Section 14 of CGST Act: Change in Rate of Tax in Respect of Supply of Goods or Services
Section 14 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 provides special rules for determining the time of supply when the applicable GST rate changes. It overrides the ordinary time-of-supply rules in Section 12 and Section 13 to the extent covered by Section 14.
Updated: 15 September 2026
What Section 14 means
A change in the GST rate can occur between the date on which goods or services are supplied and the dates on which the invoice is issued or payment is received. Section 14 resolves this timing issue. The first question is whether the actual supply took place before or after the rate change. The invoice date and payment date are then tested under the applicable clause to identify the statutory time of supply.
Text of Section 14 of the CGST Act
14. Change in rate of tax in respect of supply of goods or services. - Notwithstanding anything contained in section 12 or section 13, the time of supply, where there is a change in the rate of tax in respect of goods or services or both, shall be determined in the following manner, namely:-
(a) in case the goods or services or both have been supplied before the change in rate of tax,-
(i) where the invoice for the same has been issued and the payment is also received after the change in rate of tax, the time of supply shall be the date of receipt of payment or the date of issue of invoice, whichever is earlier; or
(ii) where the invoice has been issued prior to the change in rate of tax but payment is received after the change in rate of tax, the time of supply shall be the date of issue of invoice; or
(iii) where the payment has been received before the change in rate of tax, but the invoice for the same is issued after the change in rate of tax, the time of supply shall be the date of receipt of payment;
(b) in case the goods or services or both have been supplied after the change in rate of tax,-
(i) where the payment is received after the change in rate of tax but the invoice has been issued prior to the change in rate of tax, the time of supply shall be the date of receipt of payment; or
(ii) where the invoice has been issued and payment is received before the change in rate of tax, the time of supply shall be the date of receipt of payment or date of issue of invoice, whichever is earlier; or
(iii) where the invoice has been issued after the change in rate of tax but the payment is received before the change in rate of tax, the time of supply shall be the date of issue of invoice:
Provided that the date of receipt of payment shall be the date of credit in the bank account if such credit in the bank account is after four working days from the date of change in the rate of tax.
Explanation. - For the purposes of this section, "the date of receipt of payment" shall be the date on which the payment is entered in the books of account of the supplier or the date on which the payment is credited to his bank account, whichever is earlier.
Section 14 decision table
| Supply | Invoice | Payment | Time of supply under Section 14 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before rate change | After rate change | After rate change | Earlier of invoice date or receipt of payment |
| Before rate change | Before rate change | After rate change | Invoice date |
| Before rate change | After rate change | Before rate change | Date of receipt of payment |
| After rate change | Before rate change | After rate change | Date of receipt of payment |
| After rate change | Before rate change | Before rate change | Earlier of invoice date or receipt of payment |
| After rate change | After rate change | Before rate change | Invoice date |
Important definitions and related provisions
Time of supply
The time of supply fixes the point of time relevant for the liability to pay GST. Ordinarily, the time of supply of goods is governed by Section 12 of the CGST Act, while the time of supply of services is governed by Section 13. Section 14 begins with a non-obstante clause and therefore supplies the special timing rule when there is a change in the rate of tax.
Date of receipt of payment
For Section 14, the date of receipt of payment is normally the earlier of the date on which the payment is entered in the supplier's books of account and the date on which it is credited to the supplier's bank account. The proviso creates a specific rule where the bank credit occurs after four working days from the date of the tax-rate change.
Invoice and value of supply
The tax invoice provisions are contained in Section 31 of the CGST Act. The value on which GST is calculated is generally governed by Section 15. These provisions should be read with Section 14 when a rate change affects a transaction spanning the change date.
Practical application
For each transaction affected by a rate change, record four facts: the effective date of the rate change, the date of actual supply, the invoice date and the payment date. First classify the supply as occurring before or after the rate change. Then apply the corresponding clause of Section 14. Where payment timing is relevant, also check the statutory explanation and the four-working-day proviso.
Example
Assume a taxable service is supplied before a notified GST rate change, but both the invoice and payment occur after the change. Under Section 14(a)(i), the time of supply is the earlier of the invoice date and the date of receipt of payment. The rate applicable to the transaction should be determined by reference to that statutory time of supply and the relevant rate notification.
Official legal sources
For the current consolidated legislation and amendments, verify the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 on India Code and the GST Acts and notifications published by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. Rate changes should always be checked against the notification that gives the change its legal effect.