How-to · GST
GST blocked credits under section 17(5): what you cannot take
Which inward supplies are blocked under CGST Act section 17(5), why GSTR-2B can still show them as available, how that differs from an officer blocking the credit ledger, and how to keep those invoices out of GSTR-3B.
In this guide
Section 17(5) of the CGST Act lists inward supplies on which input tax credit is not available, even if the supplier reported them and they appear in GSTR-2B. Motor cars, food, personal use, construction of immovable property, and several other heads are blocked unless a stated exception applies. GSTR-2B is not a legal opinion. Read section 17, then keep those invoices out of table 4A of GSTR-3B.
Pass section 16 first, then 17(5)
Credit has two gates. Section 16 asks whether you received the goods or services, hold a tax invoice, have filed the return, and are inside the section 16(4) clock. Section 17(5) then asks whether the Act has taken that credit away anyway.
A lot of working papers stop at the first gate. The invoice is in GSTR-2B, the supplier filed GSTR-3B, so the line goes into table 4A. That is how a blocked motor car or a works-contract bill becomes a later notice.
The heads that are blocked
Open section 17 and read sub-section (5). The list is longer than people remember. These are the heads that show up in most books.
| Head | Usual result |
|---|---|
| Motor cars and similar vehicles | Blocked when seating is not more than thirteen, including the driver, unless you further supply the vehicle, carry passengers, or train drivers |
| Food, catering, health, beauty, club membership | Blocked, unless you make an outward supply of the same kind or a law forces the employer to provide it |
| Works contract and own construction | Blocked for immovable property, other than plant and machinery, unless you further supply the works contract |
| Personal use, gifts, free samples, lost stock | Blocked. Written-off stock is in the same bucket |
| Composition dealer, non-resident (except imports) | Blocked on the inward supply |
Each clause has its own exception. Plant and machinery is defined for this section and is not every machine on the shop floor. Insurance and repair of a blocked vehicle is usually blocked with it. Do not lift a line from a blog table into GSTR-3B. Read the clause that names the supply.
Section 17(1) to (4) is a different job: mixed use, exempt supplies, banking. That is apportionment under rules 42 and 43, not a hard block. Do not treat a rule 42 reversal as a 17(5) invoice, or the other way around.
GSTR-2B is not the legal test
GSTR-2B tells you what the supplier reported and what you accepted, rejected or left pending on IMS. It does not apply section 17(5). A dealer who sold you a car will report a normal B2B invoice. The statement can show that credit as available. It is not.
The working is therefore two columns. Column one is the GSTR-2B available figure after IMS. Column two is the amount you drop because 17(5) says so. Table 4 of GSTR-3B gets the second number, not the first. Putting the drop in the ineligible line, rather than silently omitting it, is how a later officer can see you read the section.
Rule 37A is also not 17(5). That reversal is because the supplier has not filed GSTR-3B. You may reclaim it later. A 17(5) invoice is not coming back.
An officer block is a different thing
The GST portal has a help page for receiving intimation of ITC blocked by a tax official. That is a restriction on the electronic credit ledger. It is not section 17(5).
You can have a legally eligible invoice and still be unable to use the ledger because an officer has restricted it. You can also have a 17(5) invoice sitting in an unrestricted ledger. One is a statute you apply yourself. The other is an administrative hold you answer on the portal.
How to confirm on official pages
- Read section 17 on Complied AI, or the same section on India Code. Sub-section (5) is the blocked list.
- Match the period on GSTR-2B, then drop every 17(5) line before you draft GSTR-3B.
- If the portal has restricted the ledger, use the official ITC help and the intimation on the GST portal. That is a separate job from 17(5).
Where Complied AI fits
The blocked list lives in the Act. What still moves is a circular on a clause, a portal change to IMS, or a notification that tweaks an exception. CBIC / GST updates on Complied AI keep those next to section 17 so a car invoice in this month's GSTR-2B does not land in table 4A.
Practical checks
Common questions
What is blocked credit under GST?
Credit the Act itself says you cannot take. Section 17(5) lists the inward supplies. A motor car for staff, a restaurant bill, construction of your own office, goods given as a gift, and several other heads are in that list unless a stated exception applies. Appearing in GSTR-2B does not override the section.
Can I take ITC on a motor car?
Usually no. Section 17(5) blocks motor vehicles for transport of persons with approved seating of not more than thirteen, including the driver. Credit is available if you further supply those vehicles, use them to carry passengers, or use them to give driving training. A director's sedan is not those cases.
Why does GSTR-2B show a blocked invoice as available?
GSTR-2B is built from what the supplier filed and from your IMS actions. It does not apply section 17(5) for you. Our GSTR-2B matching guide says the same thing: a blocked credit can still sit in the available bucket. You pull it out in your own working before table 4 of GSTR-3B.
Is an ITC block by a tax official the same as section 17(5)?
No. Section 17(5) is the statute. An officer can also restrict the electronic credit ledger under the GST rules, and the portal has a separate help page for that intimation. One is a legal ineligibility. The other is an administrative restriction on a ledger balance you may otherwise have been entitled to.
Publication method
How this guide was prepared
This guide is published by the Complied AI research desk. Its source list and stated position were checked against the official records shown below on 17 August 2026.
Automation, including AI, may assist research, drafting and structure. It does not replace the official record or amount to an independent professional review. Read our editorial standards and corrections policy.
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