GST and invoicing for WhatsApp API resellers in India: what to sort out with your CA

GST for WhatsApp API resellers is mostly ordinary GST for a services business, with one twist: part of what your clients prepay is Meta's per-message charge, which flows through your wallet system. This post covers the routine parts briefly and spends more time on the questions specific to reselling.

Do you need GST registration?

Under section 22 of the CGST Act, a supplier must register once aggregate turnover in a financial year crosses the threshold, which is ₹20 lakh for service providers in most states and lower in some special category states (CGST Act).

In practice, many resellers register before that, for a commercial reason: your clients are businesses, and a registered business client can claim input tax credit only on a valid tax invoice from a registered supplier. A clinic chain or a D2C brand may prefer a registered vendor for that reason. Voluntary registration also lets you claim input tax credit on what you pay your platform. The trade-off is monthly or quarterly returns and compliance work. Ask your CA to compare the two for your expected client mix.

What goes on your tax invoice

Section 31 of the CGST Act requires a tax invoice for taxable supplies, and Rule 46 of the CGST Rules lists what it must contain (Rule 46). For a reseller, the items that matter most:

• your name, address and GSTIN;
• a consecutive serial number unique for the financial year, and the date;
• the client's name, address and GSTIN if registered;
• the SAC (services accounting code) and a description of each service;
• the taxable value, the rate and amount of tax, shown as CGST and SGST or as IGST;
• the place of supply with the state name, for inter-state supplies;
• whether tax is payable on reverse charge;
• your signature or digital signature.

Which SAC applies to your services (software access, messaging, setup and consulting can fall under different codes) is a question for your CA. Use the same classification consistently.

CGST and SGST, or IGST?

For services supplied to a registered business in India, the place of supply is generally the client's location. If the client is in your state, you charge CGST plus SGST; if they are in another state, IGST. A Jaipur reseller billing a Jaipur clinic charges CGST and SGST; billing a Pune D2C brand, IGST. Clients outside India raise separate questions (export of services, a letter of undertaking); take those to your CA before quoting.

E-invoicing

Businesses with aggregate turnover of ₹5 crore or more must generate e-invoices for B2B supplies through the Invoice Registration Portal, since 1 Aug 2023 (e-invoice portal). Most new resellers are far below that, but check the threshold as you grow.

The reseller-specific question: messaging wallets

Your client pays you for three different things, and your CA should look at each:

Questions worth putting to your CA in writing:

1. When a client tops up a messaging wallet, is GST due when the money is received or when messages are sent and charged?
2. Should the wallet recharge be shown as one taxable value including your markup, or should Meta's charge and your margin be shown separately?
3. Do the conditions for a "pure agent" apply to any part of the messaging charge in our setup, or not? (Rule 33 of the CGST Rules sets strict conditions for this.)
4. How should refunds of unused wallet balance be documented (credit notes)?
5. What records do we keep to match wallet top-ups with usage?

Whatever the answer, keep the client's view simple: one invoice per payment, with GST shown clearly, and a wallet statement they can download.

Invoices you receive: Broadchat partner invoices

As a Broadchat partner you pay the platform by recharging your partner wallet. For recharges paid to the platform by UPI or bank transfer, Broadchat issues a GST tax invoice automatically when the payment is approved:

• numbered in sequence (Broadchat-1, Broadchat-2 and so on), one invoice per payment;
• with GST shown as CGST and SGST or as IGST, depending on your state;
• billed to the company name, GSTIN and address in your partner Business Profile;
• available as a PDF from your wallet transactions, and usually also sent to you on WhatsApp.

To make sure the invoice supports your input tax credit, open Settings → Account, go to the Business Profile tab and enter your legal name, GSTIN and billing address exactly as registered, before you recharge. Invoices keep the details they were issued with, so later corrections apply only to new invoices.

Broadchat does not issue invoices to your clients on your behalf. The client panel records their payments and wallet transactions, but the tax invoice to your client comes from your own accounting or billing software, under your GSTIN.

A simple monthly routine

1. Issue client invoices from your accounting software for every payment received, the same day.
2. Download your platform invoices for the month and file them with your purchase records.
3. Reconcile client wallet top-ups and refunds against your bank account and UPI statements.
4. Share the month's sales and purchase registers with your CA before the return due dates.

For pricing structure (which drives most of these questions), read WhatsApp API reseller pricing models and margins. For the wider business setup, see how to become a WhatsApp API reseller in India and the pillar guide on starting a WhatsApp reseller business.