New Zealand GST Invoice Requirements (Taxable Supply Information, 2026)

If you are GST-registered in New Zealand, the rules about what your invoice must contain changed on 1 April 2023, and a lot of online templates still have not caught up. Inland Revenue (IRD) replaced the old 'tax invoice' requirement with a broader concept called taxable supply information. The good news for anyone worried about reformatting everything: the way you calculate GST has not changed, and an invoice that met the old rules still meets the new ones. This guide explains what you actually need to show, in plain terms, with IRD's own value tiers.

First: do you need to charge GST at all?

You must register for GST once your taxable turnover passes NZ$60,000 in any 12-month period (it is a rolling figure, not a financial-year reset). Turnover means your gross sales before expenses. GST in New Zealand is a flat 15%. If you are under the threshold and have not chosen to register voluntarily, you do not charge GST and you do not issue GST invoices at all -- a plain invoice is fine. Everything below applies once you are registered.

The big change: 'taxable supply information'

Under the new rules, the records that support a GST claim no longer have to be one single document stamped 'tax invoice'. IRD now accepts that the required information can sit across invoices, bank statements, supplier agreements, or contracts -- on their own or in combination. In practice, most small businesses still send one tidy invoice, because it is the simplest way to give the buyer everything in one place. The terminology also changed: a 'tax invoice' is now 'taxable supply information', and a credit or debit note is now 'supply correction information'.

What your invoice must show, by value

IRD scales the required detail to the size of the supply. Here are the three main tiers.

Supplies of $200 or less

• Your name or trade name.
• The date of the invoice (or, if no invoice is issued, the time of supply).
• A description of the goods or services.
• The amount paid (the consideration for the supply).

More than $200 and up to $1,000

• Your name or trade name and your GST number.
• The date of the invoice.
• A description of the goods or services.
• Either the GST-exclusive amount, the GST amount and the GST-inclusive total; or just the GST-inclusive total with a statement that GST is included at the standard rate.

More than $1,000

• Your name or trade name and your GST number.
• The date of the invoice.
• A description of the goods or services.
• The GST breakdown (exclusive amount, GST amount and inclusive total -- or the inclusive total plus a 'GST included' statement).
• If the buyer is GST-registered: their name, plus at least one identifier such as a physical or postal address, phone number, email, trading name, New Zealand Business Number (NZBN), or website URL.

The 28-day rule

If a GST-registered customer asks you for taxable supply information on a supply over $200, you must provide it within 28 days of the request, unless you both agree another timeframe. You also have to keep your own records of everything you buy and sell. IRD requires business records, including invoices, to be kept for at least seven years.

You can still write 'Tax Invoice' on it

IRD has been explicit that you do not need to change the wording on your documents to reflect the new terms. You can keep a single document marked 'Tax Invoice' and be fully compliant. So the practical advice is simple: keep issuing a clear invoice, make sure your GST number is on it for anything over $200, and show the GST clearly. If you bill clients in other countries too, the underlying habits transfer -- see our notes on Australian tax invoices and the broader invoice requirements by country.

A compliant example (supply over $1,000)

• From: Kowhai Design Ltd, GST 123-456-789
• Invoice INV-204, dated 29 June 2026
• Bill to: Harbour Cafe Ltd, 12 Quay St, Auckland
• Website rebuild, 18 hrs x $120 = $2,160.00
• Subtotal $2,160.00 - GST 15% $324.00 - Total (GST inclusive) $2,484.00

That single document carries your name and GST number, the date, a description, the GST breakdown, and the registered buyer's name and address -- so it satisfies the highest tier. Start from a tidy template and you will not have to think about the tiers again. You can create one free with PDF Bill Builder — no signup, download as PDF in seconds.