What makes an invoice recoverable
Most unpaid invoices are recoverable if three things exist: proof the goods or services were ordered, proof they were delivered or performed, and the invoice itself. In practice that means a purchase order or email, a delivery challan, e-way bill, lorry receipt or acceptance mail, and a GST invoice with the buyer’s GSTIN. The buyer’s own replies (“we will pay next week”) are an admission that strengthens the claim.
Your GST filings help too: an invoice reported in GSTR-1 and reflected in the buyer’s GSTR-2B shows the buyer accepted the supply and claimed input credit on it.
Invoice recovery for Kolkata businesses: our process
- Free assessment of the invoices and documents, including ageing and the buyer’s pattern of payment.
- Legal notice within 24 hours, itemising each invoice, the GST details, the due dates and the interest claimed.
- Advocate negotiation, usually ending in full payment or a signed instalment plan with post-dated payments.
- If needed: MSME Samadhaan at the West Bengal Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council for Udyam suppliers, Section 138 for cheques, or a summary suit on the invoices.
Recovering B2B dues in Kolkata: what is specific here
Kolkata’s trade in Burrabazar, Posta and Howrah still runs on relationships and post-dated cheques, so Section 138 and old-fashioned negotiation both matter. Jute mills, foundries and engineering units supply across eastern India and Bangladesh, and distributors here often carry dues for FMCG brands with slow reconciliation.
Main industries: jute and textiles, tea trading, engineering and foundry, leather and FMCG distribution.
Courts: Metropolitan Magistrate courts at Bankshall Court, Calcutta, and Alipore for Section 138; City Civil Court and the Calcutta High Court Commercial Division for recovery suits.
MSME claims: Udyam-registered micro and small suppliers in Kolkata file on MSME Samadhaan, heard by the West Bengal Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council (Directorate of MSME, Government of West Bengal, Kolkata). The Council sits where the supplier is, so a Kolkata supplier can pursue a buyer in another state from home.
Interest you can add to an unpaid invoice
Udyam-registered micro and small suppliers can claim compound interest at three times the RBI bank rate from the day after the 45-day limit (or the agreed shorter date). Other suppliers can claim interest under the contract, or at a reasonable rate through the court under the Interest Act, 1978. Our notices always include the interest claim; buyers often settle the principal quickly to avoid it.