# Issuance & Display of Registration Certificate; Effective Date

## 1. Issuance of Certificate (Rule 10)

On approval, certificate of registration (signed/EVC-verified by officer) is issued in Form GST REG-06, showing the Principal Place of Business (PPoB) and Additional Place of Business (APoB).
Made available to the applicant on the Common Portal.
GSTIN (15-digit registration number) is communicated to the applicant within 3 days after grant of registration.

## 2. GSTIN Format (15 Digits)

Positions	Content
1–2	State Code
3–12	PAN of the registered person
13	Entity Code (for multiple registrations within a State on same PAN)
14	Default alphabet 'Z'
15	Checksum character

## 3. Display of Registration Certificate & GSTIN (Rule 18)

Every registered person must:

Display the registration certificate at a prominent location at the Principal Place of Business and every Additional Place of Business.
Exhibit the GSTIN on the name board at the entry of PPoB & APoB.

## 4. Effective Date of Registration (Rule 10)

Situation	Effective date of registration
Application submitted within 30 days from date person becomes liable to register	Date on which person became liable to registration
Application submitted after 30 days from date person becomes liable	Date of grant of registration

Worked example

### Example 1

Example 1 (Effective date): Mr. X's aggregate turnover crosses ₹40 lakhs (exclusive goods supplier) on 5th August. He applies for registration on 25th August.

→ Application within 30 days of liability → Effective date of registration = 5th August (the date he became liable).

### Example 2

Example 2: Same facts, but Mr. X applies on 15th September (41st day).

→ Application beyond 30 days → Effective date of registration = Date of grant of registration (not 5th August).

→ Mr. X cannot issue tax invoices or claim ITC for the period 5th Aug to date of grant.

### Example 3

Example 3 (GSTIN): A Maharashtra-based proprietor with PAN ABCDE1234F is granted his first GSTIN.

→ Format: 27 ABCDE1234F 1 Z [checksum]

→ 27 = Maharashtra state code; 1 = first registration on this PAN in Maharashtra.

⚠️ Common exam mistakes

Forgetting that the effective date rule depends entirely on the 30-day window — late applications lose retrospective effect from the liability date.
Confusing the GSTIN format: PAN occupies positions 3–12 (10 chars), not the first or last 10 positions.
Believing display of GSTIN is only required at PPoB — it is required at every place of business (PPoB + each APoB).
Forgetting the 3-day GSTIN communication window post-grant.

Bare-Act text Rules 10 & 18 · CGST Rules, 2017 · click to expand

Rule 10(1): Subject to the provisions of sub-section (12) of section 25, where the application for grant of registration has been approved... a certificate of registration in Form GST REG-06 showing the principal place of business and additional place(s) of business shall be made available to the applicant on the common portal and a Goods and Services Tax Identification Number shall be assigned subject to the following characters, namely:- (a) two characters for the State code; (b) ten characters for the PAN/TAN; (c) two characters for the entity code; and (d) one checksum character.

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Issuance and Display of Registration Certificate & Effective Date (Rules 10 & 18)

Worked example

⚠️ Common exam mistakes