Business expenses matter for two things: your net profit and your GST input tax credit (ITC). Finocket captures both on one form — category, amount, the CGST/SGST/IGST you paid, supplier GSTIN, and whether the credit is claimable — and closes the loop when you file GSTR-3B.
Record a business expense
- Tap + → Add expense, or press ⌥E/Alt+Shift+E.
- Pick a category from the visual grid — it learns from your history, so your frequent picks surface first. The subcategory field autocompletes from your past entries, scoped to the picked category.
- Enter the amount, payment mode and a description. Set the bill date and an optional due date if you're paying later.
- Add line items if the bill has several distinct items — each with its own amount.
- Fill the GST panel if you paid GST (below), then save.
In a hurry? Use Scan-to-Add — photograph the bill and Finocket prefills the form (see the Scan-to-Add guide).
Don’t want categories? Turn them off
Not every business sorts its spending. If yours files everything under one heading — a fabricator entering supplier bills, say — the category grid is a step between you and a saved record. Open Settings → Expense defaults and turn off Ask for a category on every expense. The picker and its sub-category disappear from the form, which gets shorter.
You then choose what every expense is filed under, and that field is not optional: an expense needs a heading in your books, so this is the one they all get. Name it whatever your accounts call it — Purchases, Direct expenses. Left blank it becomes Uncategorised. Your reports still group by this heading, so they will show one row instead of several.
The HSN/SAC code stays on the form either way. What you bought still has a code and an ITC claim still needs it, whether or not you sort by category. Turn categories back on at any time and every expense you already recorded keeps the heading it was filed under.
Record GST and claim ITC on an expense
Turn on GST paid on this expense. A panel expands with:
- Supplier GSTIN — required to claim ITC; the credit must trace to a registered vendor.
- CGST + SGST rates and amounts for intra-state purchases, or IGST for inter-state.
- Eligible for input tax credit — on by default. Turn it off for personal-use expenses or categories where GST law blocks ITC (motor vehicles for personal use, food & beverages, club memberships).
- Reverse charge (RCM) — turn on when you, not the supplier, are liable to pay the GST: services from unregistered suppliers, goods transport agencies, advocates, director sitting fees.
How ITC flows to GSTR-3B
Finocket aggregates every ITC-eligible expense with a supplier GSTIN into Section 4A of your GSTR-3B (ITC available). Open GST → Returns, pick the month, and the ITC card shows the total CGST + SGST + IGST claimable, split RCM vs non-RCM. Reverse-charge expenses also show in Section 3.1(d) — GST you owe directly even though the supplier didn't charge it.
After you file, tap Mark ITC claimed for the period: every eligible, not-yet-claimed expense in that month is stamped with the claim period, drops out of “available ITC” so next month's 3B never double-counts it, and shows a green ITC claimed chip on the Expenses list.
Which expenses should NOT be marked ITC-eligible?
- Personal expenses accidentally booked to the business.
- Motor vehicles used personally (unless you're in transport / driving-school / car-hire).
- Food, beverages, catering, health services, club memberships.
- Goods lost, stolen, destroyed or written off (reverse the ITC).
- Purchases from unregistered suppliers.
Access & control
Owners and assistants add and edit expenses; an invited accountant sees the list, the GST panel and the ITC summary read-only. Expenses are core — always on; the GST panel appears for India-region businesses.
Related: Reports & GST filings, Day Book, Cashbook & Outstanding.