A delivery challan accompanies goods that are moving without a supply taking place — job work, approval, exhibition, transfer between the supplier’s own places of business, or supply of liquid gas where the quantity is unknown at removal. It is not an invoice and does not carry tax. Where the movement crosses the value threshold, an e-way bill is required as well.
Delivery Challan
For movement of goods otherwise than by way of supply
A delivery challan accompanies goods that are moving without a supply taking place — job work, approval, exhibition, transfer between the supplier’s own places of business, or supply of liquid gas where the quantity is unknown at removal. It is not an invoice and does not carry tax. Where the movement crosses the value threshold, an e-way bill is required as well.
| Consignor | Detail |
|---|---|
| Name | [COMPANY NAME] |
| GSTIN | [GSTIN] |
| Address of dispatch | [FULL ADDRESS] |
| State and code | [STATE] — [CODE] |
| Contact | [PHONE] / [EMAIL] |
| Challan | Detail |
|---|---|
| Challan number | [SERIAL] (consecutive, unique for the financial year) |
| Date and time of issue | [DATE], [TIME] |
| Purpose of movement | [Job work / Sending on approval / Exhibition or fair / Transfer to another place of business of the same person / Supply of liquid gas where quantity is unknown at removal / Other — specify] |
| Expected date of return, where the goods are to return | [DATE] |
| E-way bill number, where required | [NUMBER], generated on [DATE], valid until [DATE] |
| Related tax invoice, where one is to follow | [NUMBER AND DATE] |
| Consignee | Detail | Place of delivery | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | [NAME] | Address | [FULL ADDRESS] |
| GSTIN, where registered | [GSTIN] | State and code | [STATE] — [CODE] |
| Address | [ADDRESS] | Contact at delivery | [NAME] / [PHONE] |
| Whether registered | [Yes / No] | Job worker registration, where applicable | [GSTIN] |
Particulars of Goods
| # | Description of goods | HSN code | Quantity | Unit | Taxable value (₹) | Tax rate % | Tax amount (₹) | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | [DESCRIPTION] | [CODE] | [QTY] | [UOM] | [AMOUNT] | [%] | [AMOUNT] | [REMARKS] |
| 2 | [DESCRIPTION] | [CODE] | [QTY] | [UOM] | [AMOUNT] | [%] | [AMOUNT] | [REMARKS] |
| 3 | [DESCRIPTION] | [CODE] | [QTY] | [UOM] | [AMOUNT] | [%] | [AMOUNT] | [REMARKS] |
| Total | [QTY] | [AMOUNT] | [AMOUNT] |
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These notes accompany the template and explain the drafting choices, the compliance points and the mistakes most often made with this document. They appear as a final page in the Word file, intended to be deleted before the document is executed.
It accompanies goods that are moving without a supply. No tax is charged, and the consignee cannot claim credit against it. Where a supply does occur, a tax invoice must be issued in addition. Using a challan to move goods that are actually being supplied, in order to defer the invoice, is a common and easily detected practice.
Goods sent to a job worker must be returned, or supplied from the job worker’s premises, within the period prescribed for the type of goods — the period differs for inputs and for capital goods. Where they are not, the original movement is treated as a supply on the day it was sent, with tax and interest payable from that date. Item 12 of the checklist is the one that costs money if it is not tracked.
Goods sent on approval must be invoiced when the recipient accepts them, or on the expiry of the period prescribed from removal, whichever is earlier. Stock sitting with a customer on approval past that period generates a tax liability whether or not anyone has decided to buy.
A transfer between two places of business under the same registration is not a supply and moves on a challan. A transfer between two registrations of the same person, in different States, is a supply between distinct persons and requires a tax invoice with tax charged. This is the distinction most frequently got wrong by multi-State businesses.
Where the consignment value exceeds the applicable threshold, an e-way bill is required in addition to the challan. It has its own validity period keyed to distance, and goods moving on an expired e-way bill are liable to detention and penalty. Generate it before the vehicle leaves, and check that the validity covers the realistic transit time rather than the theoretical one.
The value threshold above which an e-way bill is required, and the exemptions from it, differ for intra-State movement between States, and certain goods are exempt entirely. Confirm the threshold for the States of origin and destination rather than applying a single national figure.
Where the movement is of goods, three copies are prepared and marked for the consignee, the transporter and the consignor. The transporter’s copy must actually travel with the goods. A consignment stopped with no document in the vehicle is treated as unaccompanied regardless of what is on file at the office.
The challan states the value and, where required, the tax that would be applicable. This is for declaring the consignment value for transport and verification purposes, not a charge. Understating it to stay below the e-way bill threshold is a straightforward contravention.
Where goods move in multiple consignments in knocked-down condition, the invoice accompanies the first consignment and each subsequent consignment moves on a challan referencing the original invoice. Each consignment needs its own e-way bill.
A register recording every challan issued, the purpose, the expected return date and the actual return is what makes the job work and approval deadlines manageable. Without it, the deadlines are discovered only when a reconciliation or an audit surfaces them, by which time the liability has accrued with interest.
Details of goods sent to and received from a job worker must be reported in the return prescribed for the purpose, within the period prescribed. Businesses that track the physical movement carefully but never file the return still have a compliance gap.
Challans should be numbered in a series separate from tax invoices and bills of supply, each consecutive and unique for the financial year.
Reflects Indian tax law current as of {{DATE OF USE}}. E-way bill thresholds and validity, job work return periods, the approval period and reporting requirements all change, and several differ by State — have the process reviewed by a tax adviser and confirm the position for each State in which goods move.
This is a ready-to-use template provided for convenience. Laws and requirements change, and every situation is different — please have it reviewed by a qualified professional (a lawyer, company secretary, or chartered accountant as relevant) before you rely on it.