When reconciliation teams open the Invoice Management System portal, they expect to see every inward purchase document. Finding that certain vendor payments and customs entries are missing from the dashboard causes unnecessary panic. IMS handles only specific outward supplier filings, leaving other statutory credits to follow their own distinct reporting routes.
The statutory scope of IMS
The Invoice Management System was introduced by GSTN to let recipient taxpayers accept, reject, or mark as pending inward supply invoices, debit notes, and credit notes filed by their suppliers in Form GSTR-1, Form GSTR-1A, or the Invoice Furnishing Facility (IFF). Per the official guidance on the GSTN IMS FAQs, IMS serves as a communication and action mechanism specifically for forward charge B2B supplies.
Under CGST Rules Rule 36(1), input tax credit is availed on several distinct documents: a tax invoice issued under Section 31, a debit note issued under Section 34, a bill of entry for imports, or an ISD invoice. IMS covers only a subset of these documents.
If you also have standard B2B invoices held up on the dashboard, see our guide on IMS pending invoices to review how pending actions roll over across return periods.
Common mistake: Waiting for RCM or customs entries to appear in IMS before claiming ITC in Form GSTR-3B leads to delayed credit. IMS actions are neither possible nor required for these categories.
Documents that skip IMS and their reporting paths
Four primary categories of inward tax transactions do not appear in IMS. Each category has its own statutory trail into your returns:
- Reverse charge supplies (RCM): Inward supplies taxable under Section 9(3) or Section 9(4) of the CGST Act. While registered suppliers declare these in Table 4B of GSTR-1, they do not require recipient acceptance in IMS. Instead, they populate Table 3.1(d) of GSTR-3B as a payment liability, and eligible ITC is claimed in Table 4(A)(3). Under CGST Act Section 2(62), input tax includes tax payable under reverse charge.
- Import of goods from overseas and SEZ units: Recorded under a Bill of Entry. Per GSTN GSTR-2B FAQs, Form GSTR-2B Table 3 Part A Section IV captures IGST paid on import of goods from overseas (IMPG) and SEZ units or developers (IMPGSEZ) on bill of entry records updated directly from ICEGATE. These bypass IMS and auto-populate Table 4(A)(1) of Form GSTR-3B.
- Input Service Distributor (ISD) credit: Distributed by an ISD filing Form GSTR-6. The credit details pass directly into Part B of Form GSTR-2B and auto-draft into Table 4(A)(4) of Form GSTR-3B without an IMS accept or reject step.
- TDS and TCS credits: Deductions under Section 51 and collections under Section 52 are filed in Form GSTR-7 and Form GSTR-8. They are accepted through the separate TDS and TCS Credit Received tab on the portal and flow to the electronic cash ledger, completely outside IMS.
Worked example: sorting inward supplies for the month
Consider Om Logistics Private Limited, an Indian registered business reconciling purchase records for October 2026. The accountant reviews six inward tax vouchers totalling ₹4,10,000 in tax:
| Document reference | Supply type | IGST / CGST+SGST | In IMS dashboard? | GSTR-3B reporting table |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INV-1082 | Domestic forward charge IT equipment | ₹1,80,000 | Yes (Available for action) | Table 4(A)(5) via GSTR-2B |
| INV-1090 | Domestic forward charge consultancy | ₹36,000 | Yes (Available for action) | Table 4(A)(5) via GSTR-2B |
| BOE-88319 | Import of hardware from Germany (ICEGATE) | ₹1,20,000 | No (Bypasses IMS) | Table 4(A)(1) via GSTR-2B |
| RCM-0412 | Security services from partnership firm | ₹45,000 | No (Bypasses IMS) | Table 3.1(d) liability and Table 4(A)(3) credit |
| ISD-0021 | Corporate office credit distribution (GSTR-6) | ₹25,000 | No (Bypasses IMS) | Table 4(A)(4) via GSTR-2B |
| TDS-OCT | GST TDS deducted by PSU client (GSTR-7) | ₹4,000 | No (Bypasses IMS) | Electronic cash ledger |
In this example, only INV-1082 and INV-1090 (total tax of ₹2,16,000) are subject to action in IMS. If the accountant leaves them untouched, they are deemed accepted at GSTR-2B cut-off under the revised advisory on IMS. Meanwhile, the remaining ₹1,94,000 in taxes follows external routes without waiting for any IMS step.
Impact on GSTR-2B and GSTR-3B tables
Per the GSTN manual on Form GSTR-3B, Table 4 captures ITC available under distinct heads:
| GSTR-3B table | Description | Source of data |
|---|---|---|
| Table 4(A)(1) | Import of goods | ICEGATE Bill of Entry data to GSTR-2B Table 3 Part A IV |
| Table 4(A)(3) | Inward supplies liable to reverse charge | Auto-drafted from GSTR-2B Table 3 Part B or self-assessed |
| Table 4(A)(4) | ITC from ISD | Form GSTR-6 filing to GSTR-2B Part B |
| Table 4(A)(5) | All other ITC | Form GSTR-1 or IFF via IMS accepted records in GSTR-2B |
Reconciliation checklist: Reconcile your purchase register against both the IMS dashboard (for forward charge vendor invoices) and your ICEGATE bill of entry logs before finalizing Table 4 of GSTR-3B.
Frequently asked questions
Why are RCM inward supplies not appearing in IMS?
IMS is designed to resolve invoice matching between supplier and recipient for forward charge supplies. Inward supplies liable to reverse charge under Section 9(3) or Section 9(4) create a tax payment liability for the recipient in Table 3.1(d) of GSTR-3B, so recipient action on IMS is not applicable.
Can an importer accept or reject a Bill of Entry in IMS?
No. Bill of Entry records arrive via ICEGATE integration directly into Table 3 Part A Section IV of GSTR-2B. Because custom assessments are managed through customs EDI rather than outward return filings by domestic suppliers, they do not enter IMS.
Do ISD distributions from GSTR-6 appear in IMS?
No. Input Service Distributor credits filed in Form GSTR-6 flow straight into GSTR-2B Part B and auto-populate Table 4(A)(4) of Form GSTR-3B without routing through the IMS dashboard.
Check your own GSTR-2B
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Last checked: 26 October 2026. Sources: GSTN IMS FAQs, CBIC CGST Rules Rule 36.