Square Tax Reporting and GST Invoices FAQ
Square provides a tax invoice to you so you can fulfil your tax obligations to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). If you process any card payments through Square in a calendar month, Square will provide you with a tax invoice in your online Square Dashboard on the fifth day of the following month. Your tax invoices are provided to help you claim the Goods and Services Tax (GST) paid on your processing fees. These fees have already been deducted from your account and are not outstanding.
Find answers to frequently asked questions about monthly tax invoices.
What is the Goods and Services Tax (GST) invoice?
Your tax invoice from Square specifies the amount of taxes Square has charged on your processing fees. This also includes taxes on Afterpay’s processing fee if your customer has paid via Afterpay. Square provides this tax invoice to you so you can fulfil your tax obligations to the ATO. These fees have already been deducted from your account and are not outstanding.
How can I get my tax invoice?
If you qualify for a monthly GST invoice, it will be available to download on the fifth of every month.
Go to Settings > Account & Settings on your online Square Dashboard.
Click Business information > Tax Invoices.
Click on the month and click Download and if necessary, update your tax information.
If you don’t see an invoice available for download in Tax Invoices, it is most likely because you didn’t qualify to receive one based on your account activity. A monthly invoice will appear in your dashboard on the fifth day of each month if you processed card payments the previous month. If after the fifth of the month your online Square Dashboard doesn’t show a GST invoice and you believe you qualify for one, contact Square Support.
Note: You cannot access your GST invoice via your Square Point of Sale app. Use a compatible web browser on your mobile device or laptop/desktop computer instead.
Do I qualify for a GST invoice?
You will receive a GST invoice if you have processed any amount in card payments through Square in the prior month.
Don’t see a GST invoice for the current month? This is because you did not process any card payments through Square in the previous month. You can view your total sales from your online Square Dashboard.
My customer used Afterpay as the payment method on my Square Online website. How do I view the total monthly Afterpay fees?
When you download your monthly tax invoice, the “Afterpay Fees (excl. GST)” line item will display the total fees paid for that month. You can also go to Reporting > Reports on your online Square Dashboard.
Can I view my cost of acceptance in the monthly invoice?
Yes. In every monthly invoice, you can view the cost of acceptance as a dollar amount and percentage for all Square transactions. At the end of the financial year, you will receive a yearly cost of acceptance invoice.
You can use this information to identify your average cost of acceptance when determining what surcharge to pass on to customers for Square payments. Please see ACCC’s guidance on surcharging for more information.
Note: You cannot apply a surcharge to Afterpay in-person or online transactions.
How are the amounts on the form calculated?
The amount and transaction count on each form are calculated based on the total fees paid on all card sales you have processed through Square in a calendar month. Please note that your fee rates may vary from the advertised percentage due to rounding, differences in card-present/card-not-present pricing and per-transaction fixed costs. The fee totals are inclusive of all credit and debit fees incurred through Afterpay or Visa, Mastercard, American Express and JCB transactions.
What if I have multiple accounts?
Each Square account will have its own tax invoices.
What if I have multiple locations?
If you have multiple locations set up on one Square account, each location will have its own tax invoices.
Read more about making sure that your taxpayer information is correct and up to date.
Disclaimer: Please note that this guidance is general in nature and does not constitute legal, tax or any other type of professional advice. If you are unsure about your tax obligations or where to find the relevant information, we suggest that you consult with a professional.