E-Way Bill Exemptions

E-Way Bill Exemptions: A Comprehensive Guide

The E-Way Bill system, mandated by the Government of India on April 1, 2018, regulates the movement of goods with a value exceeding Rs. 50,000. Nevertheless, specific goods and transactions are exempt from the requirement of generating E-Way Bills.

Goods exempt from e-way bills (Summarised List)

The following is the summarised list of goods exempted from generating e-way bills, even when the value exceeds 50,000 rs. as per the provisions under rule 138(14) of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017.
(Scroll down for a more detailed list of every item exempted).

  • Liquefied petroleum gas for household and non-domestic exempted category customers
  • Kerosene oil distributed through the Public Distribution System (PDS)
  • Postal baggage transported by the Department of Posts
  • Natural or cultured pearls, precious or semi-precious stones, precious metals, and metals coated with precious metal
  • Jewellery, goldsmiths’ and silversmiths’ items, and related articles
  • Currency
  • Used personal and household effects
  • Unworked and worked coral
  • Goods like alcoholic liquor for human consumption, natural gas, petroleum crude, high-speed diesel, petrol, or aviation turbine fuel.
  • Goods not considered as supply under Schedule III of the Act, which includes activities that are neither supply of goods nor an employee’s service to an employer in their employment, and functions performed by MPs, MLAs, etc.
  • Empty cargo containers.
  • Goods except de-oiled cakes, specified in notification No. 2/2017–Central Tax (Rate) dated 28th June 2017, including items like curd, lassi, buttermilk, fresh milk, vegetables, fruits, unprocessed tea leaves, unroasted coffee beans, live animals and plants, meat, cereals, unbranded rice and wheat flour, salt, and items of educational importance like books, maps, and periodicals.
  • Goods exempted under notification No. 7/2017–Central Tax (Rate) dated 28th June 2017 (supply by CSD to unit-run canteens and authorized customers) and notification No. 26/2017–Central Tax (Rate) dated 21st September 2017 (consists of heavy water and nuclear fuels).

Transactions exempt from e-way bills

Along with goods, certain transactions are also exempted from making an e-way bill. They are –

  • If you’re moving goods using non-motorized transport like horse carts or manual carts.
  • When goods are being moved from a port, airport, air cargo complex, or land customs station to an inland container depot (ICD) or a container freight station (CFS) for customs clearance.
  • When goods are going from an ICD or CFS to a customs port, airport, or air cargo location under a customs bond
  • If goods are moving between different customs ports/stations under a customs bond
  • When goods are transported with customs supervision or a customs seal.
  • For goods transported within a specific notified area.
  • When goods are in transit to or from Nepal or Bhutan.
  • If goods are transported to a weighbridge within 20 kilometres and then back to the original business location, and you have a Delivery Challan (DC).
  • When the government or local authorities transport goods by rail as the consignor.
  •  For goods going to or coming from the Ministry of Defence.

Goods exempt from e-way bills (Detailed List)

Find below a detailed list of all the goods exempt from the e-way bill mandate:

