Can I Invoice Without an ABN?

Yes, you can issue an invoice without an ABN, but if you're carrying on an enterprise in Australia and the invoice is over $75 (excluding GST), the client is required to withhold 47% of the payment under the No-ABN Withholding rule. So practically — if you're regularly invoicing for business activity, you need an ABN.

Without an ABN:

  • Clients must withhold 47% and remit it to the ATO
  • You'll find it harder to claim business deductions or register for GST later
  • Some clients won't engage you at all because of the admin burden

You can avoid the 47% withholding without an ABN by:

  • Submitting a "Statement by a Supplier" form, declaring the payment is genuinely a private or hobby transaction
  • Selling a one-off personal item that isn't part of a business

Applying for an ABN is free at abr.gov.au and usually takes under five minutes. Once you have it, display it on every invoice in the format "ABN: XX XXX XXX XXX". InvoiceSonic stores your ABN once and adds it to every invoice automatically.

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