Customer Not Paying? The GST Portal Has a Lesser-Known Reminder Channel
Your invoice is six months old. The emails have gone unanswered. The WhatsApp reminders have been read but not acted upon.
Most businesses treat the GST Portal as a place to file returns and pay tax. Few use one of its more practical features: Communication Between Taxpayers. It lets one registered taxpayer send a formal notification to a supplier or a recipient. The counterparty gets an email and an SMS. An alert also shows when they next log in.
For a supplier chasing a customer, the portal includes an action called “Payment not received.”
What This Facility Is (and What It Is Not)
| Aspect | Position |
|---|---|
| Nature | Taxpayer-to-taxpayer communication on the GST Portal |
| Issued by | The sender, not the GST Department |
| Legal character | Not a statutory notice or demand under the CGST Act |
| Recovery effect | None. It does not start any recovery proceeding |
| Real value | A documented, trackable channel with email, SMS and portal alerts |
The distinction matters. Describing it as a “GST notice to your customer” would be wrong and could mislead clients. It is a communication tool. It is not a recovery mechanism.
Where to Find It
GST Portal > Services > User Services > Communication Between Taxpayers
| Tab | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Inbox | Notifications and replies received |
| + Compose | Send a new notification |
| Outbox | Notifications and replies sent |
Eligibility note: As per the GSTN manual, the link is not available to persons registered as TDS, TCS and NRTP.
Use Case 1: Supplier Chasing a Customer
Assume you supplied goods worth ₹10,00,000 plus GST. The invoice is six months old and the customer keeps deferring payment.
Steps
- Log in and open Communication Between Taxpayers > Compose.
- In “Notification To” select Recipient.
- Enter the customer’s GSTIN. The trade or legal name populates automatically.
- Enter a subject (maximum 50 characters).
- Add the invoice under Add Record. Select the action “Payment not received.”
- Enter the rate and taxable value. The system calculates the tax.
- Add remarks (maximum 200 characters).
- Attach supporting documents if required. Up to four files are allowed in JPEG or PDF format with a maximum of 5 MB per file.
- Click Send. Track the notification in the Outbox.
Illustrative entry
| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| Subject | Payment pending – INV-245 dt 15/03/2026 |
| Action required | Payment not received |
| Remarks | Payment against the above invoice remains outstanding. Kindly arrange payment at the earliest. |
| Attachments | Invoice copy and statement of account |
For a customer with several unpaid invoices, one notification can carry up to 50 documents. Beyond that, initiate a new notification.
Use Case 2: Recipient Chasing a Supplier
The facility works in the other direction too. Suppose you have paid the supplier but the invoice is not reflecting in GST data. A recipient can notify the supplier with one of these actions:
| Action available to recipient | Purpose |
|---|---|
| File Missing Document | Ask the supplier to report the missing invoice |
| Rejected – Amendment Required | Ask for correction of an invoice, credit note or debit note |
| Rejected – Wrongly sent to me | Inform that the supply was wrongly reported against you |
| Re-Uploaded Document | Ask the supplier to delete or re-upload the document |
| Payment made | Inform the supplier that payment has been made |
| Others | Any other matter explained in remarks |
The recipient can also send a Reminder for Filing (GSTR-1 or GSTR-3B for a chosen period). This option is available only when a recipient writes to a supplier. A supplier cannot use it against a recipient.
What Happens After You Send
| Event | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Notification sent | Counterparty gets an email and SMS on registered details |
| Counterparty logs in | Alert appears for unread notifications |
| Counterparty replies | Reply appears in your Inbox. Only one reply is allowed per notification |
| Missing document case | Supplier can upload the document to GSTR-1 directly from the reply screen |
Direct upload to GSTR-1. The supplier can upload only documents not already filed. The document goes to the nearest open period. If the November 2020 GSTR-1 is already filed for example the document goes to December 2020 and so on. The portal searches the last two financial years to avoid duplicate filing.
Why This Can Add Weight to Your Follow-up
A portal notification does not create a legal obligation. It does put your claim in front of the customer’s GST team through the system they use for compliance. It also sits alongside provisions that already concern the customer:
| Provision | Relevance to the customer |
|---|---|
| Section 16(2) second proviso of the CGST Act and Rule 37 of the CGST Rules | ITC may need to be reversed with interest if the supplier is not paid within 180 days from the invoice date |
| Section 15 of the MSMED Act, 2006 | Payment to a micro or small enterprise supplier is due within the agreed period or 45 days at most |
| Section 43B(h) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 | Deduction for amounts due to micro and small enterprises depends on payment within the prescribed time |
Applicability depends on the facts of each case.
Where It Does Not Substitute
This facility does not replace formal recovery. For long-overdue amounts consider:
- Contractual payment terms and interest clauses
- MSMED Act remedies where applicable
- A legal demand notice
- Arbitration or civil recovery
- Insolvency remedies where the threshold and conditions are met
Treat the portal communication as a documented step in the escalation ladder.
Suggested SOP for Businesses
Customer follow-up: Commercial reminder > Second reminder > Portal notification (Payment not received) > Legal notice.
Vendor reconciliation: Books vs GSTR-2B > Vendor follow-up > Portal notification (File Missing Document) > Track reply > Re-check GSTR-2B next period.
Finoscape Takeaway
Communication Between Taxpayers is a small feature with practical use in credit control and GST reconciliation. It is not a notice from the department. It is one more structured, trackable channel that costs nothing to use.
Have you used it with a customer or vendor?