GST registration for foreign suppliers, reverse charge mechanism, OIDAR (online information and database access or retrieval) services, place of supply determination, import GST and input tax credit for foreign companies supplying to India.
Short, direct, on the record.
A foreign company supplying B2C OIDAR services (online information, digital content, cloud services) to non taxable persons in India must obtain simplified GST registration. For B2B services, the Indian recipient pays GST under reverse charge and the foreign supplier does not need registration. For goods, IGST is paid at customs by the importer.
When a foreign supplier provides services to an Indian business (import of services), the Indian recipient is liable to pay GST under the reverse charge mechanism. The recipient must self invoice, pay IGST at the applicable rate, and can claim input tax credit. This applies to all services imported for business purposes where the supplier has no establishment in India.
OIDAR (Online Information and Database Access or Retrieval) services include online advertising, cloud services, digital content, e books, software downloads, online gaming, data storage and retrieval, and search engine services delivered over the internet. The classification determines whether the foreign supplier needs mandatory GST registration in India for B2C supplies.
Foreign companies registered under simplified OIDAR registration cannot claim input tax credit. Non resident taxable persons registered under Section 24 can claim ITC on inward supplies used for their taxable outward supplies. For foreign companies without registration, they cannot directly claim GST refund; the Indian recipient claiming ITC on reverse charge effectively recovers the cost.
Share the supply type, Indian customer profile and the cross border transaction structure for a preliminary assessment.