Complete Guide to Indian Hotel GST Invoicing (12% vs 18% SAC 9963) & Compliance
By NovaX AI Tax & Compliance Desk• Oct 14, 2026• 7 min read
Goods and Services Tax (GST) compliance in Indian hospitality is notorious for audit pitfalls. Hoteliers frequently miscalculate tax rates on room charges, fail to apply correct SAC 9963 accounting codes, or make floating-point rounding errors on guest checkout bills.
This operational guide clarifies the statutory GST brackets, room tariff rules, and how HotelFlexi automates compliant GST invoice folios for your Chartered Accountant (CA).
1. Hotel Room Tariff Slabs & Applicable GST Rates
Under Indian GST regulations, short-term accommodation in hotels, guest houses, and homestays is classified under SAC Code 996311. The tax rate is determined by the daily room tariff declared or charged per unit per day:
| Room Tariff (Per Day / Unit) | GST Rate | Intra-State (Within State) | Inter-State (Outside State) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to ₹7,500 / night | 12% | 6% CGST + 6% SGST | 12% IGST |
| Above ₹7,500 / night (Luxury) | 18% | 9% CGST + 9% SGST | 18% IGST |
2. Eliminating Floating-Point Calculation Errors
Many older hotel PMS programs use standard floating-point numbers in JavaScript or PHP, leading to fractional paise errors like ₹3,920.0000000004.
HotelFlexi stores all tariffs and financial transactions strictly as integer paise in SQLite D1 (e.g. ₹3,500.00 is stored as 350000). Tax is calculated using basis points (12% = 1200 bps):
tax_paise = Math.round((room_charge_paise * gst_basis_points) / 10000)
This ensures every invoice folio, tax summary, and CA monthly export reconciles down to the exact single paisa with zero rounding discrepancies.
3. Automated SAC 9963 Folios in HotelFlexi
When a guest checks out, HotelFlexi automatically formats a tax invoice displaying:
- Hotel’s Legal Entity Name, Address, and 15-digit GSTIN
- Guest / Corporate Company GSTIN for B2B input tax credit (ITC) claims
- Clear split of room tariff (SAC 996311) vs food / restaurant services (SAC 996331 at 5%)
- One-click PDF download and direct WhatsApp receipt dispatch to the guest
Automate Indian GST Invoicing on Your PMS
Included across all HotelFlexi plans starting at ₹499/mo with zero setup fee. Try 14 days free.