GST on laptops and phones in India: rates and HSN codes

What changed on 22 September 2025

On 17 September 2025 the Finance Ministry issued Notification No. 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), which replaced the original 2017 rate schedules from 22 September 2025. It sets central tax rates by schedule. Schedule II carries 9% central tax, which with the matching 9% state tax makes the familiar 18% slab. Schedule VII carries 14% central tax (28% in total).

For consumer electronics, the headline change was the 28% slab. The West Bengal GST Policy Planning Unit's summary of the September 2025 notifications lists television sets, monitors and projectors, along with air conditioners and dishwashers, moving from 28% to 18%. The new 8528 entry covers televisions, computer monitors and projectors with no screen-size condition, so a 55-inch TV and a 24-inch monitor now sit in the same 18% slab.

Laptops, phones and PC parts were already at 18% and stayed there. The price you see is GST-inclusive, so the rate change only shows up where the slab actually moved.

GST rates and HSN codes for electronics

All the items below fall in Schedule II of Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), so each is 18% GST in total. The serial number is the entry in that schedule, which helps if you want to check the notification yourself.

The HSN code on an invoice is the seller's classification. Tablets are usually billed under 8471, and some parts can be classified under more than one heading. The rate is 18% either way for the items above, but if a code looks odd for a large business purchase, ask the seller or your CA before you claim credit.

CGST and SGST, or IGST?

The total is 18% either way. What changes is how the invoice splits it, and that depends on the place of supply, which for a delivered product is normally where it is delivered.

• Same state (intra-state): 9% CGST plus 9% SGST. A laptop bought from a Bengaluru seller and delivered in Karnataka shows both lines.
• Different states (inter-state): 18% IGST, under Notification No. 9/2025-Integrated Tax (Rate), which notifies 18% for Schedule II goods. The same laptop delivered to Chennai shows one IGST line.
• Finding the tax inside a price: GST-inclusive price × 18 ÷ 118. On a ₹1,18,000 invoice, the taxable value is ₹1,00,000 and the GST is ₹18,000: ₹9,000 CGST plus ₹9,000 SGST, or ₹18,000 IGST.

What a valid GST invoice shows

Rule 46 of the CGST Rules, 2017 lists what a tax invoice must contain. For an electronics purchase, check for these:

• The seller's name, address and GSTIN.
• A consecutive invoice number (up to 16 characters, unique for the financial year) and the date of issue.
• Your name, address and GSTIN if you are a registered business. If you are not registered, your name, delivery address and state must appear when the taxable value is ₹50,000 or more, and can appear below that if you ask.
• The HSN code, description, quantity and unit.
• The taxable value after any discount, the rate and amount of each tax (CGST, SGST or IGST), and the total.
• The place of supply with the state name for an inter-state sale, and the delivery address if different.
• Whether tax is payable on reverse charge, and the seller's signature or digital signature.
• A QR code with the Invoice Reference Number if the seller is required to issue e-invoices.

Keep the invoice. It is your proof of purchase for warranty claims and, for a business, the document that supports input tax credit. SwapMyTech sells new electronics with a GST invoice.

Input tax credit for businesses: the basics

A GST-registered business that buys a laptop or phone for business use can usually set the GST paid against the GST it collects on its own sales. This is a summary of the main rules in the CGST Act, 2017, not tax advice:

• Business use (section 16(1)). Credit is available on goods used or intended to be used in the course or furtherance of business.
• Four conditions (section 16(2)). You hold a tax invoice, you have received the goods, the tax has been paid to the government by the supplier, and you have filed your return. The supplier's invoice details must also have been furnished and communicated to you, which in practice means they appear in your GSTR-2B.
• Mixed use (section 17(1) and (2)). If a device is used partly for personal purposes, only the business share of the credit is allowed.
• Blocked credits (section 17(5)). Credit is not allowed on goods for personal consumption, or on goods lost, stolen, destroyed, written off or given away as gifts or free samples.
• Depreciation (section 16(3)). If you claim income-tax depreciation on the GST part of the cost, you cannot also take credit for that GST.
• Time limit (section 16(4)). Credit for an invoice must be claimed by 30 November after the end of the financial year, or by the date you file the annual return, whichever is earlier.

Individuals who are not registered under GST cannot claim input tax credit; for them GST is simply part of the price. Rules on credit change through amendments and circulars, so a business should confirm its own position with a chartered accountant.

Practical checks before you pay

1. Ask whether the quoted price includes GST. Retail prices in India are usually GST-inclusive, but business quotes sometimes are not.
2. If you are a business, give your GSTIN before the invoice is raised. Adding it later means a credit note and a fresh invoice.
3. Check the state on the invoice. A Karnataka delivery from a Karnataka seller should show CGST and SGST, not IGST.
4. Look up the GSTIN on the GST portal's taxpayer search to confirm the seller is registered and active.
5. If you are replacing an old device, the GST is charged on the new device's price. An exchange lowers what you pay, but discuss with your CA how the exchange shows on a business invoice before you rely on it for credit.