GST for Laundry Shops in Kerala: a 2026 Guide

If you run a neighbourhood laundry, a small dry-cleaner, or a dhobi outfit anywhere in Kerala, the GST rules feel like more paperwork than the work itself. They don't have to. This guide walks through the only five questions that matter — what rate to charge, which HSN/SAC code goes on the bill, when CGST + SGST splits intra-state, how to handle hotel and hostel clients, and which return cycle keeps your filings clean — with the answers in plain language for a Kochi or Trivandrum shop in 2026.

1. Do you need a GST registration?

Threshold first. A laundry that's only making intra-state supplies (Kerala-only customers) is required to register for GST once turnover crosses ₹20 lakh per year for services. If you cross that line on a forecast basis — say, a 12-shop hotel client signs up and that pushes the annual run-rate over ₹20L — register before the first invoice is raised. Late registration = back-dated GST + interest + penalty, and the relief on the first ₹20L is gone.

If you're under the threshold, registration is voluntary. It's worth doing anyway when any meaningful share of revenue is B2B: hotels, hostels, hospitals and offices want input-tax credit on their laundry spend, so an unregistered supplier loses those accounts to the registered one across the road.

The composition scheme (the simplified flat-rate option) is not available to pure-service businesses except through the special composition scheme for services with a ₹50L cap and a 6% flat tax (3% CGST + 3% SGST). Most laundries either skip it or fall back to the regular scheme once they cross ₹50L.

2. What rate do I charge — 5% or 18%?

This is the question every laundry owner gets wrong at least once.

• Plain laundry / wash & iron— falls under SAC 999719 ("Other washing, cleaning and dyeing services"). The standard rate is 18%(9% CGST + 9% SGST).
• Job-work textile services — if you process fabric on behalf of a registered manufacturer (e.g. dyeing for a tailoring unit), some textile job-work falls under 5% via SAC 9988. Most retail shops never touch this code in practice.
• Dry cleaning — same 999719, same 18%. There is no concessional rate for dry cleaning at retail.

Two practical traps:

1. When you take cash from a walk-in and write a quick handwritten ticket, you still owe 18% on the value — the rate doesn't depend on whether you printed an invoice or not. Use a system that lets you raise a tax invoice from a phone in five seconds, or you'll silently under-collect every month.
2. The customer-facing price is usually tax-inclusive (you quote "₹50 a shirt", not "₹42.37 + GST"). Make sure your billing software knows that — it should back-out the GST from the inclusive price and split CGST + SGST on the bill, otherwise your customer will see a different total than what you said at the counter.

3. CGST + SGST or IGST?

For a laundry registered in Kerala (state code 32) supplying services to a customer also in Kerala, the place of supply is Kerala — so the 18% splits as 9% CGST + 9% SGST. Both halves go to your single GSTR-3B return. There is no IGST on intra-state laundry.

IGST (the inter-state code) only matters when you have a registered B2B customer in another state — say, a hotel chain with their finance office in Bengaluru paying your Kerala laundry from there. In that case the bill carries 18% IGST instead of CGST + SGST. For most small laundries this never applies; the customer collects from the local hotel branch and the place of supply remains Kerala.

4. How do I bill hotels and hostels properly?

B2B revenue is where compliance breaks down most often. The rules are straightforward but missed routinely:

• Capture the recipient's GSTINon the invoice. Without it the hotel can't claim ITC and will eventually move to a competitor.
• Each line on the consolidated monthly statement should carry the order date, the SAC code (999719), the taxable value, and the tax split. Most hotels run a three-way reconciliation (your invoice ↔ their booking log ↔ their bank statement) and pay only when all three match.
• Issue the statement on a per-month cycle aligned with the hotel's GST period (usually the calendar month). Mid-month statements break their internal ITC reporting.
• Net-15 or Net-30 payment terms are standard. Anything beyond Net-30 hurts your cash conversion cycle without giving the hotel any benefit; resist pressure to extend.

The Deelo Shops console handles all of this automatically — you tag every order to the saved B2B client, and the monthly statement comes out with the right GSTIN, SAC, and split. See how the laundry workflow works on Deelo →

5. Filing returns: GSTR-1, GSTR-3B, GSTR-9

For a regular-scheme laundry under ₹5 crore turnover (which covers basically every retail laundry), the cycle is:

• GSTR-1 — outward supplies. Quarterly under QRMP, with monthly invoice uploads via IFF for B2B customers. Due 13th of the month after the quarter.
• GSTR-3B — summary + tax payment. Quarterly under QRMP, due 22nd of the month after the quarter.
• GSTR-9 — annual return. Due 31st December of the following financial year, optional under ₹2 crore.

QRMP (Quarterly Return, Monthly Payment) is the most common scheme for laundries — fewer return-filing dates, but you still pay self-assessed tax monthly on a fixed sum or via challan. Discuss with your CA whether QRMP or monthly returns suit your cash flow.

The 5-minute checklist

1. Are you registered? If turnover is approaching ₹20L, register now.
2. Default rate on your tickets: 18% (9% CGST + 9% SGST).
3. SAC code on every line: 999719.
4. For hotels: capture GSTIN, issue monthly statements, Net-15 or Net-30.
5. QRMP filing rhythm: GSTR-1 + GSTR-3B quarterly, payment monthly.

The compliance load is small once the tooling does the arithmetic for you. Pick a system that splits the tax on every invoice automatically, and the rest is hygiene.