How to Find GSTIN Number Online: Step-by-Step Guide

Are you running a business and unsure how to find your GSTIN number? With the rollout of the GST regime in India in 2017, it became mandatory for businesses exceeding the annual turnover of Rs. 40 lakh/ Rs. 20 lakh/ Rs. 10 lakh to register under the GST regime.

After their registration, they got a GSTIN number, which gave them legal recognition as a supplier of services and/or goods. So, knowing how to find GSTIN number for businesses is crucial as it plays an important role for them in tax compliance.

This blog will answer your confusion and guide you to your answer for how to find GSTIN number of your business. It will also provide you with other crucial information regarding GSTIN, so keep reading!

What is GSTIN?

GSTIN, or Goods and Services Tax Identification Number, is a 15-digit unique identification number which is assigned to all registered taxpayers. Generally, this number is given to suppliers, dealers, or businesses.

Previously, state VAT law was used to register businesses. Then, they had another unique ID, which was a Tax Identification Number (TIN). This number was provided to them by state tax authorities. Now, with GST being a centralised regime, the GSTIN is a replacement for the TIN, which is provided by the centre.

GSTIN Number Example

All GSTIN has a specific structure which follows a pre-defined style, as shown in the table below:

Let us take an example to understand this better. Suppose a GSTIN is 27AAAPA1234A1Z5. The denotation for each individual character is as follows:

• 27 is the state code of Maharashtra, where the business is present.
• AAAPA1234A is the business’s PAN.
• 1 denotes that this is the first business registration in Maharashtra under this PAN.
• Z is a reserved character by default.
• 5 is a code for error detection.

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How to Find GSTIN Number Online?

After learning about what GSTIN is, let’s learn about how to find GSTIN number. Below are the steps you can follow to find your GSTIN:

1. Go to the official GST portal.
2. Next, select the ‘Search Taxpayer’ tab.
3. Click on the option of ‘Search by PAN’.
4. After that, use the GST number search tool. To do so, enter the dealer’s PAN and CAPTCHA code present on the screen.
5. Select the ‘Search’ option.
6. Then, the website will land on a page showing you the GSTIN registration details of all the entities that are held against the provided PAN.
7. There will be a table of all entities. To know the 15-digit GSTIN of any one of those, you will need to click on any one of the hyperlinked GSTIN/UIN.
8. After that, the page will redirect you to ‘Search by GSTIN’ with the selected GSTIN auto-filled in its space.
9. You will just need to enter the CAPTCHA code and select the ‘Search’ button to get the specific GSTIN displayed on your screen.

Who Should Apply for GSTIN Number?

Any business that has a yearly turnover of over Rs. 40 lakhs in a financial year needs to register under GST. For some states like Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh, this threshold limit is Rs. 20 lakhs. In some special cases, this limit can also be Rs. 10 lakhs.

The entities that are compulsorily liable to register are as follows:

• NRI casual taxable person.
• Casual taxable person.
• Agents who are acting in place of a registered taxpayer.
• People who are making inter-state supplies.
• TCS/ TDS deductors.
• E-commerce operators.
• Sellers on e-commerce, like Flipkart and Amazon.
• People who are put through reverse charge taxation.
• Individuals who work in the import-export industry.
• People who conduct business in another state in which they are not located.
• Individuals who have an aggregator company.
• Businesses that were previously under service tax, excise, and VAT.
• Entities that provide OIDAR service in India.
• Input Service Distributors (ISDs).

Documents Required to Get GSTIN Number

The documents required to get a GSTIN depend on the entity applying for it. The table below presents the entities and the documents they require, respectively:

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What is the Fee for getting a GSTIN Number?

The process of GST registration that results in a business getting its GSTIN is free. It does not cost anything to get your registration done online. However, the government charges a business if the process of registration is left incomplete or undone.

A penalty of 10% of the amount due to the tax authorities by the business or Rs. 10,000 is levied. On the other hand, if a business evades taxes, the central tax authorities can levy 100% of the amount that is due. In these cases, the business can also face other legal charges.

How to Check GST Registration Status Online Using ARN?

After applying for GST registration, you need to check its status to know about the approval. Therefore, to check GST Registration Status Online with the use of an ARN, you can follow these steps:

1. Visit the official GST Portal and sequentially select ‘Services’ > ‘Registration’ > ‘Track Application Status’.
2. Then click on the ‘Registration’ option from the drop-down list.
3. Select the ARN option and enter the ARN that you received for the process of GST registration in your email ID.
4. Put in the CAPTCHA code and select SEARCH.
5. There, you can view your GST registration status. Different phases of the registration process are coloured differently. For instance, if ‘Stage 4’ is your current status, it will be green, and the rest of the stages will be grey.

The ARN status can be as follows:

• Pending for Processing: When your application for registration is submitted successfully and its processing by the Tax Officer is due.
• Site Verification Assigned: When a Site Verification Officer is assigned for inspection and verification of the site.
• Site Verification Completed: This happens when the Site Verification Officer has completed their visit and processed the visitation report further to the Tax Officer.
• Pending for Clarification: When the tax officer requests clarification from the applicant by issuing them a notice.
• Clarification Filed and Pending for Order: This status appears when the applicant has successfully provided clarification to the tax officer and is waiting for their decision.
• Clarification Not Filed and Pending for Order: This happens when the applicant is not able to successfully provide the tax officer with a clarification within the given number of days as per the notice.
• Approved: When the tax officer accepts the registration of the applicant, they receive their Password and Registration ID through email.
• Rejected: This happens if the tax officer rejects the new registration of applicant.

Please note that generally, there are 6 stages in the registration process. However, if the taxpayer withdraws the registration application, there will only be 2 stages.

Conclusion

Knowing how to find GSTIN number online is an essential task for businesses. By using the official GST portal, individuals can access registered GSTINs associated with their PAN without visiting any physical office.

This online facility not only enhances convenience but also ensures transparency and accuracy in compliance-related matters. So, it becomes important for businesses to stay updated with such digital processes to align themselves with GST requirements.

💡If you want to streamline your payment and make GST payments via credit, debit card or UPI, consider using the PICE App. Explore the PICE App today and take your business to new heights.

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