Once your freelance income crosses $30,000 CAD (or £90,000 in the UK), you're required to register for GST/HST or VAT — and your invoices must meet specific legal requirements. Miss a mandatory field and your client can't claim their input tax credit, which means they'll reject the invoice and ask you to reissue it.
This guide covers the registration thresholds, every mandatory field on a compliant invoice, the simplified vs full invoice rules, and how international clients affect your tax obligations. Canadian and UK rules are covered in detail; Australian requirements are included where relevant.
When You're Required to Register for GST/HST — The $30,000 Threshold
The CRA small supplier threshold is $30,000 CAD in worldwide taxable supplies over any 4 consecutive calendar quarters. When your revenue in any rolling four-quarter window exceeds $30,000, you must register and begin charging GST/HST on subsequent invoices.
What triggers the clock: the quarter in which you exceed the threshold. If your revenue hit $31,000 in Q2 2026, you must register before the end of Q2 2026 and start charging GST/HST on invoices issued after that date.
Voluntary registration: you can register before hitting $30,000. The main reason to do so is input tax credits — every dollar of GST/HST you paid on business purchases (software, equipment, professional services) is recoverable once you're registered. If you're buying significant business equipment in your first year, voluntary registration can put real money back in your pocket.
Exclusions: some supplies are exempt (certain financial services, health services, residential rent). Most freelance professional services — consulting, design, writing, marketing, development — are taxable supplies.
Australia: the GST registration threshold is $75,000 AUD in taxable supplies per year. Same principle: exceed the threshold, register with the ATO, start charging 10% GST.
UK: the VAT registration threshold for 2026 is £90,000 in taxable supplies in the previous 12 months (or when you reasonably expect to exceed £90,000 in the next 30 days).
What a Proper GST/HST Invoice Must Show
For invoices over $150 CAD, CRA requires all of the following. Missing any field means the client cannot claim their input tax credit (ITC) — they will ask you to reissue the invoice with the missing information.
- Your legal business name — exactly as registered with CRA
- Your GST/HST registration number — your Business Number (BN) with the RT program identifier suffix (e.g., 123456789 RT0001)
- Invoice date — the date the invoice is issued
- Invoice number — sequential; required for GST/HST invoices
- Recipient name and address — the client's legal name and business address
- Description of the supply — what services were provided, with enough detail that the CRA could verify the nature of the taxable supply
- Amount before tax — the net amount for your services or goods
- GST/HST rate applied — the applicable rate (5% GST in Alberta, 13% HST in Ontario, 15% HST in Atlantic provinces, etc.)
- GST/HST amount — the dollar amount of tax collected, shown separately from the net amount
Provincial rates for 2026: Alberta 5% GST, BC 12% HST, Ontario 13% HST, Quebec 14.975% (5% GST + 9.975% QST billed separately), Nova Scotia / New Brunswick / Newfoundland / PEI 15% HST.
ExpenseBot's invoice tool auto-populates your BN (entered once in Settings) and suggests the correct rate based on your province — you don't have to look up the rate for every client.
Simplified vs Full Invoice Rules
CRA has three invoice tiers based on the total amount:
| Invoice Amount | Required Fields |
|---|---|
| Under $30 CAD | No BN required. Basic receipt showing total paid and tax included is sufficient for ITC claims. |
| $30 – $150 CAD | Simplified invoice: supplier name, BN, date, total paid including tax, statement that tax is included (or GST/HST rate). No recipient name required. |
| Over $150 CAD | Full invoice required: all 9 fields listed above. Recipient name and address, sequential invoice number, tax amount shown separately. |
For freelance professional services, almost all invoices exceed $150, so the full invoice is the practical default. Keep the simplified rules in mind for small expense reimbursements.
UK VAT Invoice Requirements
UK VAT-registered freelancers must issue a full VAT invoice for all B2B transactions (i.e., to any VAT-registered client). The 13 mandatory fields for a full VAT invoice are:
- The words "VAT Invoice"
- Your business name and address
- Your VAT registration number
- The invoice date
- A sequential invoice number
- The client's name and address
- The client's VAT number (for their records)
- Description of the services supplied
- The supply date (tax point date)
- The net amount (ex-VAT)
- The VAT rate applied (20% standard, 5% reduced, or 0% zero-rated)
- The VAT amount
- The gross amount (including VAT)
Making Tax Digital (MTD): since April 2022, all VAT-registered businesses must keep digital records and submit VAT returns via MTD-compatible software. Manual spreadsheet submissions are no longer accepted. ExpenseBot exports VAT-formatted reports compatible with MTD-compliant accounting packages.
Flat Rate Scheme: if you're on the UK VAT Flat Rate Scheme, you charge clients the standard 20% VAT but remit a lower flat rate percentage (varies by industry — typically 12-16% for professional services). You keep the difference. Your invoices still show 20% VAT to the client; the accounting difference happens at return time.
Collecting Tax From International Clients
Canadian freelancers billing US clients: services exported to non-resident clients outside Canada are generally zero-rated at 0% GST/HST. You do not charge your US client Canadian tax. However, zero-rating still requires you to report the supply on your GST/HST return — you show the revenue and the 0% rate.
Exceptions to zero-rating:
- Services physically performed in Canada (you did the work on Canadian soil)
- Services related to Canadian real property (e.g., consulting on a Canadian building project)
- Certain digital services supplied to non-registered non-residents in Canada
When in doubt about a specific service type, consult CRA's guide on exported services or a Canadian accountant.
UK freelancers billing non-UK clients: services to business clients outside the UK are generally outside the scope of UK VAT (the "place of supply" rules determine that the supply occurs in the client's country). You don't charge UK VAT to US or EU clients for most professional services. However, services to EU consumers (not registered businesses) may be subject to EU VAT under digital services rules — this applies primarily to software and digital products, less commonly to professional consulting.
Input tax credits and ITCs: even when zero-rating your exports, you can still claim the GST/HST or VAT you paid on your business expenses as input tax credits. Registered status still benefits you on the input side even when output is zero-rated.
How ExpenseBot Handles GST/HST on Receipts
When ExpenseBot scans a Canadian receipt, it automatically extracts and separates the tax amount from the base expense. A $113 receipt at 13% HST shows up as $100 in expenses + $13 in HST — both tracked separately.
This separation matters for two reasons:
- Input tax credits: the $13 HST you paid on that $113 receipt is recoverable if you're registered. ExpenseBot's T2125 Schedule A export shows your ITC-eligible tax amounts separately from the base expense amounts, so your accountant or your own return preparation is straightforward.
- Accurate expense deductions: on Schedule T2125 or Schedule C, the deductible amount is the pre-tax expense, not the gross with tax. If you're registered and claiming an ITC, you deduct $100 and recover $13 separately. If you're not registered, you deduct the full $113. ExpenseBot tracks which receipts are ITC-eligible based on your registration status.
For Canadian expense tracking, see the full Canada guide. For the T2125 business expense form, see T2125 expense tracker. For billing clients with the correct GST/HST or VAT on rebilled expenses, see bill client invoice.