In India, §§24(ii) and 24(v) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (CGST Act) make registration compulsory for a casual taxable person and a non-resident taxable person whatever their turnover. Section 27 then caps that registration at 90 days, extendable once to 180, and §27(2) requires an advance deposit of estimated tax before it is granted at all.
TL;DR for founders
If you are going to sell in a State where you have no office — a trade fair, a pop-up, a short site contract — the ordinary turnover threshold does not protect you. You must register before you start, the registration expires by itself in 90 days, and you have to pay the estimated tax up front before the certificate issues. Two things soften it. The deposit is calculated after the credit you expect to claim, not on gross tax. And if the exhibition organiser gives you an allotment letter, you can often register as an ordinary taxpayer on the strength of that letter and skip the deposit entirely. Decide which route you are on at least a week before the event, because the deposit has to clear into your cash ledger before anything issues.
Two categories, one regime, different documents
Section 2(20) defines a casual taxable person as someone who occasionally undertakes transactions involving supply of goods or services in a State or Union Territory where he has no fixed place of business. Section 2(77) defines a non-resident taxable person as someone who occasionally undertakes such transactions but has no fixed place of business or residence in India at all.
The operational difference is documentary. A casual taxable person is an Indian business venturing outside its established States, so it applies in the ordinary FORM GST REG-01, holds a PAN, and sits in the credit chain normally. A non-resident taxable person applies in FORM GST REG-09 under Rule 13 of the CGST Rules, 2017, at least five days before commencing business, on the strength of a self-attested copy of a valid passport — or, for an entity incorporated outside India, its tax identification number, unique number or PAN. Its credit position is materially narrower and its return is different.
Both are pulled in by §24 regardless of the §22(1) turnover threshold — clause (ii) for casual taxable persons, clause (v) for non-residents. Neither can opt for composition under §10.
A third route now sits alongside these for a specific class. Notification 51/2023-Central Tax (CGST_51_2023), effective 1 October 2023, took offshore suppliers of online money gaming out of the standard portal registration process and into FORM GST REG-10 with a dedicated category, filing FORM GSTR-5A with a separate Table 5D for online money gaming supplies and Table 5E for amendments. That is a distinct track from the §27 casual and non-resident regime and should not be conflated with it.
The 90-day clock and the extension you get once
Section 27(1) makes the certificate valid for the period specified in the application or 90 days from the effective date of registration, whichever is earlier. The proviso lets the proper officer extend it by a further period not exceeding 90 days on sufficient cause shown. The extension application — FORM GST REG-11 under Rule 15 — must be filed before the existing validity expires, and must be accompanied by the additional advance deposit for the extended period.
180 days is a hard ceiling. Circular 71/45/2018-GST (CIR_71_2018) records that representations seeking extension beyond 180 days are not entertained. A project or contract genuinely running longer is not a casual activity at all — it needs ordinary registration on a declared place of business, which is a different application and a different compliance profile.
The advance deposit, and how to size it correctly
Section 27(2) requires an advance deposit of tax equal to the estimated tax liability for the period of registration, with a further deposit for any extension. The deposit credits to the electronic cash ledger, and the registration certificate issues only once it reflects there — so the deposit, not the application, is the gating item on the timeline.
CIR_71_2018 settles the question that used to cost applicants the most working capital. FORM GST REG-01 asks for estimated net tax liability, not gross. The advance deposit is therefore computed after taking into account eligible input tax credit available to the applicant. A trader expecting ₹40 lakh of taxable outward supply at 18% who will also incur ₹25 lakh of creditable inward supply does not deposit ₹7.2 lakh; it deposits the net figure. The circular is binding on field formations under §168(1), so an officer insisting on the gross number is acting against a binding instruction.
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The most valuable line in this area is one most applicants never reach.
CIR_71_2018addresses the exhibition case directly: a person conducting an exhibition for a period not exceeding 180 days may be treated as a casual taxable person and register for 90 days extendable by another 90 — but where the applicant uploads the allotment or consent letter for the exhibition premises, that document serves as proof of place of business for a normal registration, and in that case no advance tax is required at all, with the registration surrendered once the exhibition concludes. The difference between the two routes on a single ten-day trade fair can be several lakh rupees of blocked cash. Veritect Legal AI holds the circular alongside §27, Rules 13 and 15 and the REG form set, so a query such as "can a Delhi manufacturer taking a 12-day Mumbai exhibition stall avoid the §27(2) deposit" resolves against the binding clarification rather than portal folklore.
