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Published on: Jul 30, 2026

Reverse Charge Services under GST

Reverse charge refers to the liability to pay GST upon transferring the supply of goods and services to the recipient rather than to the supplier. To regulate the reverse charge under GST, the GST Council categorised certain services as reverse charge services, and for such services, the GST liability applies to the recipient of the service. In this article, we look at the reverse charge services list under Goods and Services Tax in detail.

Reverse Charge Services under GST

Goods and Services Tax (GST) functions an indirect tax levied on the consumption of goods and services in India. In the value chain, GST is levied at every point of value addition until it reaches the end consumer. Through an

input tax credit mechanism in GST, all taxable persons who added value in the chain are exempted from GST payment, and the ultimate GST liability is borne by the end consumer. In this process of levy and collection of GST, usually, the supplier of the goods or services is made liable for obtaining GST registration, collection of GST and remittance of Goods and Services Tax payment with the concerned Authority. However, in some rare instances, the recipient of the goods or services is made liable for obtaining GST registration, collection of GST and remittance of GST payment. Such instances, where the recipient of a service is made liable for Goods and Services Tax payment is known as reverse charge services. Recipients of reverse charge services should apply for Goods and Services Tax registration.

GST Reverse Charge Services List

The Reverse Charge Services list was decided by the GST Council after deliberations during the 14th Goods and Services Tax Council Meeting held on 19th May 2017. As per the directions of the Council, the following is the reverse charge services list:

Online Information and Database Access and Retrieval (OIDAR) Services

Taxable services provided or agreed to be provided by any person who is located in a non-taxable territory and received by any person located in the taxable territory other than non-assessee online recipient (OIDAR).

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Any person located in the taxable territory other than non-assessee online recipient (Business Recipient).
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): Any person who is located in a nontaxable territory.

Read the detailed guide to OIDAR services under GST.

Services Provided by Goods Transport Agency

Services provided or shall provide the goods in future by a goods transport agency (GTA) in respect of transportation of goods by road.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge:
- Factory registered under or governed by the Factories Act, 1948;
- Society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 or under any other law for the time being in force in any part of India;
- Any co-operative society established by or under any law;
- A person registered under the CGST, SGST or UTGST Act;
- Any body corporate established, by or under any law like company or LLP; or
- Partnership firm whether registered or not under any law including association of persons.
- Casual taxable person
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): Goods Transport Agency (GTA). However, all transporters, godown or warehouse are required to obtain registration under GST.

Services Provided by an Individual Advocate or Firm of Advocates

Services provided or agreed to provide by an individual advocate or firm of advocates by way of legal services, directly or indirectly.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Any business entity.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): An individual advocate or firm of advocates.

Arbitral Tribunal Services

Services provided or agreed to provide by an arbitral tribunal.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Any business entity.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): An arbitral tribunal.

Sponsorship Services

Any type of sponsorship services.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Anybody corporate or partnership firm.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): Any person.

Services Provided by Government of Local Authority

The services provided or agreed to provide by Government or local authority as specified below, excluding renting of immovable property:

Services by the Department of Posts by way of speed post, express parcel post, life insurance, and agency services provided to a person other than Government;
Services in relation to an aircraft or a vessel, inside or outside the precincts of a port or an airport;
Transport of goods or passengers.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Any business entity.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): Government or local authority.

Services Provided By a Director to Company

Services provided or agreed to provide the goods by a director of a company or a body corporate to the said company or the body corporate.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: A director of a company or a body corporate.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): A company or a body corporate.

Some Services Provided by an Insurance Agent

Services provided or agreeing to provide by an insurance agent to any person carrying on insurance business.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Any person carrying on insurance business.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): An insurance agent.

Services Provided by Recovery Agent to Banks

Services provided or shall provide the goods in future by a recovery agent to a banking company or a financial institution or a non-banking financial company.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: A banking company or a financial institution or a non-banking financial company.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): A recovery agent.

Services for Transportation of Goods up to Customs Station

Services by way of transportation of goods by a vessel from a place outside India up to the customs station of clearance in India

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: The Importer.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): A person located in non-taxable territory to a person located in non-taxable territory.

Permitting Use or Enjoyment of Copyright

Transfer or permitting the use or enjoyment of a copyright relating to original literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Publisher, Music company, Producer.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): Author or music composer, photographer, artist, etc.

Radio Taxis

Radio taxi or Passenger Transport Services provided through electronic commerce operator.

Recipients Liable for GST Payment under Reverse Charge: Electronic Commerce Operator.
Service Provider (Not Liable for GST Payment): Taxi driver or Rent a cab operator.

For GST, Trademark, Logo and Copyright registration,

bis certification standards.

Back to Learn

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Reverse Charge Services under GST in India.

Under reverse charge mechanism in GST, the liability to pay tax is cast on the recipient of goods or services instead of the supplier. This means that the recipient is required to pay GST on such supplies rather than the supplier.

Recipients like businesses, factories, companies, partnerships, societies, and certain specified entities are liable to pay GST under reverse charge for certain categories of services listed by the GST Council.

Some key services covered under reverse charge include online information and database access, goods transportation by road, legal services by advocates, arbitral tribunal services, sponsorship services, services by government/local authorities, services by directors to companies, and insurance agent services.

The reverse charge mechanism was introduced to ensure tax compliance and prevent revenue leakage in cases where the supplier may not deposit the GST collected from the recipient, especially in cross-border transactions or supplier-unregistered cases.

No, only specified recipients like businesses, factories, companies, partnerships, societies, and certain other entities are required to pay GST under reverse charge for the listed services. Individual consumers or unregistered persons are typically not covered.

The recipient liable to pay GST under reverse charge needs to obtain GST registration, calculate and pay the GST amount to the government, and claim input tax credit on the same, subject to conditions.

Yes, the recipient paying GST under reverse charge can claim input tax credit of the GST paid, subject to fulfilling the necessary conditions and compliances under the GST law.

Yes, there are certain exceptions and exemptions provided under the reverse charge mechanism, such as for online recipients of OIDAR services who are non-taxable persons or for transportation services provided to unregistered persons.

The reverse charge services list is reviewed and updated by the GST Council from time to time based on recommendations and changing industry scenarios. The current list was decided in the 14th GST Council meeting held in May 2017.

You can refer to the official GST portal (www.gst.gov.in) or seek guidance from tax professionals, chartered accountants, or GST experts to understand the detailed provisions, compliances, and implications of reverse charge services under the GST law.