Key takeaways
- InvoiceNow is Singapore’s nationwide e-invoicing network, based on the Peppol standard and introduced by IMDA in 2019.
- IRAS states that all GST-registered businesses must submit invoice data to IRAS using InvoiceNow-Ready Solutions, phased in from 1 Nov 2025 to 1 Apr 2031 depending on when you registered and your total annual supplies.
- Restaurants and shops can keep issuing normal POS receipts to customers. IRAS says you do not need to issue Peppol invoices for POS sales, but you must still submit the sales data, and you may aggregate it.
- If you are not GST-registered, the requirement does not apply to you.
- Grants and free-of-charge solutions are available. Check your own implementation date with IRAS’s calculator and start early.
Based on IRAS and IMDA publications checked in September 2026. Dates and grant details can change, so confirm on the IRAS GST InvoiceNow Requirement page before acting. This is general information, not tax advice.
What InvoiceNow is
IRAS describes InvoiceNow as “Singapore’s nationwide e-invoicing network based on the Peppol standard”, introduced by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) in 2019. It lets businesses send and receive invoices digitally in a structured format, rather than as PDFs or paper that someone has to key in.
Peppol is an international framework for exchanging business documents. Its own site says any organisation “can send and receive business documents across the Peppol Network via their chosen Peppol-accredited Service Provider”. In Singapore, businesses connect through IMDA-accredited Access Point Providers, usually built into their accounting software, and each business gets a Peppol ID linked to its UEN.
InvoiceNow has been around for years as a voluntary option, especially for suppliers billing government agencies. What has changed is that IRAS now uses the network to collect invoice data from GST-registered businesses. That is the GST InvoiceNow Requirement.
The GST InvoiceNow Requirement: who and when
According to IRAS, “All GST-registered businesses must submit invoice data to IRAS using InvoiceNow-Ready Solutions. This is mandatory and will be rolled out in phases.” The phases, as published by IRAS (page last updated 23 September 2026):
| Implementation date | Who it applies to |
|---|---|
| 1 Nov 2025 | Companies that register for GST voluntarily within 6 months of incorporation |
| 1 Apr 2026 | Businesses that apply for voluntary GST registration on or after 1 Apr 2026, regardless of incorporation date or business structure |
| 1 Apr 2028 | Businesses that apply for compulsory GST registration on or after 1 Apr 2028, and existing GST-registered businesses with total annual supplies of S$200,000 or less |
| 1 Apr 2029 | Existing GST-registered businesses with total annual supplies of S$1,000,000 or less |
| 1 Apr 2030 | Existing GST-registered businesses with total annual supplies of S$4,000,000 or less |
| 1 Apr 2031 | Existing GST-registered businesses with total annual supplies above S$4,000,000 |
IRAS notes that “total annual supplies” means the total value of standard-rated, zero-rated and exempt supplies (Box 4 of the GST return) made in all prescribed accounting periods ending in calendar year 2025. The later phases were announced at the Committee of Supply 2026 debate in February 2026.
IRAS also says it has notified GST-registered businesses registered before 2026 of their mandatory implementation date from mid-2026. If you did not receive a notification, IRAS says your date will be communicated later. You can check your own date with the GST InvoiceNow Implementation Date Calculator (XLSX) on the IRAS site.
Who is excluded: IRAS lists overseas entities (including overseas vendors registered under the OVR regimes) and businesses liable to register for GST wholly because of the reverse charge regime. Businesses that are not GST-registered are not covered, because the requirement applies to GST-registered businesses.
Does it apply to your F&B or retail receipts?
This is the question most restaurant and shop owners ask, and IRAS answers it directly.
What must be submitted. IRAS says businesses generally need to submit invoice data for transactions reported in the GST return: standard-rated, zero-rated and exempt supplies, and standard-rated and zero-rated purchases. The examples it gives include tax invoices, simplified tax invoices, serially numbered receipts, debit notes and credit notes. So sales to walk-in customers are in scope as data, not just business-to-business (B2B) invoices. Purchases from your suppliers are in scope too.
What you give customers does not change. In its FAQ, IRAS addresses a restaurant that issues receipts from its POS system. The answer: “For sales made via POS, you may continue to issue receipts to your customers without issuing Peppol invoices. However, you must submit the sales invoice data to IRAS in compliance with the GST InvoiceNow Requirement.”
POS sales can be aggregated. IRAS allows three types of transactions to be aggregated before submission: supplies made through point-of-sale systems, supplies where simplified tax invoices or receipts are issued, and petty cash purchases. The e-Tax Guide gives the example of a retail store that records daily POS sales into its accounting system and submits them as one aggregated record, with customer fields filled in as “POS”. Only these three types can be aggregated. Other transactions must be submitted individually.
In practice, for a typical café, restaurant or shop:
- B2C sales (dine-in, takeaway, counter sales): keep issuing normal receipts. Sales data goes to IRAS, and can be aggregated (for example, daily totals).
