GSTR-2B Reconciliation: Match ITC With Purchases

Why GSTR-2B reconciliation matters

Since 2022, you can claim input tax credit (ITC) only on invoices that appear in your GSTR-2B (section 16(2)(aa) of the CGST Act, with Rule 36(4)). It no longer matters that you hold the bill and paid the supplier. If the supplier did not report it, you cannot take the credit.

That makes GSTR-2B the gatekeeper of your ITC, and reconciliation the monthly routine of checking that every rupee of GST you paid suppliers is actually reaching you.

What is GSTR-2B?

GSTR-2B is an auto-drafted statement of your purchases, generated by the GST portal for each month. It is built from:

• your suppliers’ GSTR-1 and IFF (B2B invoices, credit and debit notes),
• GSTR-5 (non-resident taxable persons) and GSTR-6 (input service distributors),
• imports of goods from customs (ICEGATE) data.

It shows each supplier invoice with GSTIN, number, date, taxable value and tax, and marks whether the credit is available.

	GSTR-2A	GSTR-2B
Nature	Dynamic, changes as suppliers file	Static for the month
Decides your ITC	No	Yes
Generated	Continuously	14th of the following month

The Invoice Management System (IMS)

The GST portal now has an Invoice Management System. Each supplier invoice appears there and you can accept, reject or keep it pending:

• Accepted invoices count towards your GSTR-2B credit.
• Rejected invoices drop out, and the supplier is told to fix them.
• Pending invoices are carried forward to be decided later, within the time limit.

IMS makes reconciliation an action, not just a report. You act on each mismatch before you file GSTR-3B.

The four buckets of a reconciliation

Every purchase in the month ends up in one of four buckets:

Bucket	What it means	What to do
Matched	In your books and in GSTR-2B, same values	Claim ITC
In books, not in 2B	Supplier has not reported it, or reported it under another month or GSTIN	Do not claim yet; chase the supplier
In 2B, not in books	You forgot to record it, or it is not your purchase	Record it, or reject it in IMS
Mismatch	Both sides have it, but number, date, taxable value or tax differ	Find which side is wrong; correct your entry or ask the supplier to amend

Step-by-step: reconcile GSTR-2B with your purchase register

1. Close your purchase entries for the month. Every supplier bill should be in your books with the supplier’s GSTIN, the supplier’s own invoice number (not your internal number), date, taxable value and tax by head.
2. Download GSTR-2B from the GST portal: Returns Dashboard → GSTR-2B → View → download the JSON or Excel.
3. Match on four keys: supplier GSTIN, invoice number, invoice date, and tax amount. Normalise invoice numbers before matching (INV/101 and INV-101 are often the same bill).
4. Sort into the four buckets above.
5. Act in IMS: accept matched invoices, reject what is not yours, keep genuine timing differences pending.
6. Claim ITC in GSTR-3B only on what is in GSTR-2B and matched.
7. Chase suppliers for bills missing from 2B: send them the list with invoice numbers and amounts.
8. Carry forward the open items and check them again next month.

Worked example: one month’s reconciliation

Supplier	Your books	GSTR-2B	Bucket	Action
Shree Polymers, INV-552	Tax ₹9,000	Tax ₹9,000	Matched	Claim ₹9,000
Jay Packaging, 1045	Tax ₹3,600	Not present	In books only	Hold ₹3,600, call supplier
Om Traders, OT/887	Not in books	Tax ₹1,800	In 2B only	It was a real purchase, entry missed; record it, claim
Ravi Chemicals, RC-210	Tax ₹5,400	Tax ₹4,500	Mismatch	Supplier reported ₹25,000 taxable instead of ₹30,000; ask for amendment
Unknown GSTIN, 77	Not in books	Tax ₹2,700	In 2B only	Not your purchase; reject in IMS

Of ₹22,500 across both sides, the business:

• claims ₹15,300 now: Shree Polymers ₹9,000, Om Traders ₹1,800, and the ₹4,500 of Ravi Chemicals that GSTR-2B does show;
• holds ₹4,500: Jay Packaging’s ₹3,600 until it appears, and Ravi Chemicals’ remaining ₹900 until the supplier amends;
• rejects ₹2,700 that was never its purchase.

Why suppliers’ bills go missing from GSTR-2B

• The supplier has not filed GSTR-1 or IFF yet (common with small suppliers on QRMP).
• The supplier typed your GSTIN wrong, so the invoice went to someone else’s 2B.
• The supplier reported it as B2C (no GSTIN), so nobody gets the credit.
• The invoice was reported in a different month from the one in your books.
• The supplier’s registration was cancelled or suspended.

Most of these are fixed by a phone call while the month is fresh. That is the strongest argument for reconciling monthly.

Deadlines that matter

• Monthly: act on IMS and file GSTR-3B by its due date (20th, or 22nd/24th for QRMP). See GSTR-1 vs GSTR-3B.
• ITC time limit: credit for invoices of a financial year must be claimed by 30 November of the following year or the date the annual return is filed, whichever is earlier (section 16(4)).
• 180-day payment rule: if you do not pay the supplier within 180 days of the invoice date, the credit taken must be reversed with interest, and can be re-claimed once paid.

Good habits that make reconciliation easy

• Record the supplier’s invoice number exactly as printed.
• Check each new supplier’s GSTIN once on the GST portal before the first purchase, and save it on the supplier.
• Send your own GSTIN to suppliers in writing, and ask them to quote it on every bill.
• Keep purchase bills and payments in one system so the 180-day rule and the ITC claim can be checked together.
• Do your own GSTR-1 well — your customers reconcile against it. See GSTR-1 kaise bhare.

GSTR-2B reconciliation in VyapRise

In VyapRise, download the GSTR-2B JSON from the GST portal and upload it on the GSTR-2B reconciliation screen. VyapRise compares it with your purchase bills and lists what matched, what is missing from GSTR-2B, what is missing from your books, and where the amounts differ, so you know whom to call before you file GSTR-3B. Purchase bills and GSTR-2B reconciliation are on the Pro plan. Accepting or rejecting invoices in IMS, and filing, are done on the GST portal.

This guide reflects GST law and the IMS process as of October 2026. Portal steps change often; confirm the current process with your CA.