Drafting invoice template: a GST tax invoice for Australian designers

Read this first

General information, not tax or legal advice. It summarises the ATO’s public tax invoice page as we read it on 27 October 2026. Tax invoices are for GST-registered businesses; if you are not registered for GST you do not charge it, and your invoice looks different. Check with a registered tax agent or the ATO.

What the ATO says a tax invoice shows

According to the ATO, a GST-registered business must give a buyer a tax invoice within 28 days of being asked, for a taxable sale of more than A$82.50 including GST. For a sale under A$1,000, the invoice must show:

• that it is a tax invoice
• the seller’s identity and ABN
• the date the invoice was issued
• a brief description of what was sold, including the quantity and the price
• the GST amount payable (if any), or a statement that the total price includes GST

Sales of A$1,000 or more

For a taxable sale of A$1,000 or more, the ATO says the invoice must also show the buyer’s identity or ABN. Design stage fees on a residential job commonly reach that amount, so it is worth putting the client’s name and address on every stage invoice.

The template

Line by line

• “Tax invoice” heading. The ATO says the document must show that it is intended to be a tax invoice, so say so plainly.
• Your name and ABN. Both must appear; check the ABN against the ABN Lookup record for your business.
• Date issued. The date you issue it, not the date the work was done.
• Description. Name the stage and what it covers, in the same words as your fee proposal.
• GST and total. Show the GST amount and the total including GST on separate lines.
• Client details. Include the client’s name, and their ABN if they have one, on every invoice.

A worked sample

Staged jobs and consultants

On a staged job, issue one invoice per stage, and keep stage names identical across the fee proposal, the invoice and your emails (staged invoicing).

When engineers, surveyors or energy assessors are paid on the same job, each supplier issues a tax invoice in their own name, and only if they are registered for GST do they charge it (GST on consultant fees). If you raise your invoices in accounting software, see staged design invoices in Xero.

An invoice is not the same thing as a formal payment claim under a security of payment Act; see progress claim vs staged invoice.

Common invoice mistakes

• The words “tax invoice” are missing.
• The ABN is missing or mistyped.
• GST is bundled into the amount with no GST line or statement.
• The description just says “design fee” rather than naming the stage.
• The client’s name is missing on an invoice of A$1,000 or more.
• A consultant’s fee appears on your invoice when it should be on theirs.

Where DrafterShare fits

Generating a tax invoice for each payee on a shared stage is a planned DrafterShare feature that is in development, not live. See how it will work and the features page for the planned flow.