Billing, Cash Handling and POS Procedures
Billing is where the customer's money and the store's records meet, so an error here is both financial and legal. The exam tests POS components, the billing sequence, cash and card discipline, and the contents of a valid tax invoice.
Billing sequence and POS
- POS hardware: terminal, barcode scanner, cash drawer, receipt printer, card/UPI device, weighing scale for loose goods. EAN-13 barcodes used in India begin with the GS1 prefix 890.
- Sequence: greet → scan or key in → confirm MRP and offer → ask for the add-on → state the total → take payment → count change back aloud → hand over bill and goods → thank the customer.
- Payment modes: cash, debit/credit card (chip and PIN, contactless), UPI (static or dynamic QR), wallets, gift card, store credit. Each has its own reconciliation report.
- Cash discipline: opening float, no personal cash in the till, drop high-value notes above a set limit, never leave the drawer open, blind till close, record over/short, and manager authorisation for voids, refunds and no-sale.
- Card safety: the customer keeps the card, never write down the PIN or CVV, verify signature where required - storing card data is a PCI-DSS breach.
- A valid bill shows store name, address, GSTIN, bill number and date, item description, HSN code, quantity, MRP, discount, taxable value, CGST/SGST or IGST, and the rounded total.
Worked example
A pack carries MRP ₹1,180 inclusive of 18% GST. Never add 18% on top. Taxable value = 1,180 ÷ 1.18 = ₹1,000; CGST 9% = ₹90 and SGST 9% = ₹90. For two such packs with a 10% discount: bill total ₹2,360 − ₹236 = ₹2,124; taxable value ₹1,800; CGST ₹162 and SGST ₹162.
Traps that cost marks
- Adding GST over MRP on pre-packaged goods; MRP is inclusive and selling above it violates the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules.
- Short-changing by not counting change back to the customer.
- Voiding a bill to pocket cash - fraud, not an error.
- Recording customer card numbers 'for reference'.