A common assumption is that a charitable organisation is outside GST altogether. It is not. Exemption is activity-based, not entity-based — so the first question is always which of your receipts amount to a supply, and which are genuinely exempt.
What we handle
- Applicability analysis — a receipt-by-receipt review of grants, donations, fees, sponsorships, rent and sale of goods to establish what is actually taxable
- Registration — GST registration, amendments, and additional places of business
- Exemption guidance — the exemption available to entities registered under 332 for charitable activities, and where it stops applying
- Return filing — GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and the annual return GSTR-9, with reconciliation to the books
- Input tax credit — eligibility, apportionment between exempt and taxable supplies, and reversals
- Reverse charge — sponsorship receipts, legal services and other reverse-charge situations non-profits commonly miss
- Notices and audits — replies, departmental audits and representation
Why organisations come to us
The costly cases are rarely deliberate. An organisation treats a sponsorship as a donation, or claims full input tax credit while most of its output is exempt, and the position only surfaces years later in an audit. Getting the classification right at the start is far cheaper than defending it afterwards.