Professional services
Billing software for CA firms and consulting practices
Raise the audit fee, the monthly bookkeeping retainer and the ROC filing charge on proper GST invoices, with the SAC code and the tax split right the first time.
In short
SimpleERP is billing software for CA firms and consulting practices in India. Each engagement is billed on a GST invoice with its SAC code, IGST or CGST and SGST from the client's GSTIN, and out-of-pocket costs on their own lines.
Illustration of the keyboard-first invoice editor with a focused line, live tax totals and shortcut hints.
A billing day at Venkatraman Iyer & Associates
The practice in T. Nagar closes the statutory audit of a Guindy auto-components client on the 28th, and the partner wants the fee invoice out before the client's own books close. In the same week, eleven bookkeeping retainers fall due, two individuals want their return fees billed, and a Bengaluru start-up owes for its annual ROC filing.
Until now the office manager kept a Word template per client and edited the month by hand. Twice last year a Karnataka client got CGST and SGST instead of IGST, and the credit note plus the fresh invoice cost a week of back and forth with the client's accounts team.
In SimpleERP each kind of fee is a saved service with its SAC code and rate. The office manager picks the client, picks the service, types the agreed fee and saves; the GSTIN on the client record already decides the tax.
Which SAC code goes on an audit fee, a return fee or a retainer?
Accounting, audit and tax work sits under heading 9982, and advisory work often under 9983. Set the code once on each service and every invoice line carries it. The rates below are what practices commonly bill. Rates change, so confirm the rate for your goods with your CA or the GST portal before you rely on it.
- One service per fee type, so the code never depends on who is typing.
- Free-text description under the service, such as the financial year audited.
- HSN and SAC summary printed at the foot of the invoice.
| Fee | SAC | Usual GST |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory or tax audit | 998221 | 18% |
| Monthly bookkeeping retainer | 998222 | 18% |
| Payroll processing for a client | 998223 | 18% |
| Company income tax return and advice | 998231 | 18% |
| Individual return preparation | 998232 | 18% |
| Management or business consulting | 998311 | 18% |
What changes when the client is in Bengaluru or Hyderabad?
For a registered client, the place of supply of a professional service is generally where the client is registered. SimpleERP reads the state from the first two digits of the client's GSTIN and compares it with Tamil Nadu, so a Chennai client gets CGST and SGST at 9% each and a Bengaluru client gets IGST at 18%.
- State from GSTIN: the code 29 on a Karnataka GSTIN sets the client's state.
- Individuals without a GSTIN take the state from the address you enter.
- Unusual cases, such as services tied to property, are worth a word with your partner in charge of GST.
Illustration of GST tax invoice INV-2026-27-0213 to Ravi Stores with CGST 9% and SGST 9%, round off, a UPI QR code and the amount in words.
How do we bill out-of-pocket costs and government fees?
Travel to a client's factory for stock verification, courier charges and filing fees paid on the client's behalf go on the same invoice as separate lines. Whether a government fee stays outside the taxable value depends on the pure agent conditions, so keep it as its own line and let the engagement partner decide its tax treatment.
- Reimbursement lines with their own description and tax rate.
- Credit note when a fee is reduced after the client disputes the hours.
- Customer statement with every invoice and receipt for the year, ready to send at audit time.
What happens when the client deducts TDS from our fee?
Most corporate clients pay the fee less TDS. Record the bank receipt for what actually arrived and allocate it to the invoice; the TDS portion goes in through a manual journal to a TDS receivable account, so the invoice shows as settled and the tax credit waits for the client's TDS certificate.
- Receipts by NEFT, UPI or cheque, allocated to the invoices they settle.
- Receivables ageing that shows which retainer clients are past 60 days.
- Reminder text with invoice numbers and days overdue, written for you to copy.
One system
What it connects to
Professional services
SAC-coded invoices with place of supply, quotations, a CRM pipeline, expense claims and payroll.
See howInventory for CA firms
What a practice should track as stock (resold DSC tokens), what it should expense and what it can ignore entirely.
See howAccounting for CA firms
The practice's own books: fee income by type, retainers paid in advance, TDS deducted by clients and a month-end close the partners trust.
See howPayroll for CA firms
Salaries for staff accountants, stipends for articled assistants, busy-season leave and audit travel claims, paid from one run.
See howGST billing
Tax invoices with CGST, SGST or IGST by place of supply, HSN on every line and a UPI QR on the print.
See how
Honest limits
What SimpleERP does not do yet
- E-invoice IRN and QR code, and e-way bills, are not generated through the government APIs
- Cess is not calculated; GST return filing stays with you or your accountant
- No price lists: every line is priced as you bill it
- No billing from tracked hours: there are no timesheets, so each fee is typed as agreed
- Retainer invoices are not raised automatically each month; you raise them from saved services
Getting started
Start with GST billing
Sign up with your phone
Name, phone number and a password. No card for the seven-day trial, and email is optional.
Tell us about the business
Type your GSTIN and the state fills itself. Accounts, GST rates, units, roles and numbering are seeded for you.
Add what you sell
Add each fee type, such as statutory audit, bookkeeping retainer or ROC filing, as a service with its SAC code and GST rate.
Post your first GST invoice
Pick the customer, add lines and save. The place of supply picks CGST and SGST or IGST for you.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Can I bill twenty bookkeeping retainers on the first of the month quickly?
There is no batch run for retainers yet, but each one is short work: pick the client, pick the saved bookkeeping service, type the month in the description and save. The rate, SAC code and tax split fill themselves, so twenty invoices take a morning at most.
Our client is an individual with no GSTIN. Which tax applies?
SimpleERP uses the state in the address you enter for that client. A Chennai individual gets CGST and SGST, and an individual whose address is in Kerala gets IGST. The invoice prints without a client GSTIN, which is normal for an unregistered recipient.
Can the engagement partner's name appear on the invoice?
Put it in the line description or the notes on the invoice. There is no separate field for the partner in charge, and invoices do not split fee income between partners.
Can we sell DSC tokens on the same invoice as the fee?
Yes. Add the DSC token as a product with its HSN code and the fee as a service with its SAC code. One invoice carries both lines, each with its own rate, and the token's stock falls when you post.
Related
Keep reading
Professional services
SAC-coded invoices with place of supply, quotations, a CRM pipeline, expense claims and payroll.
Read moreInventory for CA firms
What a practice should track as stock (resold DSC tokens), what it should expense and what it can ignore entirely.
Read moreAccounting for CA firms
The practice's own books: fee income by type, retainers paid in advance, TDS deducted by clients and a month-end close the partners trust.
Read more
See how GST billing works in SimpleERP for professional services
Seven days free. No card. Your first GST invoice in minutes.