Do You Still Need a “Tax Invoice” in NZ? (2023 GST Rules Explained)
No. Since 1 April 2023, New Zealand's GST rules no longer require a document called a “tax invoice.” What the law requires instead is taxable supply information — a defined set of details about the sale, which can be spread across more than one document. You can still print the words “Tax Invoice” on your invoice, and most NZ businesses do, because the obligation is about the information, not the label.
What Changed on 1 April 2023
Before April 2023, a GST-registered seller had to issue a specific document — a tax invoice — within 28 days of a buyer asking for one. The rules prescribed the document. From 1 April 2023, the Goods and Services Tax Act instead prescribes the information: the records you need to support the figures in your GST return. Inland Revenue calls this taxable supply information, usually shortened to TSI.
Two practical consequences follow. First, taxable supply information does not have to live in a single document — a combination of an invoice, a contract and a supplier agreement can satisfy it between them. Second, it can be exchanged automatically, which is what makes eInvoicing a compliant method rather than a workaround.
If your invoicing already complied with the old tax invoice rules, it complies with the new ones. Inland Revenue is explicit that you do not need to change the wording of your GST documents, and that you may keep providing taxable supply information as a single document marked “Tax Invoice.”
What Taxable Supply Information Must Include
The required details scale with the value of the supply. The thresholds are GST-inclusive.
| Supply value | What you must provide |
|---|---|
| $200 or less | Your name or trade name; the date of the invoice (or the time of supply if there is no invoice); a description of the goods or services; the amount payable. |
| $200 to $1,000 | All of the above, plus your GST number, and either the GST-exclusive amount, the GST amount and the GST-inclusive amount separately, or just the GST-inclusive amount with a statement that it includes GST at the standard rate. |
| Over $1,000 | All of the above, plus the buyer's details if they are GST registered — their name, and one identifier such as a physical address, phone number, email address, trading name, New Zealand Business Number or website URL. |
So the single real change for most trade suppliers sits in that bottom row. A wholesaler invoicing a $4,800 order to a GST-registered builder needs to capture the buyer's name and one identifying detail. An invoice to a walk-in customer for a $150 part needs almost nothing beyond your own name, the date, what you sold and the price.
The 28-Day Rule Still Applies
For supplies over $200, taxable supply information must be provided to a GST-registered buyer within 28 days of their request, or by another date the two of you agree. In practice almost every NZ supplier satisfies this by simply issuing the invoice at the time of sale, which is why the deadline rarely comes up — but it is the rule that applies if a customer comes back months later asking for documentation.
A worked NZ example. A packaging manufacturer supplies $6,200 of cartons to a food producer on 12 August and invoices it the same day, with the buyer's name, NZBN and the GST breakdown on the invoice. Nothing further is owed: the information was provided at the point of supply, well inside 28 days, and it covers the over-$1,000 requirements.
Do You Need to Change Anything?
For most businesses, no. If you issue a dated invoice carrying your name, GST number, a description of the goods, the amount and the GST, and you record who the customer is on larger orders, you are already compliant. The change is worth knowing about for three narrower reasons:
- You can stop worrying about the label. A document headed “Invoice” rather than “Tax Invoice” is not defective, provided the information is there.
- Information can be split across documents. Useful where a standing supply agreement carries some of the detail and the invoice carries the rest.
- eInvoicing counts. An automated exchange between two accounting systems is a compliant way to provide taxable supply information.
One thing the 2023 change did not touch is when you get paid. That is set by the payment term on the invoice, not by GST law — see the guide to NZ payment terms for how those conventions work, and the invoicing guide for the rest of this cluster.
This is a plain-English summary of Inland Revenue's published rules, not tax advice. For your own situation, check ird.govt.nz or talk to your accountant.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a tax invoice still valid in New Zealand?
Yes. A document marked "Tax Invoice" is still perfectly valid, and Inland Revenue specifically says you do not need to change the wording of your GST documents. It just is not the legal requirement any more — the requirement is that the taxable supply information is provided.
What is the difference between a tax invoice and taxable supply information?
A tax invoice was a prescribed document. Taxable supply information is a prescribed set of details, which can be provided in one document or across several, including through an automated eInvoicing exchange. Most invoices contain taxable supply information already.
Do I need to put my customer's details on every invoice?
Only where the supply is over $1,000 and the buyer is GST registered. Then you need their name plus one identifier — an address, phone number, email, trading name, NZBN or website. Below $1,000 their details are not required.
How long do I have to provide taxable supply information?
For supplies over $200, within 28 days of a GST-registered buyer requesting it, or by another date you both agree. Issuing the invoice at the time of sale satisfies this.
Does a pro forma invoice count as taxable supply information?
No. A pro forma invoice is a pre-sale estimate, not a record of a supply that has happened, so it does not support a GST claim. See what a pro forma invoice is and how NZ GST treats it.
Getting the Invoice Right Is Half the Job
The other half is getting it paid. PaidTerms connects to your Xero invoicing and lets eligible customers pay over time, while you are paid upfront.
Read next: pro forma invoices and GST, or whether you can charge interest on an overdue invoice.
