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Tax Invoice Template: GST Rules for Sole Traders and Tradies
What a valid tax invoice must show, the $82.50 and $1,000 GST rules, and a simple layout for sole traders and tradies to copy.
4 min read
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General information only, not tax advice. This article doesn't take your personal circumstances into account, and tax rules change each income year. Check the ATO website or speak to a registered tax agent before acting on it. Lodgya is a record-keeping tool and is not a registered tax agent. See our disclaimer.
A job invoice and a tax invoice are not always the same document. Once you are registered for GST, the paperwork you hand a customer has to carry specific information, or your customer cannot claim the GST credit and your records will not hold up if the ATO comes asking. Here is the short version of those rules, plus a simple tax invoice template you can copy for your own business.
When you must issue a tax invoice
If you are registered for GST, you need to provide a tax invoice for your taxable sales, and you must issue it within 28 days if your customer asks for one. That is the trigger most sole traders miss. The clock is not tied to your payment terms, it starts when the customer requests the document, and a customer who needs it for their own BAS will ask.
Sales of $82.50 or less, including GST, do not need a tax invoice at all. You can still hand one over if it keeps your bookkeeping tidy, but it is not compulsory.
What every tax invoice must show
There are six core details, with one extra requirement for larger jobs.
Requirement | What it looks like in practice |
|---|---|
The words tax invoice | At the top of the document, not buried in a footer |
Seller identity and ABN | Your name or trading name, plus your ABN |
Date | The date the invoice is issued |
Description, quantity and price | Line items that spell out what was supplied, how much of it, and what it cost |
GST amount | The GST shown as its own figure, or a statement that the total includes GST |
Buyer identity or ABN | Only required when the sale is $1,000 or more |
The $1,000 rule for buyer details
For sales of $1,000 or more, including GST, the invoice must also identify the buyer by name or by their ABN. Under that threshold you do not need buyer details, though most tradies include the customer name anyway so the document makes sense to both sides.
A simple tax invoice template
You do not need design software. A clean, readable page with these blocks in this order does the job, and it suits a phone screenshot as well as a printed copy.
Block | What goes in it |
|---|---|
Heading | The words tax invoice, your business name and your ABN |
Invoice details | An invoice number and the date you issue it |
Customer | Name, plus ABN if the sale is $1,000 or more |
Line items | Description, quantity, unit price and line total |
GST | The GST amount, or a statement that the total includes GST |
Total and payment | Amount payable and how the customer can pay you |
Common tax invoice mistakes
Writing invoice at the top instead of tax invoice, then wondering why the customer's bookkeeper queries it.
Showing one total with GST buried inside and no statement that the total includes GST.
Splitting GST out as a separate line but getting the arithmetic wrong.
Changing templates and leaving off the ABN.
Issuing weeks after the customer asked, well past the 28 day limit.
Sending a quote through as if it were a tax invoice.
How Lodgya's invoice builder handles GST
Lodgya's invoice builder adds GST lines for you, so the amount is calculated rather than typed by hand, and the invoice sits alongside the income and expense records for the same job. That means when BAS time comes around, you are reconciling against documents that already carry the right fields instead of hunting through a shoebox for a docket you wrote out at the tip. It suits tradies who want the paperwork done on the ute before the next job.
Check the source before you print
Rules and thresholds can be updated, so it pays to confirm the detail on the ATO tax invoices page before you lock in a template for the year. If you use the ATO's online services to check your own records, sign in with myID. Anything you are unsure about, particularly how GST applies to a mixed supply of labour and materials, is a question for a registered tax agent rather than a template.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I write a tax invoice by hand?
Yes. There is no requirement to use software, and a handwritten document is valid as long as it contains every required field. The catch is legibility and record keeping. If a customer cannot read the ABN or the GST figure, they will come back to you, and a faded carbon copy is a poor record if you are ever asked to show it.
Do I need to keep a copy of every tax invoice I issue?
Yes. You need records that support the income you report and the GST you collect, and that means a copy of the invoice as issued. Keep them with the related job records so the sale, the payment and the expense for that job sit together. Check the ATO for current record keeping timeframes.
Is a quote the same as a tax invoice?
No. A quote is a price before work starts and it is not a tax invoice, even if it shows a GST figure. Once the job is done you issue a separate document carrying the words tax invoice and all the required details. Sending the quote again with a different heading usually leaves it short of what the customer needs.
What if I am not registered for GST?
Then you do not issue tax invoices and you do not charge GST. You send ordinary invoices for your work instead. Plenty of sole traders start out below the GST registration threshold and register later, so it is worth reviewing your turnover with a registered tax agent before you add GST lines to a template.
This article is general information only, not tax advice. Confirm the current requirements with the ATO or a registered tax agent before you rely on them.
