GST on Mobile Phones, Accessories and Repairs

A mobile shop in Mysuru sells a phone with an MRP of ₹17,700. The price includes 18% GST, so the taxable value is ₹15,000 and the tax ₹2,700: CGST ₹1,350 and SGST ₹1,350. The shop bought it for ₹14,000 plus ₹2,520 GST, which it claims as input credit, so it pays ₹2,700 − ₹2,520 = ₹180 to the government on this sale.

When a customer trades in an old phone, the old phone is part of what they pay. GST on the new phone is still charged on its full price. If the customer gives an old phone valued at ₹3,000 and pays ₹14,700, the invoice still shows a taxable value of ₹15,000 and GST of ₹2,700 on the new phone, with the exchange shown as part payment.

When the shop later resells the old phone, that is a separate sale, which brings in the margin scheme below.

A dealer in used goods who bought a phone from a consumer without paying GST, and claims no input credit on it, can pay GST only on the margin between the selling price and the purchase price, under rule 32(5). If the margin is negative, it is ignored.

Example: the shop buys a used phone from a customer for ₹8,000 and sells it for ₹9,770. The margin of ₹1,770 includes tax, so the taxable value is ₹1,770 ÷ 1.18 = ₹1,500 and GST is ₹270. Without the margin scheme, GST would be on the full price.

A repair job usually has two parts: the spare part and the labour. Billed as ₹1,500 for a display and ₹1,000 for labour, both at 18%, the bill is ₹2,500 + ₹450 GST = ₹2,950. Show the IMEI on the job card and the bill, so the warranty and any dispute can be traced.

• Charging GST only on the cash paid in an exchange
• Using the margin scheme on a phone bought with GST and credit claimed
• Not recording IMEI numbers, so returns and warranty claims cannot be matched
• Treating every accessory as 18% without checking its HSN
• Missing input credit on stock because the distributor's invoice had a wrong GSTIN

Phone and accessory sales go in GSTR-1 by HSN in the HSN summary, B2B invoice-wise and B2C as totals. Margin-scheme sales are reported at the taxable margin. Input credit on phones bought for resale comes through GSTR-2B from the distributor.

• IMEI or serial number of every phone bought and sold, linked to the purchase bill and the sale invoice
• For used phones, the seller's identity, the purchase price and the resale price, to support margin-scheme calculations
• Job cards for repairs with the IMEI, the fault, parts used and the amount
• Warranty dates for each unit sold
• Distributor invoices with your correct GSTIN, so the credit appears in GSTR-2B

TripleBill's mobiles and electronics mode (Pro) tracks each phone by IMEI or serial from purchase to sale, blocks selling the same unit twice, prints warranty end on the bill and runs repair job cards. It applies the GST rate set on each item.

This page is general information about GST in India, not tax advice. Rates, thresholds and rules change; confirm with the GST portal or a chartered accountant before acting.

Last reviewed: November 2026. Facts on this page were checked against:

• Notification No. 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), schedule entries for headings 8517, 8504, 8518 and 8523
• Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) as amended (repair services)
• CGST Rules, 2017, rule 32(5) (margin scheme)
• CGST Act, 2017, section 15 (value of supply)