Returns, and getting the deposit back
Non-resident taxable persons file FORM GSTR-5 under Rule 63 — a single return covering outward supplies, inward supplies and tax payable for the registration period, in place of the ordinary GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B pair. Notification 5/2018-Central Tax (CGST_05_2018) caps the §47 late fee at ₹25 per day of central tax, or ₹10 per day where the tax payable in the return is nil — meaning a combined ₹50 or ₹20 per day across the central and State components. Due dates have been extended repeatedly for the class: Notification 68/2017-Central Tax (CGST_68_2017) pushed the July to December 2017 returns to 31 January 2018, and Notification 3/2025-Central Tax (CGST_03_2025) extended the December 2024 return in the January 2025 relief cycle.
Section 44 excludes both casual and non-resident taxable persons from the annual return in FORM GSTR-9 — as it excludes Input Service Distributors, §51 deductors and §52 collectors. A parallel relief exists for the adjacent offshore class: Notification 30/2019-Central Tax (CGST_30_2019), issued under §148, exempts persons registered under §24 read with Rule 14 who supply online information and database access or retrieval services from outside India to unregistered recipients from both GSTR-9 and GSTR-9C.
Recovering the deposit. Any balance of the advance deposit left after the liability is discharged is refundable under §54(13), but only after all returns due for the registration period have been furnished. Circular 45/19/2018-GST (CIR_45_2018) supplies the procedural point that trips claimants up: a non-resident taxable person — like an Input Service Distributor or a composition taxpayer — may claim refund on the strength of its own return, FORM GSTR-5, and is not required to have filed FORM GSTR-1 and FORM GSTR-3B. The practical instruction is simply to file the final GSTR-5 immediately at the end of the registration period, because the refund clock does not start until it lands.
The handicraft exemption, and why it is narrower than it reads
One meaningful carve-out exists from compulsory casual registration. Notification 56/2018-Central Tax (CGST_56_2018), issued under §23(2) on 23 October 2018, exempts casual taxable persons making inter-State supplies of specified handicraft goods from registration, provided aggregate turnover stays below the §22(1) threshold. It replaced Notification 32/2017-Central Tax (CGST_32_2017), which had run the same exemption against a fixed ₹20 lakh all-India ceiling (₹10 lakh for Special Category States other than Jammu and Kashmir) and against a list of 27 product categories.
The current notification identifies covered goods by HSN code and cross-refers the handicraft definition to Notification 21/2018-Central Tax (Rate): leather articles under 4201 to 4203, carved wood under 4415 to 4420, bamboo products under Chapter 46, handloom textiles across Chapters 50 to 63, pottery, metal ware, musical instruments and folk paintings among others — and the goods must be predominantly hand-made. Two obligations survive the exemption entirely: the person must hold a PAN, and must generate e-way bills under Rule 138 of the CGST Rules. An artisan relying on this exemption who moves goods above the e-way-bill threshold without one has lost the benefit of the exemption in practice, because the movement itself is then a §68 breach.
FAQ
Q: Who is a casual taxable person and who is a non-resident taxable person?
A: Section 2(20) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (CGST Act) defines a casual taxable person as one who occasionally undertakes transactions involving supply of goods or services in a State or Union Territory where he has no fixed place of business. Section 2(77) defines a non-resident taxable person as one who occasionally undertakes such transactions but has no fixed place of business or residence in India at all. The distinction matters operationally: a casual taxable person is an Indian business venturing into a State where it is not established, so it holds a PAN and can claim input tax credit; a non-resident taxable person is a foreign entity registering on the strength of a passport or foreign tax identification number, and its credit position is far narrower.
Q: How long is a casual or non-resident registration valid?
A: Section 27(1) of the CGST Act makes the certificate valid for the period specified in the application or 90 days from the effective date of registration, whichever is earlier. The proviso allows the proper officer to extend it by a further period not exceeding 90 days on sufficient cause shown, so 180 days is the absolute ceiling. The extension application must be filed before the end of the existing validity. Circular 71/45/2018-GST (CIR_71_2018) records that representations seeking an extension beyond 180 days are not entertained — a project running longer requires ordinary registration on a declared place of business instead.
Q: How is the advance tax deposit under §27(2) computed?
A: Section 27(2) of the CGST Act requires a casual or non-resident taxable person to make an advance deposit of tax equal to the estimated tax liability for the period of registration, and a further deposit for any extended period. Circular 71/45/2018-GST (CIR_71_2018) settles the base: FORM GST REG-01 asks for estimated NET tax liability, not gross, so the deposit is computed after taking into account eligible input tax credit available to the applicant. The deposit is credited to the electronic cash ledger and the registration is granted only once it reflects there — which is why the advance deposit is the practical gating item on the registration timeline, not the application itself.
