How to Generate an E-Way Bill: Complete Process

Quick answer: Log in to the official e-way bill portal, choose Generate New, enter the transaction, document and goods details in Part A, add the vehicle or transport details in Part B, and submit to get a 12-digit e-way bill number. SMS, the official app, bulk upload, authorised API and IRN are other routes.

Generating an e-way bill takes a few minutes once your invoice is ready, but small slips — a wrong PIN code, the wrong sub-type, a missing vehicle number — cause most of the trouble later. Part A cannot be edited after generation, so a wrong GSTIN or invoice number means cancelling and starting again. The way to get it right first time is to have the details ready before you log in and move through the form in order.

This guide walks through the official portal flow field by field, then covers the other generation routes and how the E-Way Easy app workflow fits in. Screen labels can change between portal updates, so treat it as a map and the official user documentation as the final reference.

Before you start

Keep these ready:

• The tax invoice, bill of supply or delivery challan for the goods.
• Recipient GSTIN (or "URP" for an unregistered recipient), name and address.
• Dispatch-from and ship-to PIN codes.
• HSN code, quantity, unit and taxable value of each item, with tax rates.
• Transporter name and ID (the transporter's GSTIN, or TRANSIN for an unregistered transporter) and vehicle number if known, or the transport document number for rail, air or ship.
• A rough idea of the road distance between the dispatch and delivery PIN codes.
• Access to the mobile number registered for OTP-based login.

The full list, split into Part A and Part B, is in Documents and Data Required.

Note: As reported by GSTN advisories, from 1 January 2025 an e-way bill cannot be generated against a base document dated more than 180 days before the generation date. Generate promptly.

Step-by-step on the official portal

Step 1: Log in

Go to the official e-way bill portal (or the E-Way Bill 2.0 portal, which works with synchronised data). Enter your username, password and captcha. Multi-factor authentication now applies to all taxpayers, so you will be asked for an OTP on the registered mobile number or an authenticator.

First-time users register on the portal with their GSTIN and the mobile number registered with GST.

Step 2: Choose Generate New

From the e-way bill menu on the dashboard, choose the option to generate a new e-way bill. The Part A form opens.

Step 3: Select transaction type

• Outward — you are the supplier sending goods out.
• Inward — you are the recipient bringing goods in (for example, when buying from an unregistered supplier).

The portal also asks for the transaction pattern: a regular movement, or a "bill to–ship to" / "bill from–dispatch from" arrangement where the billing and delivery parties or places differ. Pick the one that matches your invoice.

Step 4: Select sub-type

Sub-type is the reason for movement. Common options:

The sub-type controls which document types the portal accepts in the next step, so choose it carefully. A branch stock transfer, for instance, is not a sale and usually moves on a delivery challan, not a tax invoice.

Step 5: Enter document details

Choose the document type (tax invoice, bill of supply, delivery challan, bill of entry or others), then enter the document number and date exactly as on the paper or PDF document. The combination of GSTIN, document type and document number must be unique — the portal will not accept the same document twice. A missing prefix or wrong year is a common cause of mismatch later: "INV/25-26/104" and "INV-104" are not the same document.

Step 6: Fill the rest of Part A

• From: supplier name, GSTIN, dispatch address and PIN. Your own details usually fill from your GSTIN, but the dispatch address is where goods actually leave — a godown or factory may differ from your principal place of business.
• To: recipient name, GSTIN (or URP), ship-to address and PIN, state. The portal fetches the registered name from the GSTIN. In a bill-to/ship-to arrangement the ship-to place can differ from the billing address; use the PIN of the actual delivery location, because the PIN codes drive distance and validity.
• Item details: product name, description, HSN code, quantity, unit, taxable value, and tax rates (CGST + SGST for intra-state, IGST for inter-state, plus cess if any).
• Totals: the portal adds up the consignment value. Check it against your invoice. Charges billed on the invoice, such as packing, form part of the taxable value.
• Transporter details: Transporter ID and name, if a transporter is involved.
• Approximate distance: the portal suggests the PIN-to-PIN distance. You can enter up to 10% more if the actual route is longer. See Distance Rules.

Step 7: Fill Part B

Select the mode of transport:

• Road: enter the vehicle number (format like GJ03AB1234), vehicle type (regular or over-dimensional cargo).
• Rail, air or ship: enter the transport document number (RR, airway bill, bill of lading) and date.