Sr. No.Chapter or
Heading or Sub-heading
or Tariff item
Description of Goods
10101Live asses, mules, and hinnies
20102Live bovine animals
30103Live swine
40104Live sheep and goats
50105Live poultry, that is, fowls of the species Gallus domesticus, ducks, geese, turkeys, and guinea fowls.
60106Other live animal such as Mammals, Birds, Insects
70201Meat of bovine animals, fresh and chilled.
80202Meat of bovine animals frozen [other than frozen and put up in unit
container]
90203Meat of swine, fresh, chilled, or frozen [other than frozen and put up in
unit container]
100204The meat of sheep or goats, fresh, chilled, or frozen [other than frozen and
put up in unit container]
110205 The meat of horses, asses, mules or hinnies, fresh, chilled, or frozen [other
than frozen and put up in a unit container]
120206 Edible offal of bovine animals, swine, sheep, goats, horses, asses,
mules or hinnies, fresh, chilled, or frozen [other than frozen and put up
in unit container]
130207 Meat and edible offal, of the poultry of heading 0105, fresh, chilled or
frozen [other than frozen and put up in unit container]
140208 Other meat and edible meat offal, fresh, chilled, or frozen [other than
frozen and put up in unit container]
150209 Pig fat, free of lean meat, and poultry fat, not rendered or otherwise
extracted, fresh, chilled, or frozen [other than frozen and put up in unit
container]
160209Pig fat, free of lean meat, and poultry fat, not rendered or otherwise
extracted, salted, in brine, dried or smoked [other than put up in unit
containers]
170210Meat and edible meat offal, salted, in brine, dried or smoked; edible
flours and meals of meat or meat offal, other than put up in unit containers
183Fish seeds, prawn/shrimp seeds whether or not processed, cured or in the frozen state [other than goods falling under Chapter 3 and attracting
2.5%]
190301Live fish
200302Fish, fresh or chilled, excluding fish fillets and other fish meat of
heading
210304Fish fillets and other fish meat (whether or not minced), fresh or
chilled.
220306Crustaceans, whether in shell or not, live, fresh or chilled; crustaceans,
in shell, cooked by steaming or by boiling in water live, fresh or
chilled.
230307Molluscs, whether in shell or not, live, fresh, chilled; aquatic
invertebrates other than crustaceans and molluscs, live, fresh or chilled.
240308Aquatic invertebrates other than crustaceans and molluscs, live, fresh or chilled.
250401Fresh milk and pasteurised milk, including separated milk, milk and
cream, not concentrated nor containing added sugar or other
sweetening matter, excluding Ultra High Temperature (UHT) milk
260403Curd; Lassi; Buttermilk
270406Chena or paneer, other than put up in unit containers and bearing a
registered brand name
280407Birds’ eggs, in shell, fresh, preserved or cooked
290409Natural honey, other than put up in a unit container and bearing a
registered brand name
300501Human hair, unworked, whether or not washed or scoured; waste of
human hair
310506All goods i.e. Bones and horn cores, unworked, defatted, simply
prepared (but not cut to shape), treated with acid or gelatinised; powder and waste of these products
320507 90All goods i.e. Hoof meal; horn meal; hooves, claws, nails and beaks;
antlers; etc.
330511Semen including frozen semen
346Live trees and other plants; bulbs, roots and the like; cut flowers and
ornamental foliage
350701Potatoes, fresh or chilled
360702Tomatoes, fresh or chilled.
370703Onions, shallots, garlic, leeks and other alliaceous vegetables, fresh or
chilled.
380704Cabbages, cauliflowers, kohlrabi, kale and similar edible brassicas,
fresh or chilled.
390705Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) and chicory (Cichorium spp.), fresh or chilled.
400706Carrots, turnips, salad beetroot, salsify, celeriac, radishes and similar
edible roots, fresh or chilled.
410707Cucumbers and gherkins, fresh or chilled
420708Leguminous vegetables, shelled or unshelled, fresh or chilled
430709Other vegetables, fresh or chilled.
440712Dried vegetables, whole, cut, sliced, broken or in powder, but not
further prepared.
450713Dried leguminous vegetables, shelled, whether or not skinned or split.
460714Manioc, arrowroot, salep, Jerusalem artichokes, sweet potatoes and
similar roots and tubers with high starch or inulin content, fresh or
chilled; sago pith.
470801Coconuts, fresh or dried, whether or not shelled or peeled
480801Brazil nuts, fresh, whether or not shelled or peeled
490802Other nuts, Other nuts, fresh such as Almonds, Hazelnuts or filberts
(Coryius spp.), walnuts, Chestnuts (Castanea spp.), Pistachios,
