GST-compliant invoices for Indian consultants, freelancers, design studios, and agencies. SAC codes, place-of-supply for services, retainers, multi-currency for foreign clients. Looks professional. Invite-only platform.
Brightline Analytics Pvt Ltd
GSTIN: 29AACCB4412L1ZE · Bengaluru (29)
Strategy retainer · April 2026
SAC 9983 · 18%
Board-deck review (6 hrs @ ₹3k)
SAC 9983 · 18%
Same state (29 ↔ 29) → CGST + SGST. Next month's retainer auto-generates on 1 May.
Why most billing tools under-serve services
SAC vs HSN confusion
Half the tools auto-fill HSN (for products) even when you're billing a service. GST department flags this on scrutiny.
No recurring invoices
You bill 15 retainer clients the same amount every month and copy-paste from last month. Humans forget. Retainers miss.
Place-of-supply traps
Services have different place-of-supply rules than goods. One wrong code and CGST/SGST/IGST splits incorrectly.
Retail-focused UI
Do you actually need a barcode-scanner field on a consulting invoice? No. But your billing tool puts one there anyway.
Built for service billing
Set each service (consulting, dev, legal, design) in your product master with its SAC code + rate. Pulls into every invoice line — no re-typing, no memorising 9983 vs 9987.
Set up a monthly / quarterly / yearly template once. Our cron auto-generates the invoice on the due date — you review and send.
Set client state once on their record; CGST/SGST vs IGST split determined from place-of-supply automatically thereafter.
USD / EUR / GBP / any 3-letter ISO code on any invoice. Records the amount + FX rate you specify — schema-ready today, form UI rolling out Q2 2026.
Every client has a record of their invoices, quotations, and payments in your dashboard. (A public client-facing portal where they log in to see their own is on the 2026 roadmap.)
Download the JSON gst.gov.in accepts. Upload, pay, done — no CA chase for routine months.
SAC codes you'll use
Pick the right SAC the first time — scrutiny notices are easier to avoid than to respond to. 21bill auto-suggests from a service master.
FAQ
You need one the moment you register for GST (turnover ≥ ₹20L for services, or ₹10L in special-category states). GST invoices have specific required fields — invoice number, GSTIN, place of supply, SAC code, tax rate, amount in words — and a Word template is error-prone. A purpose-built tool avoids the risk of a malformed invoice being flagged during scrutiny.
SAC (Services Accounting Code) is the HSN equivalent for services. Required on every invoice once you're GST-registered. Common ones: 9983 (consulting), 9987 (IT services), 9991 (legal), 9992 (education). In 21bill, you create each service once in your product master with its SAC and rate; thereafter every invoice line pulls the SAC + rate automatically. Our [HSN / SAC directory](/hsn/) has rate notes for common codes.
For services, place-of-supply usually equals the location of the client (if B2B with GSTIN) or the location where the service is performed (if B2C). If your client is in a different state than you, it's inter-state → IGST. Same state → CGST/SGST. In 21bill, you set the client's state once on their record; every subsequent invoice splits CGST+SGST or IGST automatically based on the place-of-supply.
Yes — the invoice schema supports currency + FX rate per invoice, so you can issue in USD / EUR / GBP and record the INR-equivalent rate on the invoice date. The form UI for currency selection is rolling out Q2 2026; today it's accessible via the API. For export of services with LUT (zero-rated), mark the invoice with the `is_export` flag — full auto-detection and GSTR-1 routing to Section 6A is on the roadmap.
Yes. Create a recurring schedule (weekly / monthly / quarterly / yearly), and our hourly cron auto-generates the invoice on each due date. You then review and send via email. Useful for retainer-based consulting and SaaS subscriptions.
Not today. The invoice line items are freeform text so you can list hours in the description (e.g., "Strategy session — 6 hrs @ ₹3,000"), but native file attachments on invoices aren't yet supported. Dedicated time-tracking integrations (Toggl, Harvest) are on the roadmap based on user demand.
Honest comparisons with the tools most service pros use today.
21bill is invite-only. Tell us about your consulting or services work and we'll get back to you about access.
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