If the transporter will add the vehicle later, you can leave Part B blank and enter the Transporter ID in Part A. The transporter then updates Part B from their login before the goods move.

Step 8: Submit

Click submit. The portal validates the data — GSTIN status, document date, distance range and so on. If something is wrong, it shows a message near the field or at the top. Fix the underlying data rather than looking for a workaround, and submit again. On success, you get the e-way bill with a 12-digit EWB number, generation date and time, and validity.

Before the vehicle leaves, check the generated bill against the invoice:

• GSTINs of both parties
• document number and date
• total value
• PIN codes and distance
• vehicle number
• the "valid upto" date and time — long routes may need more days than the driver expects

Step 9: Print or share

Print the e-way bill or share the number with the driver. The person in charge of the vehicle must carry the invoice or challan and the e-way bill (printed, as the number, or via a mapped RFID device).

Other ways to generate

The official system supports several routes. The exact steps for each are in the user documentation.

How the E-Way Easy app workflow fits in

E-Way Easy is an independent Android app, not a government portal. It is designed around one invoice at a time, in three steps:

1. Invoice — Your seller details are saved. Enter the buyer's GSTIN and the name, address, state and PIN fill automatically (leave it empty for an unregistered buyer). Pick products from your saved list with search; the HSN code fills from the product, and you can edit it. Invoice numbers follow your own series.
2. Review EWB — The e-way bill details are laid out from the invoice. The distance is calculated automatically from the PIN codes, and you can edit it manually. Check the values before you move on.
3. Generated — After you tap Generate, the bill is filed on the official NIC e-way bill system through an authorised GSP using your own API login, and the e-way bill number comes back to the app. You can download the PDF and share it.

If the invoice was made in other billing software, you can import the invoice PDF instead of step 1 and review what the app read before generating.

The app's dashboard shows your sales for the financial year, invoice and e-way bill counts, and recent activity. Later actions on the same bill — updating Part B, cancelling, consolidating or extending validity — are also available, each using 5 wallet credits that are deducted only when the action succeeds. E-Way Easy is an independent app; whichever tool you use, you can always check an EWB number on the official portal. The same rules — consignment value, distance margin, Part B — apply whichever tool you use. See features or download the app.

Example (illustrative): intra-state sale

A Rajkot pipe manufacturer (GSTIN 24ABCDE1234F1Z5) sells PVC pipes worth ₹1,20,000 plus 18% GST to a builder in Ahmedabad (GSTIN 24PQRSX5678K1Z2).

Because the distance is between 201 and 400 km, validity is 2 days.

Example (illustrative): inter-state sale close to the threshold

A Surat textile trader sends goods to a buyer in Indore. The movement is inter-state, so IGST applies.

Consignment value = ₹55,000 + ₹2,750 = ₹57,750. That is above ₹50,000, so an e-way bill is needed. Note that the threshold is tested on the consignment value including GST, not on the taxable value alone. Sub-type is Supply, and the tax lines are IGST only. (Rates are illustrative; confirm the correct HSN and rate for your goods with the HSN code lookup.)

Common mistakes

• Choosing "Supply" for a stock transfer to your own branch, or for a job work dispatch — use the sub-type that matches the actual reason, or the e-way bill will not match your challan.
• Entering IGST for an intra-state movement, or CGST/SGST for inter-state.
• Typing a different invoice number from the one printed on the invoice.
• Using the office PIN instead of the godown PIN as the dispatch location.
• Leaving Part B blank and forgetting to tell the transporter to fill it — the truck then leaves with a bill that is not valid for movement.
• Entering a distance more than 10% above the portal suggestion and getting rejected.
• Not checking the "valid upto" time for long routes.

If something has already gone wrong, see Common E-Way Bill Errors and Cancellation.

Limitations

• Part A cannot be edited. Cancellation is possible only within 24 hours and only if the bill has not been verified in transit; then generate afresh. See Correction.
• The recipient can reject an e-way bill within 72 hours (or before delivery, if earlier).

Some situations — imports with bill of entry, SKD/CKD lots, consolidated e-way bills for many consignments in one vehicle — have extra steps. Check the official user documentation for those.

Official sources

Follow the current screens on the official e-way bill portal and the user documentation. Screen labels can change after portal updates. Read Rule 138 for the legal position.