{"id":29897,"date":"2025-09-11T17:25:40","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T11:55:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/?p=29897"},"modified":"2025-09-11T17:25:40","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T11:55:40","slug":"why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/","title":{"rendered":"Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_58 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Page Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-69d4b96e2088c\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #000000;color:#000000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #000000;color:#000000\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-69d4b96e2088c\"  aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Why_OIDAR_is_treated_differently_under_GST\" title=\"Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST\">Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3'><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Why_OIDAR_is_treated_differently_under_GST-2\" title=\"Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST\">Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Taxability_under_GST\" title=\"Taxability under GST\">Taxability under GST<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Who_pays_GST\" title=\"Who pays GST?\">Who pays GST?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Registration_Compliance_for_Overseas_Suppliers\" title=\"Registration &amp; Compliance for Overseas Suppliers\">Registration &amp; Compliance for Overseas Suppliers<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Definition_%E2%80%93_Non-Taxable_Online_Recipient\" title=\"Definition \u2013 Non-Taxable Online Recipient\">Definition \u2013 Non-Taxable Online Recipient<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#OIDAR_Services_GST_Returns\" title=\"OIDAR Services GST Returns\">OIDAR Services GST Returns<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/why-oidar-is-treated-differently-under-gst\/#Risks_of_Non-Compliance\" title=\"Risks of Non-Compliance\">Risks of Non-Compliance<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 data-start=\"479\" data-end=\"530\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-28388\" src=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GST.jpg\" alt=\"55th-gst-council-meeting\" width=\"1000\" height=\"562\" srcset=\"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GST.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GST-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GST-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GST-800x450.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/h2>\n<h2 data-start=\"479\" data-end=\"530\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_OIDAR_is_treated_differently_under_GST\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"116\" data-end=\"338\">Online Information Database Access and Retrieval (OIDAR) refers to services delivered over the internet in an automated way, with minimal human intervention, and that would not be possible without IT. Examples: Internet advertising, Cloud services, E-books, movies, music, software downloads, Online gaming, Digital data storage.\u00a0If the service cannot be provided without IT and runs automatically \u2192 it qualifies as OIDAR.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"479\" data-end=\"530\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_OIDAR_is_treated_differently_under_GST-2\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"531\" data-end=\"806\">\n<li data-start=\"531\" data-end=\"603\">\n<p data-start=\"533\" data-end=\"603\">Services can be provided from outside India to Indian consumers.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"604\" data-end=\"699\">\n<p data-start=\"606\" data-end=\"699\">If Indian providers pay GST but foreign ones don\u2019t, it creates an unfair tax advantage.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"700\" data-end=\"806\">\n<p data-start=\"702\" data-end=\"806\">To ensure tax neutrality, GST applies even to overseas suppliers, through simplified registration.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"963\" data-end=\"1017\">\n<p data-start=\"965\" data-end=\"1017\">Indian providers of such services already pay GST.\u00a0If overseas suppliers were excluded, it would give them an unfair advantage.\u00a0Hence, India brought overseas OIDAR suppliers into the GST net via special registration and compliance rules.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"813\" data-end=\"842\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Taxability_under_GST\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Taxability under GST<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ol data-start=\"843\" data-end=\"1007\">\n<li data-start=\"843\" data-end=\"912\">\n<p data-start=\"846\" data-end=\"912\">Supplier &amp; recipient both in India \u2192 Normal GST rules apply.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"913\" data-end=\"1007\">\n<p data-start=\"916\" data-end=\"1007\">Supplier outside India, recipient in India \u2192 Place of supply is India, hence taxable.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3 data-start=\"1014\" data-end=\"1036\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Who_pays_GST\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Who pays GST?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1037\" data-end=\"1235\">\n<li data-start=\"1037\" data-end=\"1129\">\n<p data-start=\"1039\" data-end=\"1129\">Recipient is a business (registered) : GST under Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1130\" data-end=\"1235\">\n<p data-start=\"1132\" data-end=\"1235\">Recipient is an individual consumer (unregistered) : Overseas supplier must pay GST in India.