Looking for expert help with Income tax and GST for xerox and photocopy shops India? The team at Tax Garden, based in Kondapur, Hyderabad, helps Indian SMEs stay compliant. End-to-end filings, notices, and deadline tracking, all in one place.
Key Takeaways
- Photocopying, scanning, printouts, typing and DTP are 18% GST under SAC 998595 (Notification 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate), S. No. 23(iii)). Binding and lamination are also 18% (S. No. 27, heading 9989).
- Registration starts at Rs 20 lakh turnover, or Rs 10 lakh in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. The Rs 40 lakh goods limit doesn't apply to a xerox shop (Section 22(1), CGST Act).
- A shop with turnover up to Rs 50 lakh can pay 6% composition instead of 18% (Notification 2/2019-Central Tax (Rate)), but can't charge GST or claim credit.
- Bills under Rs 200 to walk-in customers can be rolled into one consolidated invoice at the end of each day (Section 31(3)(b), Rule 46).
- Missed the 31 August 2026 ITR date (business income without a tax audit)? A belated AY 2026-27 return is allowed until 31 December 2026, with a Rs 5,000 fee (Rs 1,000 if income is up to Rs 5 lakh).
What is the GST rate on xerox and photocopying services? 18%, split as 9% CGST and 9% SGST. Photocopying and other duplication services are classified under SAC 998595, part of heading 9985 (support services), and S. No. 23(iii) of Notification 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) taxes them at 9% CGST. The same code covers typing, DTP and document preparation. Source: CBIC, Notification 11/2017-CT(R) as amended by Notification 1/2018-CT(R).
A xerox shop near a college or a court complex can run thousands of Rs 2 bills a day, and that's exactly where GST gets confusing. Is a photocopy a "printing" job at 5%? Do you need an invoice for every page? Should a shop with Rs 30 lakh turnover pay 18% or 6%? This guide answers those questions for owners of photocopy, printout, DTP and internet-centre shops, and the CAs who file for them. GST is covered as it stands from 22 September 2025, and income tax for FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) under the Income-tax Act 1961.
Xerox GST rate and SAC code: photocopies, printouts, DTP and lamination
Almost everything a xerox counter does is 18%. The official SAC description for code 998595 reads "blueprinting, photocopying and other duplication services other than printing", plus "document preparation; document editing or proofreading; typing, word processing, or desktop publishing" and "letter or resume writing". It's one code, one rate.
Comparison
GST on Common Xerox and DTP Shop Jobs (from 22 September 2025)
| Job | SAC / heading | GST |
|---|---|---|
| Photocopy, scan, blueprint copy | 998595 (heading 9985) | 18% |
| Typing, DTP, resume or letter writing, document editing | 998595 (heading 9985) | 18% |
| Binding, spiral binding, laminating, cutting, punching | 998912 (heading 9989) | 18% |
| Printouts from a customer's file on your paper | 998595 or 998912, both 18% | 18% |
| Printing on paper the customer brings, for Chapter 48/49 goods taxed at 5% or nil | Heading 9988, S. No. 26(v)(b) | 5% |
| Stationery, pens, files sold over the counter | Goods, own HSN | Rate of each item |
Source: Notification 11/2017-CT(R): S. No. 23(iii) as substituted by 1/2018-CT(R); S. No. 27 as amended by 06/2021-CT(R); S. No. 26 as substituted by 15/2025-CT(R). SAC descriptions from the CBIC Explanatory Notes to the Scheme of Classification of Services.
A few points that trip shops up:
- Printouts aren't the 5% printing entry. The 5% items in S. No. 26 are for job work or "treatment or process on goods belonging to another person", meaning the customer owns the paper. When you print on your own paper, it's 18%.
- Printed envelopes, letterheads and boxes can be goods. CBIC Circular 11/11/2017-GST says that where you print a customer's logo or design on envelopes, letter cards or boxes made from your own paper, the main supply is the printed goods, taxed at the rate for that item in Chapter 48 or 49. Printing a customer's pamphlet or brochure content on your paper is a service under heading 9989. If you take such orders regularly, check each product's HSN with your CA.
- Your own purchases are mostly 18%. Copier paper of heading 4802 (S. No. 167) and copying machines and printers of heading 8443, with their parts and accessories (S. No. 430), are both in Schedule II of Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), so 18%. Under the regular scheme that GST comes back as credit; under composition it's a cost.
- Stationery keeps its own rate. A pen or a notebook sold at the counter is a supply of goods. Our stationery shop guide has the item rates.