Macadamia nuts, Kola nuts (Cola spp.), Areca nuts, fresh, whether or
not shelled or peeled
500803Bananas, including plantains, fresh or dried
510804Dates, figs, pineapples, avocados, guavas, mangoes and mangosteens, fresh.
520805Citrus fruit, such as Oranges, Mandarins (including tangerines and
satsumas); clementines, wilkings and similar citrus hybrids, Grapefruit,
including pomelos, Lemons (Citrus limon, Citrus limonum) and limes
(Citrus aurantifolia, Citrus latifolia), fresh.
530806Grapes, fresh
540807Melons (including watermelons) and papaws (papayas), are fresh.
550808Apples, pears and quinces, fresh.
560809Apricots, cherries, peaches (including nectarines), plums and sloes,
fresh.
570810Other fruits such as strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, mulberries
and loganberries, black, white or red currants and gooseberries,
cranberries, bilberries and other fruits of the genus Vaccinium, Kiwi
fruit, Durians, Persimmons, Pomegranates, Tamarind, Sapota (chico),
Custard-apple (ata), Bore, Lichi, fresh.
580814Peel citrus fruit or melons (including watermelons), fresh.
599All goods of seed quality
600901Coffee beans, not roasted
610902Unprocessed green leaves of tea
620909Seeds of anise, badian, fennel, coriander, cumin or caraway; juniper
berries [of seed quality]
630910 11 10Fresh ginger, other than in processed form
640910 30 10Fresh turmeric, other than in processed form
651001Wheat and meslin [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing
a registered brand name]
661002Rye [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a registered
brand name]
671003Barley [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a
registered brand name]
681004Oats [other than those put up in a unit container and bearing a registered
brand name]
691005Maize (corn) [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a
registered brand name]
701006Rice [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a registered
brand name]
711007Grain sorghum [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a
registered brand name]
721008Buckwheat, millet and canary seed; other cereals such as Jawar, Bajra,
Ragi] [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a registered
brand name]
731101Wheat or meslin flour [other than those put up in unit containers and
bearing a registered brand name].
741102Cereal flours other than wheat or meslin, [maize (corn) flour, Rye
flour, etc.] [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a
registered brand name]
751103Cereal groats, meal and pellets [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing a registered brand name]
761104Cereal grains hulled
771105Flour, of potatoes [other than those put up in unit containers and bearing
a registered brand name]
781106Flour, of the dried leguminous vegetables of heading 0713 (pulses)
[other than guar meal 1106 10 10 and guar gum refined split 1106 10
90], of sago or of roots or tubers of heading 0714 or of the products of
Chapter 8 i.e. of tamarind, singoda, mango flour, etc. [other than
those put up in unit containers and bearing a registered brand name]
7912All goods of seed quality
801201Soya beans, whether or not broken, of seed quality
811202Ground nuts, not roasted or otherwise cooked, whether or not shelled or broken, of seed quality
821204Linseed, whether or not broken, of seed quality.
831205Rape or colza seeds, whether or not broken, of seed quality
841206Sunflower seeds, whether or not broken, of seed quality
851207Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits (i.e. Palm nuts and kernels, cotton
seeds, Castor oil seeds, Sesamum seeds, Mustard seeds, Safflower
(Carthamustinctorius) seeds, Melon seeds, Poppy seeds, Ajams,
Mango kernel, Niger seed, Kokam) whether or not a broken, seed
quality.
861209Seeds, fruit and spores, of a kind used for sowing.
871210Hop cones, fresh.
881211Plants and parts of plants (including seeds and fruits), of a kind used
primarily in perfumery, in pharmacy or for insecticidal, fungicidal or
similar purpose, fresh or chilled.
891212Locust beans, seaweeds and other algae, sugar beet and sugar cane,
fresh or chilled.
901213Cereal straw and husks, unprepared, whether or not chopped, ground,
pressed or in the form of pellets
911214Swedes, mangolds, fodder roots, hay, lucerne (alfalfa), clover,
sainfoin, forage kale, lupines, vetches and similar forage products,
whether or not in the form of pellets.
921301Lac and Shellac
931404 90 40Betel leaves
941701 or 1702Jaggery of all types including Cane Jaggery (gur) and Palmyra Jaggery
951904Puffed rice, commonly known as Muri, flattened or beaten rice,
