Last Date to Claim FY 2025-26 ITC: 30 November 2026 Checklist for Sellers

If you bought goods, packaging or services in FY 2025-26 and have not yet claimed the GST on them, the window closes on 30 November 2026. After that, the credit is lost, and the tax you paid becomes a cost.

The rule

Section 16(4) of the CGST Act says a registered person is not entitled to ITC on an invoice or debit note after the 30th day of November following the end of the financial year to which it pertains, or the furnishing of the relevant annual return, whichever is earlier. You can read the text on the CBIC tax information portal.

Invoice dated	Last date to claim
April 2025 to March 2026 (FY 2025-26)	30 November 2026, or your GSTR-9 date if earlier
April 2026 to March 2027 (FY 2026-27)	30 November 2027, or your GSTR-9 date if earlier

Which GSTR-3B is your last chance

ITC is claimed in GSTR-3B. The October 2026 GSTR-3B is due on 20 November, so it is the last regular monthly return that falls before the cut-off. The November return is due on 20 December, after it. If you are on the QRMP scheme, your July to September quarterly return (due 22 or 24 October) is the last one before 30 November.

This is our reading of the statutory date. Confirm the exact return for your filing frequency with your CA partner before relying on it.

The GSTR-9 trap

The limit is the earlier of 30 November and the annual return date. GSTR-9 for FY 2025-26 is due on 31 December 2026, so most sellers will not hit this. But if you file it early, or your CA files it early, any ITC you have not claimed by then is gone. Claim everything first, then file GSTR-9.

What losing the credit looks like

Say you bought packaging in February 2026 with ₹18,000 of GST on the invoice, but the supplier only reported it in GSTR-1 after you filed your March return. It shows in a later GSTR-2B, and you plan to claim it "sometime". If that credit is still unclaimed after 30 November 2026, the ₹18,000 cannot be set off against your output GST. You pay it in cash on top, and it sits in your books as cost. Across a year of marketplace purchases, small leftovers like this add up.

Checklist before 30 November

1. Reconcile purchases against GSTR-2B for all 12 months. Any FY 2025-26 invoice in your books but missing from GSTR-2B is unclaimed ITC. Our GSTR-2A vs GSTR-2B guide explains why only GSTR-2B counts.
2. Chase suppliers who have not filed. ITC appears in GSTR-2B only after the supplier reports the invoice. Ask them to file or amend well before 20 November.
3. Clear your IMS backlog. Accept or reject every pending record. See the IMS guide.
4. List invoices that were reversed or left out because of a mismatch or a late supplier payment, and check whether they can now be reclaimed.
5. Check reverse-charge and import items with your CA partner, since they are reported differently from ordinary purchase invoices.
6. Hold off on GSTR-9 until every claim is in.
7. Note the dates on the GST due dates page: 20 November for the October GSTR-3B.

For reconciliation across a full year, a CA partner can do the comparison directly with you. Dhanaay can refer you to one, at no cost to you.

What this guide does not cover

Special extended time limits, such as those for certain demand notices under Sections 73 and 74, follow different rules. This guide covers the standard Section 16(4) deadline.

Sources

• Section 16, CGST Act 2017 (CBIC)