E-way bills (EWBs) are digital documents that are mandatory when transporting goods valued at over Rs. 50,000, within and across states in India. They play an important role in implementing the Goods & Services Tax (GST) regime in the country.
If you’re involved either in selling or transportation of goods, you need to be familiar with the nuances of e-way bills. A common question that you may be faced with is whether you can cancel an EWB after it is generated. Don’t worry we’ve got you covered with this quick refresher on cancelling e-way bills.
Why would you need to cancel an e-way bill
There are several situations in which you may require to cancel e-way bills after they are generated. Some of these are:
- Presence of incorrect details: You cannot edit / modify an EWB after it has been generated. Therefore, if there is any error in an already generated EWB, you would need to cancel it and generate a fresh one, updated with correct details.
- Order cancellation: For businesses such as online marketplaces, cancellations are a real-life problem. If a scheduled shipment of goods gets cancelled due to order cancellation the e-way bill must also be cancelled to ensure that documentation is consistent.
- Duplication of e-way bills: Carelessness or oversight at the point of data entry occasionally results in multiple e-way bills getting generated for the same shipment. When this happens, you need to cancel all the duplicate EWBs to avoid any mismatch and potential scrutiny at the time of audits.
Important rules for e-way bill cancellation
When cancelling e-way bills, there are a few rules that you need to keep in mind. Following these rules will ensure that you protect your business from scrutiny and potential penalties:
- Cancellations of e-way bills can only be done within a timeframe of 24 hours from time of generation. If you don’t cancel within this deadline, the EWB remains valid.
- Once an e-way bill is cancelled, it remains cancelled permanently. A fresh bill must be generated in case an EWB is cancelled erroneously. Please remember that it is illegal to use a cancelled EWB for any shipment.
- Only the same person / entity that generated an e-way bill may cancel it.
- E-way bills cannot be cancelled once goods are in transit and have been verified by an officer.
Process to cancel an e-way bill
Now that you’re familiar with cancelling e-way bills, here is a detailed breakdown of how you can cancel them:
- Login to the EWB portal. Ensure that you keep your credentials private to prevent any security breaches.
- Click on the e-way bill drop-down menu and select ‘cancel’. You will be prompted to enter a 12-digit EWB number for the bill you want to cancel.
- Select the appropriate reason for cancellation from the drop down menu. Please remember to mention the correct reason so as to avoid any mismatches during audits.
- Submit the cancellation request. You can expect to receive a confirmatory message indicating that the cancellation has been successfully processed. Also remember to verify that the EWB is listed under the ‘cancelled e-way bills’ section.
What happens if you fail to cancel an e-way bill
In the event that you fail to successfully cancel an EWB within the deadline of 24 hours, it remains valid. The only recourse that a consignor has is to request the consignee to cancel the EWB at their end – for which there is a cancellation window of 72 hours. Should an EWB not be cancelled even in this window, there is no provision for any further cancellation.
Conclusion
E-way bills can be cancelled under certain circumstances subject to adherence to some cancellation rules. Knowing when and how to cancel an EWBs is a critical part of managing logistics while remaining compliant with regulations. Businesses that are compliant often have increased ease of securing financing from institutions such as NBFCs and banks, making compliance a strategic moat for the business.