Most creators start invoicing brands with whatever is lying around: a Canva template, a Word doc, sometimes just a WhatsApp message with an amount. That works until a brand's finance team asks for "a proper invoice" and nobody on either side is quite sure what that means. Here is what actually needs to be on it, and when GST comes into the picture at all.
Most individual creators don't. GST registration becomes mandatory only once your aggregate turnover from services crosses ₹20 lakh in a financial year (₹10 lakh in a few special category states). Below that, you can invoice brands without charging GST at all, and a large share of creators on CreatorBuddy fall into exactly this bracket.
If you're under the threshold, don't put a GSTIN or a tax line on your invoice. Brands are used to receiving invoices both with and without GST from creators, and adding a fake or unregistered GSTIN causes more problems than it solves.
Once you cross the threshold (or choose to register voluntarily, which some creators do so they can work with larger brands that prefer GST-registered vendors), the invoice format changes and a few extra fields become mandatory.
If you're registered, an invoice for a brand deal needs to include:
Skipping GST doesn't mean skipping structure. A brand's accounts team still needs your name, PAN, the deliverables, the fee, and your bank or UPI details to actually process the payment. A clean invoice number and date matter too, since brands often ask for them when reconciling their own books at quarter-end.
The biggest thing creators miss here isn't a legal requirement at all: it's payment terms. Stating a due date on the invoice, even an informal one, gives you something concrete to point to when following up on a late payment.
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