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1648\" data-end=\"1704\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Registration_Compliance_for_Overseas_Suppliers\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Registration &amp; Compliance for Overseas Suppliers<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1705\" data-end=\"1974\">\n<li data-start=\"1705\" data-end=\"1782\">\n<p data-start=\"1707\" data-end=\"1782\">Taxpayer must register under Simplified Registration Scheme (Form GST REG-10).\u00a0Jurisdiction: Principal Commissioner of Central Tax, Bengaluru West. Options Register directly, OR\u00a0Appoint a local representative in India who registers &amp; pays tax.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1285\" data-end=\"1362\">\n<p data-start=\"1287\" data-end=\"1362\">Must register under Simplified Registration Scheme (Form GST REG-10).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1363\" data-end=\"1446\">\n<p data-start=\"1365\" data-end=\"1446\">Registration is with Principal Commissioner of Central Tax, Bengaluru West.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1447\" data-end=\"1527\">\n<p data-start=\"1449\" data-end=\"1527\">If no presence in India \u2192 must appoint a representative in India to pay GST.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"2314\" data-end=\"2363\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Definition_%E2%80%93_Non-Taxable_Online_Recipient\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Definition \u2013 Non-Taxable Online Recipient<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li data-start=\"2364\" data-end=\"2407\">A non-taxable online recipient means Government, local authority, individual, or entity not registered under GST, &amp; Receiving OIDAR services for non-business purposes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1766\" data-end=\"1800\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"OIDAR_Services_GST_Returns\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">OIDAR Services GST Returns<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1551\" data-end=\"1759\">\n<li data-start=\"1551\" data-end=\"1673\">\n<p data-start=\"1553\" data-end=\"1673\">OIDAR suppliers outside India (to non-taxable recipients in India) \u2192 File GSTR-5A monthly (by 20th of next month).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1674\" data-end=\"1759\">\n<p data-start=\"1676\" data-end=\"1759\">If supplying from within India \u2192 File regular GST returns (GSTR-1, 3B, etc.).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2006\" data-end=\"2072\">Only required for overseas suppliers providing services to non-taxable online recipients (B2C consumers).<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2187\" data-end=\"2307\">\n<p data-start=\"2189\" data-end=\"2307\">If supplying to Indian businesses (B2B), the Indian recipient pays tax under RCM, so no GSTR-5A filing required.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1766\" data-end=\"1800\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong>Examples of OIDAR services like following services Provided by\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1801\" data-end=\"2068\">\n<li data-start=\"1801\" data-end=\"1864\">\n<p data-start=\"1803\" data-end=\"1864\">Automatic downloads (PDFs, stock images, software updates).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1865\" data-end=\"1910\">\n<p data-start=\"1867\" data-end=\"1910\">Online courses (pre-recorded, automated).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1911\" data-end=\"1952\">\n<p data-start=\"1913\" data-end=\"1952\">Online games, music, films, gambling.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1953\" data-end=\"2000\">\n<p data-start=\"1955\" data-end=\"2000\">Automated distance teaching &amp; e-classrooms.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1953\" data-end=\"2000\">\n<p data-start=\"1955\" data-end=\"2000\">Search engines, banner ads, subscription-based digital content.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"2559\" data-end=\"2590\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Risks_of_Non-Compliance\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Risks of Non-Compliance<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"2591\" data-end=\"2792\">\n<li data-start=\"2591\" data-end=\"2638\">\n<p data-start=\"2593\" data-end=\"2638\">Exposure to Indian tax notices &amp; penalties.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2639\" data-end=\"2728\">\n<p data-start=\"2641\" data-end=\"2728\">Payments from Indian consumers could face disputes if GST liability isn\u2019t discharged.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2729\" data-end=\"2792\">\n<p data-start=\"2731\" data-end=\"2792\">Reputation risk with Indian authorities &amp; banking channels.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2729\" data-end=\"2792\">\n<p data-start=\"2731\" data-end=\"2792\">This is to be consider that Not OIDAR if significant human intervention is involved (e.g., live tutor, custom reports).<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Why OIDAR is treated differently under GST Online Information Database Access and Retrieval (OIDAR) refers to services delivered over the internet in an automated way, with minimal human intervention, and that would not be possible without IT. Examples: Internet advertising, Cloud services, E-books, movies, music, software downloads, Online gaming, Digital data storage.\u00a0If the service cannot &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10009],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29897"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29897"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29897\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29900,"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29897\/revisions\/29900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carajput.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}