HSNandSACcodesoninvoices
The requirement scales with your turnover, which is why no template can decide it for you.
5 minute read · Updated
Short answer
HSN codes classify goods and SAC codes classify services, and a GST tax invoice generally has to carry the relevant code for each line. How many digits you must show is linked to your aggregate annual turnover, with smaller taxpayers required to show fewer and relief available in some B2C situations. Because the requirement depends on your own turnover and registration rather than on the transaction, no invoice template can determine it for you — confirm your digit requirement with your accountant and include the code in the line description.
What they are
Harmonised System of Nomenclature — an international classification for goods, adopted into GST.
Services Accounting Code — the equivalent classification for services.
Both do the same job: they tell the tax system what was supplied in a way that does not depend on how you phrased the description. “Website design and build” is not a category; a SAC code is.
How many digits
The number of digits required is tied to your aggregate annual turnover, with a lower requirement for smaller taxpayers and some relief for B2C supplies. The thresholds have been revised more than once since GST began.
Deliberately no figures here. This is a turnover-linked requirement that has changed several times, and a stale number on a page like this is worse than none — a supplier who prints four digits when six are required has a defective invoice. Ask your accountant what applies to your registration this year.
Where to put it
Most simple invoice layouts have no dedicated HSN column, and adding one for a three-line invoice wastes width. The practical answer is the detail line beneath each item:
- Description: Website design and build
- Detail: SAC 998314 · 12 pages, CMS, staging and launch
That satisfies the requirement that the code appear against the line, keeps the table readable, and means the description still tells a human what they are paying for. The generator's second line on each item exists for exactly this kind of content.
The reference
GST invoice format
The fields a GST tax invoice must carry under Rule 46, when to split the rate into CGST and SGST instead of IGST, and how long you have to issue one.
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Questions people ask
A tax invoice generally has to carry the classification code for each line, but the number of digits required is linked to your aggregate annual turnover, and there is relief in some B2C situations. Because it depends on your registration rather than the transaction, confirm your specific requirement with your accountant.
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