New Zealand GST invoices

A business registered for Goods and Services Tax (GST) in New Zealand charges GST at 15% and gives taxable supply information — what used to be called a tax invoice — when the customer asks for it. This page sums up the rules that shape your invoices and shows how easySales applies them. It is a general guide, not tax advice; check with your accountant or Inland Revenue before you rely on it.

The rules

Topic	Rule
Rate	GST 15%.
Heading	No title is prescribed.
When to issue	Within 28 days of a GST-registered customer asking, for sales over NZ$200.
Contents	An invoice number is not required. Above NZ$200: your GST number, and either the amount before GST, the GST and the total, or the total with a statement that it includes GST. Above NZ$1,000: also the buyer’s name and an identifier, such as an address, phone number, email or NZBN.
Accounting basis	The payments basis only if your sales are NZ$2 million or less in 12 months. The invoice and hybrid bases are open to anyone.
Time of supply	The earlier of the invoice or the payment.
Corrections	A correction must identify the original.
Deposits	A security deposit is taxed when it is received.
Bad debts	Relief on the tax part of a debt written off; limited on the payments basis.
E-invoicing	Peppol PINT A-NZ, for government buyers.

How easySales applies them

• Record your GST registration and choose the Accounting basis, Invoice, Payments or Hybrid, under System settings → Tax. Your NZBN and GST number print on your documents. See Company and tax.
• The tax choices are None, GST 0% and GST 15%. Advanced tax codes adds Exempt. Documents dated outside a registration period leave the tax field out.
• With the invoice design’s title on Automatic (by tax registration), an issued invoice prints INVOICE, because New Zealand prescribes no title. A heading that says “Tax Invoice” is refused only when you are not registered on the invoice date. See Letterhead and designs.
• A draft raised in stages from a quotation, such as a deposit or progress claim, has no PDF: issue it first, then download or send it. See Invoice PDF.
• An issued invoice is corrected with a credit note, which serves as the supply correction. See Credit notes.
• Registered, a Prepayment gets a deposit tax invoice dated the day it arrived. A Security deposit does too, because it is taxed when received; refunding it later is a credit note on that invoice, then a refund. See Deposits and prepayments.
• A GST-registered company cannot forfeit a deposit in easySales, because how GST applies depends on what the deposit was for; agree the treatment with your accountant. See Forfeit a deposit.
• Write off as bad debt… judges relief as Eligible from the write-off date, with no Claim by date. On the payments basis it reads Not applicable. See Write off a bad debt.

Why it works this way

The basis you record decides when GST is due. On the invoice basis you account for a sale when you invoice it or are paid, whichever is first; on the payments basis, when you are paid. easySales reads your basis for bad debt relief, so the panel matches what your GST return can claim.

A security deposit is taxed on receipt. Because the GST falls due when the deposit arrives, easySales issues the tax invoice the same day. A refund is then a credit note and a payment back, so your return shows the GST charged and the GST reversed.

No title, but the facts still matter. New Zealand asks for information, not a heading. easySales leaves the heading as INVOICE and prints your GST number and the amounts, which is what the customer needs to claim the GST.

Work faster

• Record your basis once. The Accounting basis is used for every bad debt judgement from then on. See Company and tax.
• Choose the receipt type as you record it. Prepayment or Security deposit issues the tax invoice in the same step. See Deposits and prepayments.
• Refund a deposit through its credit note. Credit the deposit invoice, then pay the credit back. See Refund a customer.
• Keep each customer’s address current on the account. Above NZ$1,000 the buyer must be identified, and an issued invoice prints the name and address the account had at issue. See Account details.

Examples

A sale with GST. Lim & Co’s New Zealand company invoices Harbour Café NZD 2,000.00 for a design at GST 15%: GST NZD 300.00, total NZD 2,300.00. With the title on automatic, the invoice prints INVOICE, the company’s NZBN and its GST number.

A security deposit. The café pays a NZD 575.00 bond on hired furniture. Mei Tan records it as a Security deposit, and saving issues a deposit tax invoice for NZD 575.00: NZD 500.00 plus GST NZD 75.00 (575.00 ÷ 1.15 = 500.00). When the furniture comes back, she credits that invoice and refunds the NZD 575.00.

Common questions

• Do I still need a tax invoice in New Zealand? The law now asks for taxable supply information rather than a document called a tax invoice. Give it within 28 days when a registered customer asks, for sales over NZ$200.
• Does taxable supply information need a heading or a number? Neither is required. With the title on automatic, easySales prints INVOICE, and every issued invoice has a number all the same.
• Who can use the payments basis? A business whose sales are NZ$2 million or less in 12 months. The invoice and hybrid bases are open to anyone.
• Do I charge GST on a security deposit in New Zealand? Yes, when it is received. easySales issues a deposit tax invoice for it on the day.
• Can I claim GST back on a bad debt on the payments basis? The relief is limited on that basis, so the panel reads Not applicable; check with your accountant. See Write off a bad debt.

Sources

NZ Legislation — Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 · IRD — How tax invoices for GST work · IRD — Which GST accounting basis and filing frequency should I use? · IRD — Interpretation statement IS 10/03 (PDF) · Peppol — PINT A-NZ

Last checked: 2026-10-21

Related

• Country tax & invoice rules
• Company and tax
• Issue an invoice
• Deposits and prepayments