Tax invoice template for NZ venues, built on the 2023 rules

Three brackets, three sets of details

Inland Revenue sets out what must be shown in three brackets. For a function venue, the first bracket covers a coffee cart or a small room booking; the third covers almost every wedding, conference and gala.

You don't have to change the word tax invoice on your documents. Inland Revenue says there's no need to change the wording of your GST documents to reflect the new terms, so this template keeps the familiar heading while laying out the details the rules ask for.

The buyer identifier on functions over NZ$1,000

For supplies over NZ$1,000 to a GST-registered buyer, you need the buyer's name and at least one identifier from Inland Revenue's list: a physical or postal address, a phone number, an email address, a trading name if it differs from the legal name, a New Zealand Business Number, or a website address. The NZBN is the most useful for corporate clients because their accounts systems often match on it.

Get the buyer right. A conference invoice addressed to the event coordinator personally, rather than to the company, is not what the company's accountant can use to claim the GST. Ask for the legal name and NZBN when the booking is confirmed.

For private clients who are not GST registered, such as a couple paying for their own wedding, the buyer requirement does not apply. Include their name anyway. It costs nothing, and if the bride's father later asks for the invoice to go to his company, you only have to change the buyer block.

Tax invoice INV-26-0774

Two-day leadership conference for 45 delegates at a harbour-view function venue in Wellington

• Buyer's legal name and NZBN shown because the supply is over NZ$1,000.
• GST-exclusive amount, GST and GST-inclusive total all shown.
• Deposit invoiced on INV-26-0690 deducted from the balance.

What your invoice must show in New Zealand

When GST falls due on deposits and balances

The time of supply is generally the earlier of when you issue an invoice and when you receive a payment. For a wedding with a deposit a year out, that means GST on the deposit belongs in the return for the period it was paid, and GST on the balance in the period you invoice it or receive it, whichever comes first.

Inland Revenue's interpretation statement IS 10/03 deals with deposits in detail. Its key point for venues is that where the supplier is entitled to the deposit from the moment it is paid, the time of supply is triggered. A refundable bond held against damage is a different arrangement; write your terms so the difference is clear and ask your accountant how IS 10/03 applies to your wording.

Providing information on request

For supplies over NZ$200, Inland Revenue says a GST-registered buyer who asks must be given the taxable supply information within 28 days, or by another date you both agree. In practice venues send a tax invoice automatically for every function, and a copy to anyone who asks later, for example when the company that paid for the Christmas party does its year-end.

Buyer-created taxable supply information exists too, where the buyer produces the document with Inland Revenue's approval. It is rare for venues but occasionally comes up with large corporate or government clients who insist on raising their own documents. If a client asks for it, confirm the arrangement in writing before the event.

Invoicing corporate and government clients

Conference and end-of-year functions are often paid by organisations with strict accounts payable rules. Most want a purchase order number on the invoice, the invoice addressed to the legal entity, and payment terms that match their own, often the 20th of the month following. Ask for all three at the confirmation stage and put them on the booking so they carry through to the invoice.

Government agencies and larger companies increasingly receive invoices electronically. Inland Revenue has an eInvoicing page explaining the New Zealand eInvoicing network; if a client asks you to send invoices that way, you will need software or a provider that connects to it. Venura does not connect to that network, so plan on sending a PDF or using your accounting software for those clients.

Where a conference spans two days, put each day's catering on its own dated line. When the client wants a credit for a cancelled workshop lunch, you can adjust a single line rather than reissuing the whole invoice, and the audit trail stays tidy.

If you charge for late cancellations of delegates, describe the charge exactly on the invoice, for example 'late cancellation, 3 delegates, day two catering as per clause 7'. Vague lines are the ones that get disputed and paid last.

Practical rules for a clean function invoice

Number invoices in one continuous series. Show each item with a quantity and unit price. Calculate GST per line at 15% and show the GST-exclusive amount, the GST and the GST-inclusive total, which satisfies both options in the middle bracket and every requirement above it.

Reference earlier deposit invoices on the final invoice, and show the balance due after deducting what has already been paid. Add the client's purchase order number if they have one. Include your bank account details and payment terms, and the date the balance is due.

Keep everything for 7 years. Inland Revenue now accepts that invoices, bank statements and contracts can together support your GST figures, but a function invoice that shows all the details in one place is still the cheapest record to defend.

Invoice questions from New Zealand