For larger offset or flex printing work, see our printing press guide.
Do you need GST registration?
You need it once aggregate turnover in a financial year crosses Rs 20 lakh, or Rs 10 lakh if you operate from Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland or Tripura (Section 22(1), CGST Act, read with the definition of special category States in its Explanation).
The Rs 40 lakh limit you may have heard about is only for a supplier "engaged exclusively in the supply of goods" (third proviso to Section 22(1)). A photocopy service rules that out. And aggregate turnover counts everything: copies, binding, DTP and stationery together.
Example: a shop in Pune sells Rs 14 lakh of stationery and Rs 9 lakh of photocopies and printouts in FY 2026-27. Aggregate turnover is Rs 23 lakh, above Rs 20 lakh, so registration is required, even though neither line crosses the limit on its own. Apply within 30 days of becoming liable (Section 25(1)). Our GST registration limit guide has the full State list.
Regular 18% or composition: which suits a xerox shop?
A walk-in shop's customers are mostly students and individuals who can't use your GST credit. That makes composition worth a look. There are two routes, and which one you qualify for depends on how much of your turnover is service.
Section 10(1), the trader scheme. Meant for goods suppliers, with a turnover limit of Rs 1.5 crore in most States (Notification 14/2019-Central Tax). The second proviso to Section 10(1) lets you supply services up to the higher of 10% of last year's turnover or Rs 5 lakh. Tax is 0.5% CGST plus 0.5% SGST on taxable turnover (Rule 7, S. No. 3, CGST Rules). This fits a stationery shop with a small copier in the corner.
Section 10(2A), the services scheme. For a shop not eligible under Section 10(1), with turnover up to Rs 50 lakh in the preceding year. Tax is 3% CGST plus 3% SGST, so 6% in all (Notification 2/2019-Central Tax (Rate); Rule 7, S. No. 4).
Example: which route? Last year's turnover was Rs 40 lakh. 10% of that is Rs 4 lakh, so the services ceiling is Rs 5 lakh (the higher figure). If this year's photocopy and DTP receipts are Rs 4.5 lakh, Section 10(1) at 1% is open. If they're Rs 6 lakh, it isn't, and the shop looks at Section 10(2A) at 6%.
Example: is 6% cheaper than 18%? A DTP and photocopy shop collects Rs 35,00,000 in a year from walk-in customers, prices inclusive of tax. It pays Rs 1,50,000 of GST on paper, toner and machine servicing.
Comparison
Rs 35 Lakh Walk-in Xerox Shop: Regular vs 6% Composition
| Regular (18%) | Composition (6%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Tax on Rs 35 lakh of sales | Rs 5,33,898 (35,00,000 x 18/118) | Rs 2,10,000 (6% of 35,00,000) |
| GST paid on inputs (Rs 1,50,000) | Claimed as credit | Not allowed, stays a cost |
| Paid to government in cash | Rs 3,83,898 (5,33,898 - 1,50,000) | Rs 2,10,000 |
| Total GST borne by the shop | Rs 5,33,898 | Rs 3,60,000 (2,10,000 + 1,50,000) |
| Can show GST on bill? | Yes, tax invoice | No, bill of supply only |
Source: Tax Garden calculation. Rates: Notification 11/2017-CT(R) S. No. 23(iii); Notification 2/2019-CT(R). Section 10(4), CGST Act: no tax collection and no input tax credit under composition.
Because the prices are tax-inclusive, the shop bears the GST either way. Composition leaves it Rs 1,73,898 better off. The gap narrows, or reverses, when:
- Offices and firms are big customers. They want a tax invoice to claim credit, which a composition shop can't issue.
- You're buying a new copier or printer. GST on a Rs 3 lakh machine is credit under the regular scheme and a sunk cost under composition.
- You take orders from other States. Neither composition route allows inter-State outward supplies (Section 10(2)(c) and 10(2A)(b)).
- You sell through an e-commerce operator that collects TCS. Section 10(2)(d) bars it under the trader scheme, and Section 10(2A)(c) bars it for services under the 6% scheme.
Under Notification 2/2019, a 6% shop must print "taxable person paying tax in terms of notification No. 2/2019-Central Tax (Rate) dated 07.03.2019, not eligible to collect tax on supplies" at the top of every bill of supply. Our composition scheme guide covers the opt-in form and the quarterly return.
Billing hundreds of small jobs a day
You don't need a tax invoice for every Rs 4 printout. Section 31(3)(b) of the CGST Act lets a registered person skip the invoice when the value is under Rs 200. Rule 46 adds two conditions: the customer isn't registered, and the customer doesn't ask for an invoice. You then issue one consolidated tax invoice at the close of each day for all such sales.
