Key takeaways
What this article covers, in order:
- Can I opt for QRMP?
- What does a QRMP quarter actually look like?
- IFF, and why your buyers care about it
- How does the monthly payment work?
- A quarter in the life of Meera's business
- Where QRMP filers usually slip
Twenty-four GST returns a year is a lot of evenings for a five-person business. The QRMP scheme (Quarterly Return, Monthly Payment) brings that down to eight: if your turnover is up to ₹5 crore, you file GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B once a quarter, pay tax monthly through challan PMT-06, and can upload B2B invoices early through the optional Invoice Furnishing Facility (IFF) so your buyers aren't left waiting for credit.
It sounds like a free lunch. Mostly it is. But QRMP has its own rhythm, and the monthly payment part is where small businesses most often end up paying interest they didn't need to.
Can I opt for QRMP?
You can if your aggregate annual turnover in the previous financial year was ₹5 crore or less and you're a regular taxpayer. Composition dealers are out; they have their own quarterly system with CMP-08.
Turnover is counted across every GSTIN on your PAN. So if you have a Delhi registration doing ₹3 crore and a Haryana one doing ₹2.5 crore, you're at ₹5.5 crore and neither GSTIN qualifies. If you cross ₹5 crore during a year, you go back to monthly filing from the next quarter.
When can I switch?
The window for any quarter opens on the 1st of the second month of the previous quarter and shuts on the last day of the first month of the quarter you want. Want to file quarterly for the Jan 2027 to Mar 2027 quarter? Opt in between 1 Nov 2026 and 31 Jan 2027.
You don't have to re-opt every quarter. Your choice sticks until you change it or stop being eligible. One catch: your last due GSTR-3B has to be filed before the portal lets you change the option.
What does a QRMP quarter actually look like?
Take the Oct 2026 to Dec 2026 quarter, which is Q3 of FY 2026-27. Due dates do get extended now and then, so treat this as the normal pattern and confirm on the GST portal.
| Month | What you do | Normal due date |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | Upload B2B invoices through IFF (optional) | 13 Nov 2026 |
| Oct 2026 | Pay tax with PMT-06 | 25 Nov 2026 |
| Nov 2026 | Upload B2B invoices through IFF (optional) | 13 Dec 2026 |
| Nov 2026 | Pay tax with PMT-06 | 25 Dec 2026 |
| Dec 2026 | File quarterly GSTR-1 with everything left | 13 Jan 2027 |
| Dec 2026 | File quarterly GSTR-3B, pay the balance | 22 Jan 2027 or 24 Jan 2027 |
Whether you get the 22nd or the 24th depends on the state your registration is in. The states are split into two groups. Look up yours once on the portal and write it on a sticky note; people mix this up every quarter.
IFF, and why your buyers care about it
IFF is a small, optional upload for months one and two. It only takes B2B invoices, plus credit and debit notes to registered buyers and amendments to those. No B2C sales, no HSN summary. Those wait for the quarterly GSTR-1. There's also a ceiling of ₹50 lakh of invoice value per month through IFF; anything over goes in the quarterly return.
Here's why it exists. Say you supply corrugated boxes to a ₹3 crore food manufacturer who files monthly. Their credit for your Oct 2026 invoice shows up in their GSTR-2B only after you report it. If you wait for the quarterly GSTR-1, that Oct 2026 invoice reaches them in Jan 2027. Three months of their money stuck. Expect a phone call, and maybe a slower payment.
So use IFF if your regular customers are monthly filers, or if they keep asking you to "upload the bill". Skip it if you're mostly B2C (a retail counter, a D2C site) or your B2B buyers are quarterly filers who don't mind waiting.
Anything you upload through IFF is carried forward automatically. You don't report it again in the quarterly GSTR-1.
How does the monthly payment work?
Quarterly return, monthly payment. That second half matters. For months one and two you deposit tax by the 25th of the next month using PMT-06, and you pick one of two methods.
The Fixed Sum Method, which everyone calls the 35% challan, is the lazy option in a good way. The portal pre-fills an amount. If you filed last quarter's GSTR-3B quarterly, it's 35% of the tax you paid in cash that quarter. If you filed monthly last quarter, it's the cash tax from the last month of that quarter. Pay it by the 25th and there's no interest for months one and two, even if your real liability turned out higher. The difference gets settled with the quarterly return.
The Self-Assessment Method means you work out the month's actual liability, knock off available ITC, and pay the net cash. More work, but you don't park extra money with the government in a slow month. Underpay, though, and you'll owe interest at 18% a year on the shortfall.
| Fixed Sum (35%) | Self-Assessment | |
|---|---|---|
| Effort | Pay what's pre-filled | Calculate liability and ITC every month |
| Cash flow | Can overpay in a slow month | Close to what you actually owe |
| Interest risk in months 1 and 2 | None if paid on time | Yes, if you underpay |
| Suits | Steady, predictable sales | Seasonal or lumpy B2B sales |
You can choose a different method for each month. And you can skip PMT-06 altogether for a month if your ITC covers the liability or the liability is nil.
