GSTR-2A vs GSTR-2B: which one to use for input tax credit

Both statements list the invoices your suppliers reported about you. They differ in one way that matters: one moves, the other doesn't.

GSTR-2A moves

• It updates as suppliers file or amend their returns, so what you see on the 15th can differ from the 20th.
• It is useful for watching which suppliers have filed and which invoices are still missing.
• It is not the statement to claim credit from.

GSTR-2B is fixed for the period

• It is generated once a month, around the 14th (earlier for quarterly filers), and then stays as it was.
• It marks each invoice as credit available or not available, which 2A doesn't.
• If a supplier files or amends after your 2B was made, the change shows up in the next month's 2B.
• Since IMS, the invoices you accept, or leave without action, are what flow into the draft 2B.

A practical routine

1. During the month, check 2A for suppliers who haven't filed and chase them.
2. When 2B is generated, match it with your purchase register by supplier GSTIN, invoice number and amounts.
3. Claim credit in GSTR-3B for what matches. Keep a list of the rest and look at it again next month.
4. Keep the 2B download with the return papers for the period.

Sources disagree on the exact cut-off for supplier filings that make it into a given 2B, so work from the dates shown on your own 2B page rather than a rule of thumb.