GSTR-3B Due Date: Complete Guide for 2026

GSTR-3B is the monthly (or quarterly, under QRMP) self-declared summary return that every regular GST-registered business in India must file — it's how you report total sales, input tax credit claimed, and tax paid for a period. If you have a GST registration, you almost certainly have a GSTR-3B obligation, even in a month with zero sales.

This guide covers who must file, the current due date rules, late fees and interest, and a quick filing walkthrough — verified against the GST portal and CBIC's law repository.

What is GSTR-3B?

GSTR-3B is a simplified summary return introduced under the GST regime. Unlike GSTR-1 (which requires invoice-level detail of outward supplies), GSTR-3B captures consolidated figures: total taxable outward supplies, eligible input tax credit (ITC), tax payable, and tax paid — split across IGST, CGST, SGST/UTGST and cess. It is filed on the GST portal (gst.gov.in) and, once submitted, cannot be revised — corrections flow into a later period's return instead.

Every normal and casual taxpayer must file GSTR-3B for every applicable tax period, including periods with no business activity (a "Nil" return), unless specifically exempted (e.g., taxpayers under the Composition Scheme, who file differently, or those with certain cancelled/suspended registrations).

Who Must File

• Every regular taxpayer registered under GST (i.e., not under the Composition Scheme).
• Casual taxable persons and non-resident taxable persons, subject to their specific rules.
• Businesses with no transactions in a period still need to file a Nil GSTR-3B — there is no exemption for inactivity.

Composition dealers, Input Service Distributors, and taxpayers required to file GSTR-5/5A/6/7/8 file different returns instead of GSTR-3B.

Due Date

The standard due date depends on whether you file monthly or under the QRMP (Quarterly Return Monthly Payment) scheme.

QRMP eligibility: available to taxpayers with PAN-based aggregate annual turnover up to ₹5 crore in the current and preceding financial year, provided the most recent GSTR-3B due has already been filed. Under QRMP, GSTR-3B itself is filed quarterly, but tax for the first two months of the quarter is still deposited monthly through Form GST PMT-06, due by the 25th of the following month.

Important — due dates get extended. The government periodically extends GSTR-3B due dates by notification, typically because of portal load or technical issues. As a concrete recent example, the due date for the March 2026 GSTR-3B was extended from 20 April 2026 to 21 April 2026 via Notification No. 01/2026–Central Tax. Always cross-check the due date for your specific filing period on the GST portal or CBIC's notification page before relying on the standard 20th/22nd/24th rule.

Late Fee and Penalty

Late fee (Section 47, CGST Act): The base law sets late fee at ₹100 per day of delay, capped at ₹5,000, under the CGST Act — with an equal amount payable under the corresponding SGST Act, so ₹200/day and ₹10,000 combined at the statutory ceiling. In practice, the government has used its waiver powers to notify a lower, currently-applicable rate: ₹50 per day (₹25 CGST + ₹25 SGST) for a normal return, and ₹20 per day (₹10 CGST + ₹10 SGST) for a Nil return, subject to turnover-based maximum caps (commonly cited as ₹2,000 for turnover up to ₹1.5 crore, ₹5,000 for turnover between ₹1.5–5 crore, and ₹10,000 above ₹5 crore for normal returns; ₹500 for Nil returns). This reduced structure traces back to Notification No. 19/2021–Central Tax and has not been superseded as of this writing — but because late fee notifications can change, confirm the exact current cap for your turnover slab on the GST portal before assuming a figure.

Interest (Section 50, CGST Act): Interest on tax paid late is capped by law at a maximum of 18% per annum, and the Government has notified 18% as the applicable rate (Notification No. 13/2017–Central Tax). Interest is generally computed only on the net tax liability discharged through the electronic cash ledger (not on the portion covered by available input tax credit), calculated from the day after the due date until the date of payment.

No standing amnesty: As of this writing there is no active, blanket GST late-fee amnesty scheme in force for routine GSTR-3B delays — standard late fee and interest apply. Watch for GST Council announcements, as amnesty/waiver schemes have been introduced periodically in the past.

Filing lock after 3 years: Separately, the GST portal now blocks filing of GSTR-3B (and several other returns) once three years have passed from the original due date, following a Finance Act 2023 amendment. Don't let old periods lapse — once time-barred, a return cannot be filed at all.

How to File

1. Log in to the GST portal at gst.gov.in with your credentials.
2. Go to Services > Returns > Returns Dashboard, select the financial year and return period (month, or quarter under QRMP).
3. Select GSTR-3B and choose "Prepare Online" (or upload via offline tool for bulk data).
4. Enter/verify outward supplies, inward supplies liable to reverse charge, and eligible ITC in the respective tables; the portal auto-populates some fields from GSTR-1/GSTR-2B — reconcile these before proceeding.
5. Review the tax payable, offset it using available ITC in the electronic credit ledger and cash in the electronic cash ledger (generate a challan and pay first if the cash balance is insufficient).
6. Preview the return, then submit and file using DSC or EVC (OTP-based verification).

Once filed, GSTR-3B cannot be revised — any correction is carried into a subsequent period's return.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to file GSTR-3B if I had zero sales and zero purchases in a month?

Yes. A Nil GSTR-3B is still mandatory for every applicable tax period; there's no activity-based exemption from filing.

What's the difference between GSTR-3B and GSTR-1?

GSTR-1 reports invoice-level details of outward supplies; GSTR-3B is a consolidated summary return used to actually discharge tax liability (offsetting output tax against ITC and cash payments) for the period.

Can I switch between monthly filing and QRMP mid-year?

You can opt in or opt out of QRMP at the start of a quarter, provided you meet the ₹5 crore aggregate turnover eligibility and have filed your most recent due GSTR-3B. Check the exact opt-in window on the portal, as it typically closes before the quarter begins.

What happens if I file GSTR-3B late but I'm eligible for QRMP with a Nil quarter?

You still owe late fee for the delay (at the Nil-return rate) even if the tax liability itself is zero — the late fee is tied to the delay in filing, not to the amount of tax due.

Sources

• GST Portal — GSTR-3B Filing FAQs and User Guide (tutorial.gst.gov.in)
• GST Portal — QRMP Scheme FAQs (tutorial.gst.gov.in)
• GST Council — Notification 19/2021-Central Tax listing (gstcouncil.gov.in)
• Section 47, CGST Act, 2017 — Levy of Late Fee (Indian Kanoon, statutory text)
• Section 50, CGST Act, 2017 — Interest on Delayed Payment of Tax (Indian Kanoon, statutory text)
• TaxGuru — CBIC Notification 01/2026-Central Tax, GSTR-3B March 2026 due date extended to 21 April 2026

Due dates, late fees, and interest rates on GST returns are subject to change by government notification. Always confirm the current figures on gst.gov.in or the latest CBIC circular before filing.