Step-by-Step Guide
Daily Billing Routine for a Registered Xerox Shop
Walk-in jobs under Rs 200
No individual invoice needed if the customer is unregistered and doesn't ask for one (Section 31(3)(b), Rule 46). Record each sale in your POS, billing app or counter book.
Any customer who asks, or a registered business
Issue a full tax invoice with their GSTIN where they have one, whatever the amount. An office printing project reports or tender copies will need it to claim credit.
Close of day
Raise one consolidated tax invoice for all the small unbilled sales of the day, showing the taxable value and 9% CGST plus 9% SGST.
Month end
Report the month's sales in GSTR-1 and pay tax through GSTR-3B. A composition shop instead files CMP-08 by the 18th of the month after each quarter and GSTR-4 once a year (Rule 62).
Source: CGST Act 2017, Section 31(3)(b) and (c); CGST Rules, Rule 46 proviso; Notification 2/2019-CT(R)
A composition shop issues a bill of supply instead (Section 31(3)(c)), and the same Rs 200 relief applies under its proviso, subject to the conditions in the rules. Our GST invoice rules guide lists the mandatory fields for a full invoice.
Income tax for xerox shop owners (AY 2026-27)
Presumptive tax under Section 44AD. Most shops are run by a proprietor and qualify. It covers resident individuals, HUFs and partnership firms (not LLPs) with turnover up to Rs 2 crore, or Rs 3 crore if cash receipts don't exceed 5% of turnover. Profit is deemed at 6% of receipts through banking channels and 8% of the rest. You can always declare a higher profit than the deemed figure.
Example (FY 2025-26): a proprietor's shop receives Rs 18,00,000, of which Rs 12,00,000 came by UPI and Rs 6,00,000 in cash. Cash is 33.3% of turnover, so the Rs 2 crore limit applies, and the shop is well within it. Deemed profit is Rs 72,000 (6% of Rs 12,00,000) plus Rs 48,000 (8% of Rs 6,00,000), so Rs 1,20,000 in all. The more you collect by UPI, the lower the deemed profit.
Three things to watch:
- Depreciation is treated as already allowed. Under Section 44AD(2) and (3), you can't claim depreciation on the copier on top of the deemed profit, and its written-down value is reduced as if you had.
- Commission income. Section 44AD(6)(ii) keeps income in the nature of commission or brokerage out of the scheme. If you also earn commission on recharges, bill payments or similar agency work, discuss with your CA how to report it.
- The five-year lock. If you opt out of Section 44AD within five years of using it, you can't come back for the next five years (Section 44AD(4)). During that period you must keep books and get them audited once your total income exceeds the basic exemption limit (Section 44AD(5)).
If you keep regular books instead, a photocopier is plant and machinery at 15% depreciation on the written-down value, and a computer is 40% (Appendix I, Income-tax Rules 1962). A Rs 2,40,000 copier put to use in June 2025 gives Rs 36,000 depreciation for FY 2025-26. Our depreciation guide covers the block rules.
Dates. The AY 2026-27 due date for non-audit returns was 31 July 2026. If you missed it, a belated return can be filed until 31 December 2026 (Section 139(4)), with a fee of Rs 5,000, or Rs 1,000 if total income doesn't exceed Rs 5 lakh (Section 234F). From FY 2026-27 the Income-tax Act 2025 applies, and presumptive tax moves to Section 58 with the same limits. See our Section 44AD guide.
Common mistakes xerox shops make
- Charging 5% because "it's printing". The 5% entry needs the customer's own paper and specified goods. Copies and printouts on your paper are 18%.
- Using the Rs 40 lakh threshold. A shop that supplies services registers at Rs 20 lakh (Rs 10 lakh in four States).
- Collecting GST while on composition. A composition shop can't show tax on its bill (Section 10(4)). If you've printed "incl. GST" on a bill of supply, change it.
- Skipping the daily consolidated invoice. The Rs 200 relief removes individual bills, not the daily summary invoice under Rule 46.
- Counting only service income for registration. Stationery, binding and DTP all add up in aggregate turnover.
How Tax Garden helps xerox and DTP shops
We work out whether 18%, 6% or 1% leaves you better off, get you registered through our GST registration service, and set up a daily billing routine that fits a busy counter. Each month our GST return filing service files GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B, or CMP-08 if you're on composition. At year end we compute your 44AD income and file the return through our ITR filing service.
