GSTR-9 Table 8D: The Negative Value, and What It Means

GSTR explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.

Table 8D = 8A − (8B + 8C), and it is meant to be positive: credit that suppliers reported but the taxpayer did not claim. When it goes negative — more claimed than reported — the natural inference is over-claiming. Three of the four causes are not that at all.

"The aggregate value of ITC available in Form GSTR-2B (Table 3 thereof) but not availed in Form GSTR-3B shall be computed based on the values reported in Tables 8A, 8B, and 8C. However, there may be instances where the ITC availed in Form GSTR-3B exceeds the credit available in Form GSTR-2B. In such cases, the value in Table 8D shall be negative." And: "If the differential value in Table 8D is positive or zero, it is considered normal. Conversely, a negative differential value indicates anomalies that require further investigation."

Why positive is the expected outcome

"Ideally, the value in Table 8D should be positive or zero since not all inward supplies reported in Form GSTR-2B may be availed as ITC in Form GSTR-3B due to non-compliance with the conditions outlined under Section 16."

GSTR-2B is what suppliers reported; GSTR-3B is what the taxpayer could actually claim. Between them stand the section 16(2) conditions — possession of the invoice, receipt of goods or services, and the rest. Some credit in 2B will always fail one of them, so 8A ≥ 8B + 8C is the normal shape.

The four causes of a negative 8D

1. Supplier never uploaded the invoice. "The recipient has availed ITC, but the supplier has failed to upload the corresponding invoices in Form GSTR-1, leading to the absence of those credits in Form GSTR-2B."

This is the one that is a genuine problem — and not the taxpayer's own error. Credit was taken on an invoice that never appeared in 2B, which since section 16(2)(aa) is not a valid claim at all. The remedy is with the supplier.

2. Supplier uploaded late. "Invoices pertain to the reporting financial year but are reported by the supplier in Form GSTR-1 after the due date of the last month of the reporting financial year. Consequently, these amounts do not appear in GSTR-2B for the reporting financial year and are not auto-populated in Table 8A, instead reflected in the next financial year's GSTR-2B."

The fix: "As per GSTN advisory dated Dec 9th, 2024 such ITC should be reported in Tables 8C and 13 of Form GSTR-9 for the reporting financial year."

3. A reclaim under rule 37 or 37A. "Invoices pertain to the previous financial year but were reversed in that year as per Rules 37 and 37A… However, the said ITC is reclaimed in the reporting financial year. As per GSTN advisory dated Dec 9th, 2024, such ITC should be reported in Table 6H of Form GSTR-9 for the reporting financial year. However, this credit is not auto-populated in Table 8A… resulting in a negative value in Table 8D."

This is structural and unavoidable. A reclaimed invoice does not reappear in GSTR-2B, so 8A cannot carry it while 8B did — which is exactly why Table 8B was delinked from 6H for FY 2024-25. Table 8A and 8B →

4. Actual error. "Errors or duplications by the registered person, such as availing credit twice or claiming excess ITC due to typographical errors."

What Table 8C is for

Table 8C is "ITC on inward supplies (other than imports and inward supplies liable to reverse charge but includes services received from SEZs) received during the financial year but availed in the next financial year up to specified period."

"This clause is inserted to take care of the provisions of section 16(4)… to ascertain, match and reconcile the credit availed in the subsequent financial year, where the credit availed relates to the previous financial year."

And it must be mirrored: "The values forming part of this clause must also form part of Table 13 (Pt. V of Form GSTR-9)."

Two scenarios GSTN's advisory of 9 December 2024 puts in 8C and 13:

• the late-upload case above — invoices of the reporting year appearing in the next year's GSTR-2B;
• the goods-not-received case — "Invoices belonging to the reporting financial year where goods were not received during that year, ITC initially claimed in Table 4A5 of GSTR-3B and subsequently reversed in Table 4B2 as per Circular 170, can be reclaimed in the next financial year within the specified time period. Such reclaimed ITC must be reported in Table 8C and Table 13 of Form GSTR-9 for the reporting financial year, as it pertains to the transactions and ITC entitlement of the reporting financial year."

And one scenario that must not go there. Where credit of the reporting year was reversed under the second proviso to section 16(2) (non-payment in 180 days) and reclaimed the next year after payment, it goes to Table 6H of the next year's return and "should not be reported in Table 8C or Table 13 of Form GSTR-9 for the reporting financial year."

The dividing line is which year the entitlement belongs to. A rule 37 reversal is a new condition failing in the later year; a goods-not-received reversal is the same year's entitlement maturing late.

What to do about a negative figure

"To address discrepancies, it is essential to prepare detailed working sheets based on the inward supply register to identify the exact cause of the difference. This facilitates appropriate remedial actions either by the registered person or by their suppliers."

And on the consequence:

"Tax authorities may initiate inquiries if such discrepancies are observed, but no adverse action will be taken without providing the registered person an opportunity to explain. Hence, it is advisable to maintain proper documentation and a clear explanation for any differences appearing in Table 8D."

The practical instruction is to file with the explanation already prepared. Three of the four causes are complete answers; the working sheet that separates them is what turns an inquiry into a closed file.

Key takeaways

• Table 8D = 8A − (8B + 8C); positive or zero is normal, because not all credit in GSTR-2B satisfies section 16.
• A negative figure has four causes: the supplier never uploaded, the supplier uploaded late, a rule 37/37A reclaim, or a genuine error.
• The late-upload case is fixed by reporting in Tables 8C and 13 — GSTN advisory of 9 December 2024.
• The rule 37/37A reclaim case is structural, since reclaimed invoices never reappear in GSTR-2B — hence the delinking of 8B from 6H for FY 2024-25.
• Table 8C exists for section 16(4) — credit of the reporting year availed in the next year up to the specified date — and must be mirrored in Table 13.
• Goods not received in the year, claimed and reversed under Circular 170, then reclaimed next year → Tables 8C and 13.
• 180-day reversals reclaimed next year → Table 6H of the next year, not 8C or 13 of the reporting year.
• Prepare working sheets from the inward supply register; no adverse action without an opportunity to explain.

Read next

• GSTR-9 Table 8A: How GSTR-2B Replaced GSTR-2A
• GSTR-9 Tables 8E, 8F and 8K: The ITC That Lapses
• GSTR-9 Part V: Tables 10 to 14, the Next-Year Corrections

Disclaimer: Positions stated as on 5 September 2026, based on Form GSTR-9 and its instructions, sections 16(2) and 16(4) of the CGST Act, 2017, rules 37 and 37A of the CGST Rules, 2017, Circular No. 170/02/2022-GST and the GSTN advisory dated 9 December 2024, as reproduced in the ICAI Technical Guide on GST Annual Return (Form GSTR-9).