Quotation Format with GST in India: What to Include and How to Turn an Accepted Quote into a Project and Invoice

A professional quotation with GST in India should show your GSTIN and the client's details, clear line items with HSN or SAC codes, the taxable value, the GST split (CGST + SGST or IGST), the total, a validity date and your payment terms. Get these right and the client can approve it quickly. Your team can then turn it into a project and a GST invoice without retyping a single line.

GST law has no fixed format for a quotation, and a quote is not a tax invoice. Still, if your quote already has everything the invoice will need, billing becomes copy-and-confirm, not a fresh job.

Why your quotation format matters more than you think#

Most delays don't come from the price. They come from questions.

• "Is this amount with GST or without?"
• "Why IGST? We are in the same state."
• "How much do we pay now, and how much later?"
• "Is this still valid? You sent it in March."

Every question is a WhatsApp thread and a few more days of waiting. A complete quote answers them before anyone asks.

There is a second reason. Once the quote is approved, someone has to create the project, plan the work and raise invoices. If the quote is a loose PDF made in a word processor, that person types it all again. That's where wrong rates, missing SAC codes and the wrong tax type creep in.

What to include in a GST quotation#

Think of it in four blocks.

1. Who and when

• Your business name, address, GSTIN, phone and email
• Client's legal name, billing address, state and GSTIN (if registered)
• Quote number (for example, Q-2025-041) and date
• Valid till date
• Version number if it has been revised (v1, v2)

2. What you are offering

• A short description for each line item. Write "Website design, 8 pages, 2 revision rounds", not just "Website".
• HSN code for goods, SAC code for services
• Quantity and unit (hours, pieces, months, sq ft)
• Rate per unit and line amount
• GST rate for each line, since items in one quote can have different rates

3. Tax and total

• Subtotal (taxable value)
• Any discount, shown before tax
• CGST and SGST shown separately, or IGST, each with its rate and amount
• Grand total in figures, and in words if you like

4. Terms

• Payment terms: advance, milestones, due days
• What's included and what's not
• Number of revisions included
• Delivery timeline
• Who pays for travel, printing, courier or third-party costs
• Bank details or a payment link, if you want the advance quickly

A one-line note helps too: "This is a quotation and not a tax invoice."

CGST + SGST or IGST: showing the right tax on the quote#

The tax type depends on the place of supply compared with your location.

• Same state (intra-state): CGST + SGST, split equally. At 18%, that's 9% + 9%.
• Different state (inter-state): IGST at the full rate, so 18% IGST.

For most B2B services, the place of supply is usually where the registered client is located. Some services have special rules, such as work related to immovable property or events. If you're unsure, ask your CA before you send the quote. Getting it wrong here means fixing it on the invoice later.

Here's an example. A branding agency in Pune, Maharashtra, quotes two clients for the same work:

• A client in Mumbai (Maharashtra): CGST 9% + SGST 9%
• A client in Bengaluru (Karnataka): IGST 18%

Show the split clearly on the quote. A client's accounts team checks this first.

On HSN/SAC digits: how many digits you need depends on your turnover and on whether the client is B2B or B2C. Check the current requirement on the GST portal or with your CA, and use the same codes on the quote that you will use on the invoice.

Sample GST quotation format#

Here's a simple quote from a Pune agency to a client in Bengaluru. The SAC codes are placeholders, so use the correct codes for your services.

Quote No: Q-2025-041 (v2) | Date: 10 June | Valid till: 25 June From: Studio Ink, Pune, Maharashtra, GSTIN 27XXXXXXXXXXXXX To: Greenleaf Foods Pvt Ltd, Bengaluru, Karnataka, GSTIN 29XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Payment terms:

• 40% advance on approval: ₹1,10,920
• 40% on design sign-off: ₹1,10,920
• 20% on website go-live: ₹55,460
• Each invoice is due within 15 days

Not included: stock photos, domain and hosting, paid ad spend.

If the client were in Mumbai, the only change would be two lines instead of one: CGST @ 9% ₹21,150 and SGST @ 9% ₹21,150.

Validity, advance, milestones and revisions#

Validity. For services, 15 to 30 days is normal. Manufacturers whose raw material prices change often (steel, copper, plastic granules) may want 7 days or less. Write it clearly: "Prices valid till 25 June."

Advance. Ask for it in the quote, not in a later message. A sentence like "Work begins on receipt of 40% advance" sets the expectation politely. For services, GST is generally payable when you receive an advance, so you would usually issue a receipt voucher for it. Confirm the treatment with your CA, as the rules differ for goods.

Milestones. Tie each payment to a clear event, such as design sign-off, delivery or installation. Avoid vague terms like "mid-way". The milestones in your quote will later become the stages of your project and your invoice schedule.

Revisions. Don't overwrite an old quote. Send v2, v3 under the same quote number and keep the old versions. If the client says "but you quoted ₹35,000 for the logo", you can show exactly what changed and when. Also state how many design revisions are included and what extra rounds will cost. Agencies lose a lot of margin here.

Turning an accepted quote into a project and GST invoice#

Once the client says yes, this is where most small businesses lose time. A clean flow looks like this:

1. Mark the quote as accepted and save the client's approval. An email or WhatsApp "approved" is fine, as long as you keep it.
2. Create the project from the quote. The line items become the scope, and the milestones become stages: brand identity, website design, go-live, social media month 1 to 3.
3. Assign tasks under each stage, with someone to check the work and someone to approve it before it goes to the client.
4. Raise the advance receipt or invoice using the same client details, SAC codes and tax type that are already on the quote.
5. Raise each milestone invoice when the stage is done. Same line items, same rates, now on a proper GST invoice from your invoice series. Use the invoice series, not the quote number.
6. Record each payment against the project, so you can see what's billed, what's paid and what's pending.

The goal is that nobody types the client's GSTIN or the ₹1,20,000 website line a second time. Every retyped field is a chance for a mismatch that your CA has to fix in GSTR-1.

If you'd like this flow in one place, Clyrix lets you create quotes, run the accepted work as a project stage by stage, and raise GST-ready invoices with CGST/SGST/IGST shown explicitly. It all works from your phone. You can see how it works on the invoicing page, or check pricing. There's a 14-day free trial, no card needed.

Quick checklist before you hit send#

• Your GSTIN and the client's GSTIN and state are correct
• Every line has an HSN/SAC code and a GST rate
• CGST + SGST or IGST matches the place of supply
• It's clear the prices are before GST, and the total includes it
• The validity date is written
• Advance and milestone amounts add up to the grand total
• Exclusions and revision limits are listed
• A version number is shown if this is a revision

A quote that passes this checklist gets approved faster, and it bills itself.