What must be on a tax invoice in Australia? A first-timer's guide to your first invoice

Here’s the idea in one sentence: a tax invoice is the paper your business customer uses to recover the GST built into your price, and it only works when the right details are on it.

That’s why the first invoice feels strangely high-stakes. It isn’t only a request for money. For a business customer, it’s the paper their bookkeeper needs to claim a credit on their BAS. Get it wrong and you’ll get an email asking for a corrected copy, and the payment waits.

The good news: there’s a short, fixed list. Once you’ve built a template, you never think about it again.

What are the seven details a tax invoice must show?

For a sale under $1,000, the ATO’s tax invoice page lists seven things a tax invoice needs. Treat them as a tick-list for every invoice you send.

Quick check: is it a valid tax invoice?

1. A clear label saying “tax invoice” at the top, so nobody has to guess what the document is.
2. Who is selling: your business name, or your own name if you trade as a sole trader.
3. Your ABN, the 11-digit number, written out in full.
4. The day you issued it, not the day the job finished.
5. What the customer bought: each item or service, how many, and the price.
6. The GST, itemised line by line. If GST is exactly a eleventh of the whole price, one line saying the total includes GST does the job.
7. Which parts are taxable, so any GST-free items are visibly separate from the ones carrying GST.

Bigger sale, one more line. Once the total reaches $1,000, the invoice also has to identify the buyer, by name or by ABN.

All amounts are based on the price including GST, so a job priced at $900 plus GST is a $990 sale and sits under the $1,000 line.

What do I send if I’m not registered for GST?

No. Only GST-registered businesses issue tax invoices, and you only have to register once your GST turnover reaches the ATO’s threshold (or when you decide to sign up sooner). Until then, send an ordinary invoice: nothing added for GST, and the plain heading “Invoice”.

Writing “tax invoice” when you aren’t registered is a classic beginner slip, often because a free template did it for you. The customer then claims a credit on GST you were never entitled to collect, and that comes back on you.

A plain invoice has no legal format, so make it useful instead. Customers pay faster when they can see at a glance:

• who it’s from, with your ABN if you hold one
• an invoice number and today’s date
• the work done or goods supplied
• the amount owed
• where to send the money and the date it’s due

Our ABN and GST lesson walks through the registration decision, and the jargon buster explains terms like “GST-free” in a line.

What does a first tax invoice look like? A before and after

Illustrative example only. Made-up person, simplified details.

Jess runs a one-woman mobile coffee cart and has just registered for GST. She takes a catering booking for a staff morning tea.

Her first attempt says “Invoice – coffee catering – $550 – pay soon.” Her customer’s bookkeeper replies two days later: no ABN, no GST shown, not marked as a tax invoice. They can’t claim the GST, so they hold the payment.

Her second attempt reads:

Detail	What Jess writes
Heading	TAX INVOICE – No. 0007
Seller	Jess’s Coffee Cart, ABN shown
Date	14 November 2026
Item	Catering for 25 people, coffee and milk options, $500
GST	$50
Total	$550. Total price includes GST.
Payment	Bank details and “due in 14 days”

The bookkeeper has what they need, the money arrives within the 14 days, and Jess saves the layout as her template.

Why do I need an ABN on every invoice?

Your ABN is the customer’s proof that you’re a business, and leaving it off can cost you part of your pay. When no ABN is given, the customer is normally required to hold back 47% of what they owe you and pay that to the ATO instead, unless an exception covers the payment, for example a signed statement by a supplier who isn’t carrying on a business.

You’d get that money back later as a credit when you lodge your return, but waiting months for nearly half a payment is brutal on a young business’s cash. That’s the real price of a missing ABN.

The fix is cheap: put the ABN in the template header, and it’s there every time. If your ABN has been cancelled or you haven’t applied yet, sort that first, because a customer’s software can check it.

When do I have to send it, and who can write it?

Once you’re registered for GST, a customer can ask you for a tax invoice on any sale above $82.50 (GST included), and the clock is 28 days from the request. Don’t wait to be asked. Attach one to every business sale and nobody has to chase you.

Two other things trip up beginners:

• Corrections: if you spot an error, issue a corrected or replacement tax invoice and keep both. Don’t alter the original after sending.
• Buyer-issued invoices: in some arrangements the buyer writes the tax invoice for you (the ATO calls it a recipient created tax invoice). That only works under an agreement between you both, so don’t assume it. If a customer offers, ask your accountant first.

A five-minute set-up that you only do once

The simplest way to never get an invoice wrong is to build the template once and reuse it. Open your accounting software or a document, then:

1. Put your business name and ABN in the header, so they can’t be forgotten.
2. Add the heading that matches your situation: “Tax invoice” if you’re registered for GST, “Invoice” if you’re not.
3. Set up numbered invoices that count up on their own (0001, 0002 and so on), so no two are the same.
4. Add your bank details and payment terms in the footer, in plain words such as “Pay within 14 days”.
5. Save one copy of every invoice in a single folder or in the software, because you’ll want them at BAS time and for your records.

Free templates are fine as a starting point, but check them against the list above first. Plenty of them leave out the ABN or label every invoice “tax invoice”, including for people who aren’t registered.

What mistakes cost new owners the most?

Most invoice problems come from five habits. Fixing them early keeps payments flowing:

1. No “tax invoice” heading on a GST-registered sale.
2. Missing or wrong ABN, which is also the 47% trap above.
3. GST charged before registration, or forgotten after registration.
4. A vague description such as “services” with no quantity or price.
5. No invoice number or payment terms, so nobody knows which job it refers to or when to pay.

Myths about tax invoices

• “An invoice is an invoice.” Not when GST is involved. A plain invoice won’t let a business claim GST.
• “It has to be on special paper.” No. A PDF or email works if the details are there.
• “I’ll sort the GST out at BAS time.” The GST has to be on the invoice when you send it. Fixing it later means re-issuing it. Our first BAS guide shows where those figures end up.
• “Invoices are only for the customer.” They’re also your own evidence of income, and they’re what your lender will read.

Why does a neat invoice trail matter when you borrow?

A tidy run of invoices shows up in your bank statements as regular, matching deposits, which makes your turnover easy to prove. When a lender reads your records, invoice numbers that line up with deposits, a consistent ABN and clear GST treatment make you look organised, and that’s before anything else is assessed.

Our turnover and bank statements lesson shows what lenders check, and building a basic cash flow forecast around your invoice due dates means you see slow-paying customers coming before they hurt.

If you’d like to check where your business stands for finance, the loan readiness quiz takes a couple of minutes and tells you what to tidy first, and you can see what’s possible for your business whenever you’re ready.

Invoicing is the start of the money trail: ready to see what it could unlock?

Once your invoices are tidy, your records tell a clear story about how your business earns. That’s the thing a funder reads first, and it’s why careful beginners often find the conversation easier than they feared. Whether you’re thinking about stock, equipment or a buffer for slow-paying customers, it helps to know your options before you need them.

Our enquiry takes about 60 seconds, and your credit file isn’t touched just for asking, because there’s no credit check when you first enquire. We don’t pass your details around to a pile of lenders, so you won’t get a flood of calls. A real person reads what you’ve put in, phones you and talks through the options in plain English. We just ask that you fill the form in accurately, including your turnover and how long you’ve been trading, so we can suggest the right fit first time.

Find out where you stand →