commonly known as Chira, parched rice, commonly known as Khoi,
parched paddy or rice coated with sugar or gur, commonly known as
Murki
961905Pappad
971905Bread (branded or otherwise), except pizza bread
982201Water [other than aerated, mineral, purified, distilled, medicinal, ionic,
battery, de-mineralized and water sold in sealed containers]
992201Non-alcoholic Toddy, Neera including date and palm neera
1002202 90 90Tender coconut water other than put up in a unit container and bearing a registered brand name
101. 2302, 2304,
2305, 2306, 2308, 2309
Aquatic feed including shrimp feed and prawn feed, poultry feed and
cattle feed, including grass, hay and straw, supplement and of pulses, concentrates and additives, wheat bran and de-oiled cake
1022501Salt, all types
1032835Dicalcium phosphate (DCP) of animal feed grade conforming to IS
specification No.5470: 2002
1043002Human Blood and its components
1053006All types of contraceptives
1063101All goods and organic manure [other than put up in unit containers and
bearing a registered brand name]
1073304Kajal [other than kajal pencil sticks], Kumkum, Bindi, Sindur, Alta
1083825Municipal waste, sewage sludge, clinical waste
1093926Plastic bangles
1104014Condoms and contraceptives
111. 4401Firewood or fuelwood
1124402Wood charcoal (including shell or nut charcoal), whether or not
agglomerated
1134802 / 4907Judicial, Non-judicial stamp papers, and Court fee stamps when sold by the
Government Treasuries or Vendors authorised by the Government
1144817 / 4907Postal items, like envelopes, Post card etc., sold by the Government
11548 / 4907Rupee notes when sold to the Reserve Bank of India
1164907Cheques, lost or in book form
1174901Printed books, including Braille books
1184902Newspapers, journals and periodicals, whether or not illustrated or
containing advertising material
1194903Children’s picture, drawing or colouring books
1204905Maps and hydrographic or similar charts of all kinds, including atlases,
wall maps, topographical plans and globes, printed
1215001Silkworm laying, cocoon
1225002Raw silk
1235003Silk waste
1245101Wool, not carded or combed
1255102Fine or coarse animal hair, not carded or combed
1265103Waste of wool or of fine or coarse animal hair
12752Gandhi Topi
12852Khadi yarn
1295303Jute fibres, raw or processed but not spun
1305305Coconut, coir fibre
13163Indian National Flag
1326703Human hair, dressed, thinned, bleached or otherwise worked
1336912 00 40Earthen pot and clay lamps
1347018Glass bangles (except those made from precious metals)
1358201Agricultural implements are manually operated or animal driven i.e. Hand
tools, such as spades, shovels, mattocks, picks, hoes, forks and rakes;
axes, bill hooks and similar hewing tools; secateurs and pruners of any
kind; scythes, sickles, hay knives, hedge shears, timber wedges and
other tools of a kind used in agriculture, horticulture or forestry.
1368445Amber charkha
1378446Handloom [weaving machinery]
1388802 60 00Spacecraft (including satellites) and suborbital and spacecraft launch
vehicles
1398803Parts of goods of heading 8801
1409021Hearing aids
14192Indigenous handmade musical instruments
1429603Muddhas made of sarkanda and phoolbaharijhadoo
1439609Slate pencils and chalk sticks
1449610 00 00Slates
1459803Passenger baggage
146Any ChapterPuja samagrinamely,-
(i) Rudraksha, rudraksha mala, tulsikanthi mala, panchgavya
(mixture of cowdung, desi ghee, milk and curd);
(ii) Sacred thread (commonly known as yagnopavit);
(iii) Wooden khadau;
(iv) Panchamrit,
(v) Vibhuti sold by religious institutions, (vi) Unbranded honey
(vii) Wick for diya.
(viii) Roli
(ix) Kalava (Raksha sutra)
(x) Chandantika
147OtherLiquefied petroleum gas for supply to household and non-domestic
exempted category (NDEC) customers
148Kerosene oil sold under PDS
149Postal baggage transported by the Department of Posts
150Natural or cultured pearls and precious or semi-precious stones;
precious metals and metals clad with precious metal
151Jewellery, goldsmiths’ and silversmiths’ wares and other articles
152Currency
153Used personal and household effects
154Coral, unworked (0508) and worked coral (9601)
source

Recommended Read: E-Way Bill Penalty: Everything You Need To Know

Documents to carry instead of the e-way bill

When transporting goods exempt from e-way bill generation, you must still carry other necessary documents, such as:

(a) tax invoice bill of supply or bill of entry; or
(b) a delivery challan, where the goods are transported for reasons other
then by way of supply.

Also read: Top E-Way Bill Software
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