What is an e-GRAS portal?
An e-GRAS portal is a state government’s site for paying that state’s taxes, fees, and other receipts, and for taking an electronic receipt. It is not a single website for every state, and it does not collect GST or income tax.
Which government runs it?
The finance department of the state runs the portal, or a treasury system under it. Haryana’s site is a common search. Rajasthan and other states have their own. A payment made on one state’s portal is a payment to that state. It does not satisfy a demand of another state. How these portals sit next to the central ones is on the e-governance page.
What is paid on it?
State dues: professional tax where that state levies it, stamp duty and registration fees where the state collects them this way, and other taxes and fees the state has put on the portal. The head of account on the challan has to match the demand. A wrong head is a wrong payment even if the money left the bank.
What is not paid on it?
GST is paid on the GST portal. Income tax, including advance tax and self-assessment tax, is paid on the income-tax e-filing portal, as the challan 280 page describes. A company form is filed on the Ministry of Corporate Affairs portal. Using e-GRAS for any of those does not file them.
What does the receipt prove?
The receipt is evidence that the stated amount was credited under the stated head. It is the paper to keep with the assessment or the registration. It does not, by itself, close a return, grant a registration, or move a due date.
Frequently asked questions
Four questions cover one national site, GST, the receipt, and opening hours.
Is there one e-GRAS for all of India?
No. Each state that uses the system runs its own portal. A Haryana search does not open Rajasthan’s site, and the other way around.
Can GST be paid on e-GRAS?
No. GST is paid on the GST portal. Income tax is paid on the income-tax e-filing portal. e-GRAS is for the state’s own dues.
Does the receipt file the return?
No. The receipt shows that a sum was paid into that state’s account. A return, if that tax has one, is a separate filing.
Is the portal open because a statute says so?
The tax is in that state’s law. The portal is the collection channel the state provides. Hours and payment modes are what that site offers on the day.
Sources
e-GRAS means Electronic Government Receipts Accounting System. It is a state facility. GST challans are on the GST portal. Income-tax challans are on the e-filing portal.