Q: Does an exhibition stall-holder have to pay advance tax?
A: Not where the stall is registered on an allotment letter. Circular 71/45/2018-GST (CIR_71_2018) clarifies that a person conducting an exhibition for a period not exceeding 180 days may be treated as a casual taxable person, registering for 90 days extendable by another 90. But where the applicant uploads a copy of the allotment or consent letter for the exhibition premises, that document serves as proof of place of business for a normal registration — and in such cases no advance tax is required, with the registration surrendered once the exhibition concludes. The choice between the two routes is therefore a live planning decision, not a formality.
Q: What returns does a non-resident taxable person file?
A: A non-resident taxable person files FORM GSTR-5 rather than the ordinary GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B pair, covering outward supplies, inward supplies and tax payable for the registration period. Notification 5/2018-Central Tax (CGST_05_2018) caps the §47 late fee for delayed GSTR-5 at ₹25 per day of central tax, or ₹10 per day where the tax payable in the return is nil. Due dates have been extended repeatedly — Notification 68/2017-Central Tax (CGST_68_2017) for the July to December 2017 returns and Notification 3/2025-Central Tax (CGST_03_2025) for December 2024. Section 44 of the CGST Act excludes both casual and non-resident taxable persons from the annual return in FORM GSTR-9.
Q: How does a casual or non-resident taxable person recover the unused advance deposit?
A: Any balance of the advance deposit remaining after the tax liability is discharged is refundable under §54(13) of the CGST Act, but only after all returns due for the registration period have been furnished. Circular 45/19/2018-GST (CIR_45_2018) confirms the procedural point that matters here: a non-resident taxable person, like an Input Service Distributor or a composition taxpayer, may claim refund on the strength of its own return — FORM GSTR-5 in the non-resident's case — and is not required to have filed FORM GSTR-1 and FORM GSTR-3B. Practically this means the last GSTR-5 of the registration period should be filed promptly, because the refund clock does not start until it is.
Q: Are there exemptions from casual-taxable-person registration?
A: Yes, one significant one. Notification 56/2018-Central Tax (CGST_56_2018), issued under §23(2) of the CGST Act on 23 October 2018, exempts casual taxable persons making inter-State supplies of specified handicraft goods from registration, provided aggregate turnover stays below the §22(1) threshold. The covered goods are identified by HSN code across a long list — leather articles under 4201 to 4203, carved wood under 4415 to 4420, bamboo under Chapter 46, handloom textiles under Chapters 50 to 63 and others — and must be predominantly hand-made. Two conditions survive the exemption: the person must hold a PAN and must generate e-way bills under Rule 138 of the CGST Rules, 2017.
Related on Veritect: GST registration and deregistration — the full lifecycle · Rule 16A temporary identification number for non-registerable persons · GST annual return — GSTR-9 and the §44 regime
Sources
Primary CBIC and Government of India sources relied on for this explainer:
- CBIC GST portal — Circular 71/45/2018-GST and archival notifications: cbic-gst.gov.in
- CBIC Tax Information Portal — notification and circular text: taxinformation.cbic.gov.in
- GST Council — recommendations underlying the handicraft exemption and the online-gaming registration track: gstcouncil.gov.in
- CGST Act, 2017 — §§2, 23, 24, 27, 44, 54: indiacode.nic.in
- Gazette of India — notification publication: egazette.gov.in
Corpus anchors: CIR_71_2018, CGST_56_2018, CGST_32_2017, CGST_05_2018, CGST_68_2017, CGST_03_2025, CIR_45_2018, CGST_30_2019, CGST_51_2023.
This explainer is general information on Indian central GST law and is not legal or tax advice. Verify the operative notification text and effective dates for the period in question before acting.
Beyond this brief Preview
This article covers the decision framework. The full compliance picture includes the verbatim text of §§27(1) and 27(2) with their provisos, Rules 13 and 15 on the non-resident application and extension procedure, Rule 63 on the GSTR-5 return, the full HSN schedule of handicraft goods in Notification 56/2018-Central Tax with its cross-reference to Notification 21/2018-Central Tax (Rate), the complete text of Circular 71/45/2018-GST including its Input Service Distributor excess-credit recovery limb under §§20 and 21, and the REG-01, REG-09, REG-10 and REG-11 form fields. Veritect Legal AI holds all nine anchor instruments cited above in full text, supersession-tracked, so practitioners can resolve queries such as "what advance deposit applies where a casual taxable person expects ₹18 lakh of creditable inward supply" or "can a non-resident taxable person claim a §54(13) refund before filing its final GSTR-5" against the operative sources rather than secondary summaries. Access through veritect.ai.