SIGNATURE]

Use an annual invoice sequence of no more than 16 characters and the applicable Rule 46 particulars. Replace every placeholder before use. The supplier is still owed ₹20,000; ₹3,600 is the separate Indian tax liability. The ₹23,600 total shown on this self-invoice does not change the supplier’s commercial bill. CGST Rules, Rule 46.

3. Record the payment voucher and correct tax period

When paying the supplier, issue the separate payment voucher required by section 31(3)(g). For this example, PV/26-27/001, dated 20 April 2026, records ₹20,000 paid, links the self-invoice and payment reference, and includes the parties, service description, place of supply, tax rate, ₹3,600 tax payable and authentication. It records the supplier payment; it is not proof that GST reached the government. CGST Act, section 31(3)(g), CGST Rules, Rule 52.

For this self-invoicing case, amended section 13(3) compares the self-invoice date with the payment date, using the earlier of the payment’s book entry or bank debit. Here the time of supply is 15 April 2026, so the liability belongs to April. Do not apply an automatic 60-day wait from the foreign bill: that clause concerns cases where the supplier must issue the invoice. Associated-enterprise supplies have a separate timing proviso. CGST Act, section 13(3), amended from 1 November 2024.

4. Report GSTR-3B and discharge the IGST in cash

For this example, with no other transactions or adjustments:

GSTR-3B entry	Amount
3.1(d) — inward supplies liable to reverse charge	Taxable value ₹20,000; IGST ₹3,600
4(A)(2) — import of services	₹3,600 eligible IGST credit, if conditions are met
6.1(B) — reverse-charge payment	₹3,600 IGST paid through the cash ledger

Import-service credit belongs in 4(A)(2). Table 4(A)(3) is the other reverse-charge category. GSTN expressly says imported-service RCM is absent from GSTR-2B and must be entered by the taxpayer. GST portal GSTR-2B FAQ, reverse-charge entries.

Open the relevant GSTR-3B through Services → Returns → Returns Dashboard. Enter the liability and eligible credit, then proceed to payment. If the cash balance is insufficient, create and pay a challan under the correct IGST tax head. Complete liability offset and file the return. Depositing money through a challan only funds the cash ledger; verify the debit discharging RCM in the filed return and ledgers. Existing ITC cannot pay this RCM liability. GST portal GSTR-3B filing and payment manual.

Eligible ITC can be taken in the same return when the tax is discharged and the documentary, receipt, business-use and other section 16/17 conditions are satisfied. Creating a self-invoice does not make blocked or personal expenses creditable. Circular 211 also explains the invoice-year basis for the ITC time limit; it does not authorise delaying invoicing or payment. CBIC Circular 211/5/2024-GST.

5. Carry the eligible credit into Annexure B

For the imported advertising service, select Import of Services and the Input Services category. In the current official utility, the supplier-GSTIN and GSTR-2B-period fields are disabled and filled as NA. The port, CGST and SGST fields are also disabled for this import-service case. Do not insert your own GSTIN as the supplier’s or invent a 2B period. GST portal Annexure B manual.

Keep one inward-supply record supported by the self-invoice and linked foreign bill; do not claim both as separate purchases. Retain the service receipt record, payment voucher, bank/card evidence, filed GSTR-3B and cash-ledger debit with it.

The eligible ₹3,600 joins the relevant period’s Net ITC. The amount actually refundable depends on the export-refund formula and credit-ledger limits. Follow the Annexure B worked example to see it alongside domestic purchases and excluded capital-goods credit.