Yes, if a purchase cost more than $82.50 (including GST), you must have a tax invoice from the supplier to claim the GST credit. For $82.50 or less you don’t need a tax invoice, just a receipt or similar record.
The details below are as at October 2026, from the ATO’s own pages (linked at the end). If you don’t have the tax invoice yet, you don’t lose the credit straight away: you wait until you hold it, then claim it in that BAS or a later one, as long as you are inside the 4-year limit.
The $82.50 rule
The ATO’s rule is that you can claim a GST credit if you are registered for GST, the purchase is for your business (and not for making input-taxed sales, such as residential rent), its price included GST, you paid (or are liable to pay) for it, and you have a tax invoice from your supplier for purchases of more than $82.50. The $82.50 is the GST-inclusive price. That is $75 plus $7.50 of GST.
| Purchase price (including GST) | What you need to claim the credit |
|---|---|
| $82.50 or less | A tax invoice, cash register docket, receipt or invoice. If you can’t get one, a record such as a diary entry with the supplier’s name and ABN, the date, a description of what you bought and the amount paid. |
| More than $82.50 | A valid tax invoice, held when you claim. |
What makes a tax invoice valid
A tax invoice is a document the supplier issues, and it has to carry certain details. The ATO’s list depends on the size of the sale.
For a taxable sale under $1,000, the invoice must clearly show these 7 things:
- That the document is intended to be a tax invoice.
- The seller’s identity.
- The seller’s ABN.
- The date the invoice was issued.
- A brief description of what was sold, including the quantity (if applicable) and the price.
- The GST amount payable. It can be shown separately or, if the GST is exactly one-eleventh of the total price, as the statement “Total price includes GST”.
- The extent to which each sale on the invoice is taxable.
For a sale of $1,000 or more, the invoice must also show the buyer’s identity or ABN.
A tax invoice can be digital. An emailed PDF counts, as long as it contains all the required information.
An invoice with incorrect or incomplete information is not a valid tax invoice. You may be able to treat it as one if the missing information can be found in other documents the supplier has given you. Otherwise, ask the supplier to replace it with a complete one.
What to do when you don’t have a valid tax invoice
- Ask the supplier. Suppliers must provide a tax invoice within 28 days of a request (unless the sale was $82.50 or less).
- Wait to claim. The ATO says to wait until you receive it before claiming the credit, even if that is in a later reporting period.
- Claim when you hold it. GST credits you haven’t claimed don’t have to be claimed in the original period. You can claim them in a later BAS.
- Watch the 4-year limit. The limit ends 4 years after the due date of the BAS for the period you could first have claimed, setting aside the tax invoice requirement. So waiting for an invoice doesn’t give you extra time. The ATO says it has no discretion to extend this limit.
- If the supplier doesn’t come through. If the supplier hasn’t responded within the 28 days and you can’t fill the gap from other documents they gave you, you can ask the ATO for permission to treat a document as a valid tax invoice. This is the ATO’s discretion, so it isn’t guaranteed.
The 28 days and the 4 years are separate clocks, so ask early. A request made in month 47 leaves little room.
A worked example
Priya runs a design studio and reports GST quarterly. In August she buys a laptop for $1,320, paid by card. The receipt shows the price but no ABN and no buyer details.
- The purchase is over $82.50, so she needs a valid tax invoice to claim the credit.
- It is $1,000 or more, so the invoice must also show her business’s name or ABN.
- The GST in $1,320 is $1,320 / 11 = $120. That is the credit she can claim, assuming the laptop is used wholly for the business.
She emails the supplier on 10 September. The supplier sends a proper tax invoice on 20 September, before the September quarter’s BAS is lodged, so she claims the $120 in that BAS. Had it arrived after she lodged, she could claim the $120 in the next BAS, as long as it is lodged within the 4-year limit.
Compare a $38.50 parking charge in the same quarter. It is under $82.50, so her receipt is enough, and the credit is $38.50 / 11 = $3.50.
Questions
Is a receipt the same as a tax invoice?
Not necessarily. A receipt is enough for purchases of $82.50 or less. Above that you need a document that carries all the tax invoice details listed above.
Can I claim the GST now and get the tax invoice later?
No. The ATO says to wait until you hold the tax invoice before claiming the credit. Once you have it you can claim it in that period’s BAS or a later one.
How long do I have to claim a GST credit?
The ATO’s limit is 4 years from the due date of the BAS for the period you could first have claimed, ignoring the tax invoice requirement. After that the entitlement ceases.
Do I need a tax invoice if I’m not registered for GST?
You can’t claim GST credits at all unless you are registered for GST. If you are unsure whether you need to register, the ATO’s registration page explains the $75,000 threshold.
Where Beans fits
A missing tax invoice is easy to miss until BAS time. Beans keeps the books as you go: bank lines and receipts, which can be emailed in, are recorded in the right entity’s books as they arrive, and it flags a purchase that’s still missing a tax invoice, so you can chase the supplier before the BAS. It only asks when the call is yours to make, and it works up the BAS from books that are already done; the BAS waits for your yes. Beans doesn’t hold the credit back: when the BAS is ready, it lists the bills still missing a tax invoice, and you choose whether to keep claiming or not.
Sources (all ato.gov.au, checked 15 October 2026): Tax invoices, When you can claim a GST credit, Time limit on GST credits, Registering for GST.
General information, not tax advice.