SAC codes for freelancers, in plain English

You're filling out an invoice for your US client, you reach the box that asks for a SAC code, and you freeze. Is it 998314? 998313? Something else? You Google it, find three articles that say three different things, and now you're more confused than when you started. Sound familiar?

Here's the calm version. A SAC code (Service Accounting Code) is simply the GST system's way of labelling what kind of service you sold. Think of it as the category tag on your invoice. It won't make or break your zero-rated export status on its own, but pick the wrong one and you can quietly create problems for your client and invite questions you'd rather not answer. This guide walks through the codes freelancers actually use, in plain English, and is honest about the places where even the experts disagree. It's general guidance, not personal tax advice, so treat your CA (chartered accountant) as the final word.

What a SAC code actually does (and doesn't do)

All of these codes live under heading 9983 in the GST scheme. The SAC code's whole job is to classify your service on the invoice. It describes what you did so the tax system can slot it into the right bucket.

Now the part people get wrong. The SAC code does not grant zero-rating. The 0% you care about as a freelancer with foreign clients (your export of services being zero-rated) does not come from the SAC code. The SAC is just the label, not the thing that makes your export tax-free. So you can't 'pick the right SAC' to magically get 0%. They are two separate things.

The IT and software codes freelancers actually use

If you write code, build websites, or ship apps, your codes almost all sit in the 9983 family. Here are the common ones, with the kind of freelancer each tends to fit:

• 998314 = IT design and development. This is the big one for developers: custom software, website development, and app development. If you build it, this is usually your code.
• 998313 = IT consulting and support. Think helpdesk, support, system administration, and advisory work. This is also the code commonly used by digital-marketing, SEO, and social-media freelancers.
• 998315 = IT infrastructure and hosting (hosting and cloud services).
• 998316 = network management.
• 998319 = other IT services, a catch-all within IT for things that don't fit neatly above.
• 998311 and 998312 = management and business consulting, for advisory work that's about running a business rather than IT specifically.
• 999293 = training and teaching, for things like coding bootcamps and workshops.

If you're a developer billing a US client through PayPal or Wise for building their web app, 998314 is the natural fit. If you're running their SEO or social media instead, 998313 is the one you'll most often see used.

Where the codes get genuinely murky

Here's where we have to be honest with you. Sources don't all agree, and the disagreement is real, not just sloppiness. Content writing and design are the classic trouble spots.

Non-IT professional services, like content writing and design work, fall under the broader 'other professional, technical and business services' within heading 9983, rather than the IT-specific codes above. The catch is that some sources wrongly list 998314 for content writing. 998314 is really an IT design and development code (software, websites, apps), so leaning on it for, say, blog writing is shaky. This is exactly the kind of case where two reasonable-looking articles will tell you opposite things.

How to choose your code without losing sleep

Put it together and it's not that scary. Match the code to the work you genuinely did, write a description that says plainly what that work was, and lean on heading 9983 plus a CA's confirmation for the grey areas. The goal isn't to find a secret code that lowers your tax. It's to label the invoice honestly so your client's credit holds up and nobody comes knocking with questions.

A few quick gut-checks before you send the invoice:

• Did I build software, a website, or an app? Lean 998314.
• Is this advisory, support, helpdesk, or marketing/SEO/social work? Lean 998313.
• Is it hosting or cloud (998315), network management (998316), or general IT that fits nowhere else (998319)?
• Is it business or management consulting rather than IT? Look at 998311 or 998312.
• Is it teaching, a bootcamp, or a workshop? That's 999293.
• Is it content writing or design? It's likely under the broader 'other professional, technical and business services' in heading 9983, not 998314, so confirm with a CA.

When in doubt, don't let one confident blog post decide it for you. Run your invoice through Jeedle's free checker or invoice tool to sanity-check the code and description, and confirm the exact SAC for your work with a qualified CA. A few minutes now saves your client's input credit and saves you an awkward audit query later.