General guidance, not tax advice. GST rates, thresholds and return formats change from time to time and differ for some states and business types. Confirm your own position with your chartered accountant before you set up invoicing.
Is coworking rent taxable under GST?
Yes. Letting out commercial space, whether a private cabin, a dedicated desk or a hot desk, is treated as a supply of services under GST. The rate that applies to renting commercial property is currently 18%. So if a cabin's monthly licence fee is ₹10,000, the invoice shows ₹10,000 plus ₹1,800 GST, and the member pays ₹11,800.
Most of what a coworking space sells sits under the same umbrella: cabin rent, desk passes, meeting room bookings, virtual office plans and services such as printing. Confirm the classification of anything unusual with your CA, but for rent and bookings the position is straightforward.
When do you need to register?
You must register for GST once your aggregate turnover in a financial year crosses the registration threshold for services, which is lower than the threshold for goods and lower still in some special category states. A new space with a handful of desks may sit below it for a while, but most spaces with a floor of cabins cross it within the first year.
Two practical points:
- Many operators register voluntarily before they reach the threshold. Business members usually prefer a GST invoice so they can claim input tax credit, and some will not sign without one.
- If you are not registered, you must not charge or show GST on any invoice. Charging it without a GSTIN is an offence.
What a GST-compliant rent invoice must show
Every tax invoice you issue needs these details. Missing any of them can cause the member's accountant to bounce it back.
- Your legal name, address and GSTIN. The trade name can appear too, but the registered legal name must be there.
- A unique, consecutive invoice number and the invoice date. Numbers cannot repeat within a financial year.
- The member's name and address. If the member is registered, their GSTIN as well, so they can claim credit.
- The SAC code. Renting of commercial or industrial property falls under SAC 997212 (rental or leasing services involving own or leased non-residential property). Put it against each rent line.
- Description, period and amount. For example "Licence fee, Cabin 102, October 2026", with the taxable value.
- Tax breakdown. The rate and the amount of CGST and SGST (for a member in your state) or IGST (for a member registered in another state).
- Place of supply. For property, this is always where the property is, that is, your space's state. More on this below.
- Total amount payable in figures, and a signature or digital signature. Software-generated invoices normally carry a line saying so.
Place of supply for coworking: it is where the space is
This trips up many operators. For services tied to immovable property, the place of supply is the location of the property, not the member's registered office. A Bengaluru company renting a cabin in your Hyderabad space is supplied in Telangana. You charge CGST plus SGST, not IGST, even though the member's GSTIN starts with a different state code.
The member can still claim credit in most cases, but their accountant may need to register in your state or treat it as a cost. That is their side to sort out; your invoice should simply be correct.
Keep one clean invoice series
Pick a numbering pattern and never deviate from it. Something like SPL/2026-27/0001 works well: a short prefix, the financial year, and a number that runs in order. Reset to 0001 on 1 April each year. A few rules to protect the series:
- Do not delete an invoice. If one is wrong, issue a credit note that refers to it, then a fresh invoice.
- Do not issue invoices from two tools at once, such as software for cabins and a Word template for meeting rooms. Two series invite duplicates and gaps.
- Receipts and proforma invoices are not tax invoices. Keep their numbering separate and label them clearly.
Deposits, late fees and other lines
- Security deposit: a refundable deposit is not consideration for a supply, so no GST is charged when it is collected. If part of it is later forfeited for dues or damage, that part becomes taxable at that point.
- Electricity recovered at actuals: treatment depends on how your agreement is worded. Ask your CA; many operators simply include power in the licence fee.
- Late payment charges: generally taxable at the same rate as the rent they relate to.
- Meeting room and desk bookings: taxable like rent. Walk-in customers without a GSTIN still get a tax invoice; leave the GSTIN field blank.
The monthly filing routine
A regular taxpayer files two main returns each month, and the habit is simple if invoices are issued from one system:
| Return | What it contains | Typical due date |
|---|---|---|
| GSTR-1 | Every invoice and credit note you issued in the month, member by member | 11th of the next month |
| GSTR-3B | Summary of tax collected, input credit claimed on your own purchases, and the net amount paid | 20th of the next month |
Smaller taxpayers can opt for quarterly filing with monthly payment under the QRMP scheme. Due dates shift occasionally, so follow your CA's calendar rather than this table.
What makes filing easy is a single export of the month's invoices with GSTIN and taxable value, member by member. Coworking OS produces this from Books; whichever tool you use, make sure the member's GSTIN is captured when they sign up, not chased at month end.
Input credit: what you can claim back
GST you pay on your own running costs, such as internet, housekeeping contracts, furniture, software and your own rent to the landlord if they are registered, is usually claimable against the GST you collect. Keep every supplier invoice with your GSTIN on it. Credit on construction and building fit-out is restricted, so take advice before assuming the GST on a renovation comes back.
A message that saves you one email a month
Business members often ask for their GSTIN to be added after the first invoice. Collect it up front with a line like this when they sign:
Hi Arjun, welcome aboard. To make sure your rent invoices carry your company's GSTIN for input credit, please reply with the registered legal name and GSTIN, and I will set it up before the first invoice goes out on the 1st.
Quick checklist
- Registered? Only then charge GST, at 18% on rent and bookings.
- GSTIN, SAC 997212 and place of supply on every invoice.
- One consecutive series per financial year; credit notes, never deletions.
- No GST on refundable deposits; GST on forfeited amounts.
- Export the month on the 1st, file GSTR-1 and 3B on time, keep supplier invoices for credit.
- Rates and thresholds move. Check with your CA each April.