Getting paid on GeM: CRAC, the 10-day payment rule and late-payment interest

Updated 2026-10-28

On GeM, payment is tied to two receipts the buyer side issues after delivery.

1. PRC and CRAC

• PRC (Provisional Receipt Certificate): the consignee confirms the goods arrived.
• CRAC (Consignee's Receipt and Acceptance Certificate): the consignee accepts them after inspection.

2. When CRAC is generated automatically

GeM's notice effective 1 June 2019 says that if the buyer or consignee takes no action, GeM treats the order as accepted on the 21st day after the PRC is updated, and generates the CRAC automatically. The notice describes this for direct purchase orders up to ₹25,000, and excludes orders where the buyer has raised an incident against the seller.

3. The 10-day payment rule

Under GeM's terms, payment is due once the CRAC is generated and should be made within 10 days of it.

4. Late payment

As reported in July 2020, buyers who pay late are charged penal interest at 1% per month (calculated per day for delays under a month). That interest goes to a GeM account, not to the seller.

What to do as a seller

1. Track every order's PRC and CRAC dates; payment is due 10 days after CRAC.
2. Keep the signed delivery challan and receipt for every consignment — they settle disputes about short or damaged supply.
3. Record each payment with its deductions (income-tax TDS, GST TDS, any LD) so your books match Form 26AS and GST credits.

With TendifyAI: issue delivery challans, track signed copies, and record invoices and payments with TDS and LD so you can see what's outstanding. See challans and billing.

Always check your own bid. Rules change, and every tender can set its own terms. The bid document, its ATC and any corrigendum are what count for your bid.

Sources

• GeM notice: auto-generation of CRAC and payment timelines (effective 1 June 2019)
• Inc42: Buyers to pay interest for late payment on GeM (4 July 2020)

Related guides

• Read a GeM bid document
• EMD exemption for MSEs
• EMD and ePBG calculator