A quarter in the life of Meera's business
Meera runs a stationery distribution business in Pune. Turnover around ₹1.4 crore, roughly 60% to registered schools and offices. These numbers are illustrative.
In Oct 2026 she uploads 38 B2B invoices through IFF by 13 Nov 2026. The schools' accountants see the credit in their GSTR-2B that month and stop chasing her.
Her cash tax last quarter was ₹1,20,000, so the Fixed Sum challan for Oct 2026 is ₹42,000. She pays it on 24 Nov 2026.
Nov 2026 is Diwali month. Sales jump, and ₹42,000 is now well below what she actually owes. Because she's on the Fixed Sum Method and pays on time, no interest applies to that gap for now. She pays ₹42,000 again.
In Jan 2027 she files the quarterly GSTR-1 by 13 Jan 2027 with the Dec 2026 B2B invoices, all B2C sales for the quarter and the HSN summary. Her quarterly GSTR-3B shows the full quarter's tax, credits the ₹84,000 already paid, and she clears the balance.
Had she used self-assessment, the Nov 2026 payment would have needed the full real figure. Neither choice is wrong. It's about which month you'd rather feel the cash pinch in.
Where QRMP filers usually slip
The biggest one is reading QRMP as "quarterly payment". If you're on self-assessment and skip the month-one or month-two payment, interest starts ticking.
Second, people forget B2C sales in the quarterly GSTR-1 because they think IFF covered everything. It didn't. IFF is B2B only.
Third, uploading the same invoice in IFF and again in the quarterly GSTR-1. Now your reported sales are inflated and GSTR-1 won't match GSTR-3B.
A few smaller ones:
- Missing the IFF date and panicking. Don't. The invoice just goes into the next IFF or the quarterly GSTR-1. Your buyer's credit is late, not lost.
- Trying to switch mid-quarter. The portal won't let you.
- Assuming late fees are gentler for quarterly filers. They're charged per day of delay, same idea as monthly.
A simple QRMP routine
- [ ] Months 1 and 2: record every B2B invoice and credit note with the buyer's GSTIN
- [ ] Months 1 and 2: upload B2B invoices via IFF by the 13th, if your buyers need monthly credit
- [ ] Months 1 and 2: pay PMT-06 by the 25th
- [ ] Month 3: reconcile the quarter's purchases with GSTR-2B
- [ ] Month 3: file quarterly GSTR-1 by the 13th (remaining B2B, all B2C, HSN summary)
- [ ] Month 3: file quarterly GSTR-3B by the 22nd or 24th and pay the balance
So, is QRMP worth it?
For most businesses under ₹5 crore, yes. Fewer returns, less end-of-month scramble. It's less attractive if your big customers are monthly filers who want credit every month and you don't fancy doing IFF; plain monthly filing might honestly be simpler then. If your turnover is hovering near ₹5 crore, or you have several registrations, sit down with your CA before switching.
How HelloBooks helps
Your QRMP returns are built from invoices, credit notes and purchase bills, and HelloBooks keeps all of those in one place with GSTINs, HSN/SAC codes and tax rates attached. On the Free plan you can file GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B directly to the GST portal from inside HelloBooks for one GSTIN, at ₹0 with no expiry. Before you submit GSTR-3B you'll see the interest and late fee as the GST portal's own figure. GSTR-2B reconciliation with ITC tracking is included, which helps in month three when you square up the quarter. More detail on the GSTR-1 filing page and the GSTR-3B filing page.
Free covers up to 200 transactions a year. If you're past that, pricing has the details.
FAQs
Can I file GSTR-1 quarterly but GSTR-3B monthly?
No. QRMP is one choice that covers both returns. Opt in and both go quarterly; opt out and both are monthly.
Is IFF compulsory?
No. You can report all B2B invoices in the quarterly GSTR-1 instead. The only cost is that your buyers get their credit later.
My turnover crossed ₹5 crore in the middle of the year. What now?
You become ineligible from the next quarter and file monthly from then on. Keep a running eye on turnover across all GSTINs on your PAN.
Do I pay PMT-06 if I have enough ITC?
No. If ITC covers the month's liability, or the liability is nil, there's nothing to deposit for that month.
Does QRMP change my annual return?
No. GSTR-9 is still due by 31 Dec after the financial year (31 Dec 2027 for FY 2026-27), subject to the turnover-based exemptions. QRMP only changes how often GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B are filed.
Pick your method, set two reminders a month, and QRMP mostly runs itself.
Start free — GST filing included, no card. Try HelloBooks Free