- B2B sales (catering invoices, wholesale, corporate orders): these are invoices, and invoice data must be submitted. If the customer is on InvoiceNow, you can send the invoice itself through the network.
- Purchases from suppliers: purchase invoice data is also in scope, sent through your InvoiceNow-Ready Solution.
When data is due. IRAS says invoice data must be submitted by the earlier of the date you file the relevant GST return or its filing due date. The e-Tax Guide suggests extracting data regularly, such as daily or weekly, rather than leaving it to the end of the quarter.
If your setup is unusual (for example, a franchise, a group registration or a third party issuing invoices for you), read the e-Tax Guide and FAQ or ask IRAS directly through the requirement page.
What you need to do
IRAS and IMDA set out three steps for businesses using off-the-shelf software:
- Check your solution is InvoiceNow-Ready. Look for your accounting software on IMDA’s list of accredited InvoiceNow-Ready Solution Providers (PDF). If you use a custom in-house system, IRAS says to contact an IMDA-accredited Access Point Provider instead.
- Get your Peppol ID. Your solution provider or Access Point registers your business in the SG Peppol Directory using your UEN.
- Switch on GST InvoiceNow submission. Activate the feature in your software so invoice data is sent to IRAS.
IRAS says onboarding “may take as little as 3 months” and that most businesses complete setup within a year. That is a good reason not to wait for your deadline.
The requirement does not replace your existing GST duties. You still file accurate GST returns, keep records for at least five years and follow the invoicing rules.
How your POS and accounting fit together
For most F&B and retail businesses, the POS is not the system that talks to IRAS. The usual flow looks like this:
- The POS records each sale and issues the customer’s receipt.
- Sales are posted to your accounting software, often as a daily summary.
- The InvoiceNow-Ready accounting software sends the invoice data to IRAS through its Access Point.
IRAS’s FAQ suggests talking to your InvoiceNow-Ready Solution Provider about how your existing POS can be integrated with its solution to submit invoice data.
ChaChaCha’s POS integrates with Xero, so daily sales can be posted to your Xero file. IMDA’s list of accredited InvoiceNow-Ready Solution Providers (updated 24 September 2026) includes Xero (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. with the solution “Xero”. Being on the list is about the accounting software. How your POS sales are summarised and whether the resulting records meet IRAS’s data requirements depend on your setup, so confirm the details with Xero or your accountant. Whatever software you use, check whether your accounting software is InvoiceNow-ready on the IMDA list, and don’t assume.
A few practical points for POS users:
- Keep POS reports clean. Sales should be split correctly between standard-rated, zero-rated and exempt items, and service charge should be treated correctly for GST. Our guide to service charge and GST for restaurants covers the basics.
- Keep B2B invoices separate from counter sales. A catering invoice to a company is not a POS receipt and should not disappear into the daily total.
- Post regularly. Daily posting from POS to accounting makes regular submission easy.
More on connecting the two in our POS accounting integration guide. Retailers can also see our retail POS page.
Grants and free-of-charge solutions
IRAS lists the following support on its requirement page, with details on IMDA’s InvoiceNow Grants page:
| Business | Support listed by IRAS |
|---|---|
| SMEs (annual supplies of S$4,000,000 or less) | GST InvoiceNow Transition Grant: S$1,000 |
| Larger businesses (annual supplies above S$4,000,000) | GST InvoiceNow Transition Grant: S$5,000 |
| Larger businesses (annual turnover above S$4,000,000) | InvoiceNow Queen Bee Grant: S$25,000 |
| GST-registered businesses | Free-of-charge solution packages with basic e-invoicing, available up to 31 March 2031 |
IRAS notes that the current list of free packages runs until 31 March 2027, with a list for April 2027 to March 2031 to follow. Eligibility conditions and how to apply are on IMDA’s page. The February 2026 announcement also mentioned the Productivity Solutions Grant for software subscriptions. PSG combines into the EDGE Grant from 30 September 2026, so check current support on our grant guide or with Enterprise Singapore.
Timeline and checklist
Work back from your implementation date. Because onboarding can take months, start at least a year ahead if you can.
- Now: Find your implementation date using the IRAS notification or calculator. Note your total annual supplies for 2025.
- Now: Check whether your accounting software is on the IMDA InvoiceNow-Ready list. If not, plan a move or ask about the free packages.
- Next: Talk to your accountant about how POS sales will be summarised and posted, and how B2B invoices and supplier invoices will flow.
- Next: Check your POS reports split GST categories correctly and that service charge is handled correctly.
- Next: Check grant eligibility on IMDA’s page before you pay for anything.
- Setup: Get your Peppol ID through your solution provider or Access Point.
- Setup: Switch on GST InvoiceNow submission and run a few periods before your mandatory date so issues show up early.
- Ongoing: Post POS sales regularly and submit invoice data before each GST return is filed.
If anything here doesn’t match your situation, the IRAS GST InvoiceNow Requirement page has the e-Tax Guide, FAQ, webinars and an enquiry form. If you are choosing a POS and want it to post cleanly to Xero, contact us.
