GSTR-4 annual return for composition taxpayers is due by 30 April after the financial year

Composition-scheme taxpayers carry one hard annual deadline that never moves: GSTR-4, the annual return, is due by 30 April of the month succeeding the financial year it covers. For the year just closed, that puts the filing window firmly on the calendar for every dealer, manufacturer and small service provider who opted into the composition levy for any part of the year. Miss it and the late fee accrues day by day until the return is lodged on the GST portal.

This watchlist walks through the statutory deadlines a composition taxpayer should track next, sets them against the wider compliance calendar that regular filers also face, and lines up the market backdrop -- a repo rate held at 5.25% and an income-tax framework whose Section 87A rebate now runs to Rs 60,000 -- so the planning decisions that ride on these dates can be made with the numbers in front of you rather than from memory.

Statutory Deadlines

The single deadline that anchors this article is GSTR-4. Under Rule 62 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, a taxpayer who opted for the composition scheme during any part of a financial year must file the annual return in Form GSTR-4 by the 30th of the month succeeding that year -- 30 April. The return consolidates the year's outward supplies, inward supplies and any import or reverse-charge services, and it is filed once, not month by month. The statutory basis sits in Section 39 read with Section 44 of the CGST Act 2017.

That annual filing sits on top of the quarterly CMP-08 statement-cum-challan that composition taxpayers use to pay tax through the year. The table below sets GSTR-4 against the recurring GST deadlines so the annual return is read in context rather than in isolation.

For anyone who moved between the composition levy and the regular scheme mid-year, the GSTR-4 obligation still bites for the months spent under composition, so the 30 April date should not be written off simply because the current registration is regular. The GST glossary entry sets out how the levy interacts with input-tax credit, which composition dealers cannot claim.

Direct-tax deadlines run on a separate clock. Advance tax under Section 211 of the Income-tax Act falls due in four instalments across the year, and the cumulative percentages are fixed regardless of the taxpayer's turnover. Anyone whose tax liability after TDS exceeds Rs 10,000 in a year is drawn into this schedule, per incometax.gov.in.

Two other filings belong on any near-term watchlist. Form 15G and Form 15H -- the self-declarations that stop a bank deducting TDS where total income falls below the taxable threshold -- are best lodged at the start of the financial year in April, because a declaration filed late cannot claw back tax already deducted in earlier quarters. Our advance tax glossary entry explains how the instalment maths interacts with TDS credits, and the TDS entry covers the Rs 10,000 interest-income threshold that triggers deduction in the first place.

Market Events

The monetary-policy backdrop against which these compliance dates land is one of stability rather than movement. The Reserve Bank of India's Monetary Policy Committee has held the repo rate at 5.25%, keeping a neutral stance, after a 2025 easing cycle that cut a cumulative 125 basis points from 6.50% to 5.25%. The hold means EBLR-linked floating loans reset around the same benchmark rather than repricing, and it keeps the deposit-rate environment broadly where it has been -- a point that matters for the Form 15G/15H calculation, because interest income projected for the year decides whether the declaration is even valid.

For a composition taxpayer, the RBI's steady hand and the fixed small-savings rates together shape where surplus cash sits between compliance dates. The Finance Ministry left all small-savings rates unchanged for the July-September 2026 quarter, the ninth straight quarter with no revision, so Public Provident Fund stays at 7.1%, the Senior Citizens' Savings Scheme at 8.2% and the National Savings Certificate at 7.7%. None of these figures shifts the GSTR-4 deadline, but they frame the opportunity cost of holding tax provisions in idle current accounts rather than a liquid instrument.

The other planning constants worth watching are the income-tax parameters for FY 2025-26, because the return that eventually reports a composition business's proprietor income is filed under this framework. The table below draws the figures a small-business owner is most likely to test against.

A note on the headline reliefs: the Section 87A rebate in the new regime is Rs 60,000 for FY 2025-26, applied to income up to Rs 12 lakh after the threshold was raised by the Finance Act 2025. The standard deduction under the new regime is Rs 75,000 against Rs 50,000 in the old regime. For long-horizon savings alongside a small business, our SIP calculator and lumpsum calculator let you test how the 12.5% long-term capital-gains rate erodes an equity corpus at exit.

Earnings

No large-cap results are confirmed on the exchanges' filing calendars for the immediate session in the briefing used to compile this watchlist, and this desk does not manufacture an earnings schedule where none is verified. Composition-scheme businesses are, by definition, below the Rs 1.5 crore aggregate-turnover ceiling for goods (Rs 50 lakh for services) that keeps them inside the levy, so they are not themselves listed reporters; the earnings that matter to them are those of the banks and NBFCs whose deposit and lending rates track the 5.25% repo.

Readers who need a confirmed corporate-results calendar should consult the exchange announcements pages directly rather than any secondary summary, and cross-check the board-meeting notices filed under the listing regulations. Where a composition taxpayer also holds an equity portfolio, the relevant number at results season is not the headline profit but the resulting short-term or long-term capital-gains position, taxed at 20% and 12.5% respectively for listed equity, which the step-up SIP calculator can model across a multi-year contribution plan.

FAQ

When is GSTR-4 due for composition taxpayers?

GSTR-4, the annual return, is due by 30 April of the month succeeding the financial year it covers, under Rule 62 of the CGST Rules. It is filed once a year and consolidates the year's outward supplies, inward supplies and reverse-charge services.

Who has to file GSTR-4?

Any taxpayer who opted for the composition scheme during any part of the financial year must file GSTR-4, even if they later switched to the regular scheme. The obligation covers the months spent under the composition levy, so a mid-year switch does not remove the 30 April filing.

How is GSTR-4 different from CMP-08?

CMP-08 is the quarterly statement-cum-challan through which composition taxpayers pay tax during the year, due on the 18th of the month after each quarter. GSTR-4 is the single annual return that reconciles the full year and is due by 30 April, drawing on the four CMP-08 filings already made.

Does a composition taxpayer pay advance tax as well?

Yes -- GST and income tax run on separate clocks. If income-tax liability after TDS exceeds Rs 10,000 in a year, the proprietor pays advance tax in four instalments (15 June, 15 September, 15 December and 15 March), reaching 15%, 45%, 75% and 100% of the year's liability respectively under Section 211.

What is the late fee for filing GSTR-4 after 30 April?

A late fee accrues for each day of delay until the return is filed on the GST portal, alongside interest on any unpaid tax. Because the exact per-day amount has been revised by notification more than once, taxpayers should confirm the current figure on gst.gov.in before filing rather than rely on an older cited amount.

Does holding tax provisions in a savings scheme affect the deadline?

No. The 30 April GSTR-4 date is statutory and does not move regardless of where the money sits. Small-savings rates -- PPF at 7.1%, SCSS at 8.2%, NSC at 7.7% for the July-September 2026 quarter -- only affect the opportunity cost of parking provisions, not the compliance date.

Is the Section 87A rebate of Rs 60,000 available to a composition business owner?

The Rs 60,000 rebate under Section 87A applies to the proprietor's personal income tax in the new regime where total income does not exceed Rs 12 lakh for FY 2025-26. It is a personal-tax relief and is independent of the business's GST composition status.