Taxes - Singapore

In Singapore, GST (Goods and Services Tax) applies to most goods and services at different rates. These include the standard GST rates of 9% and 8%, a zero-rated GST of 0%, and tax-exempt supplies. To apply GST correctly, each item is assigned a tax category, which links it to the right tax code and GST rate. When you add the item to a transaction, the GST rate is applied automatically based on the item’s tax category and the customer’s billing address. This ensures the correct GST treatment for both local and overseas sales.

Enable GST

If you didn’t enable GST when setting up Zoho Billing, you can enable it later. To enable:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
Hover over Is your business registered for GST? and toggle it to Yes, and complete the following fields:
- GST Registration Number: Enter your 10-digit GST number.
- Reporting Period: Choose Monthly, Quarterly, or Yearly.
- Tax Basis: Select Accrual if you report income and expenses when they happen, or Cash if you report them when money is received or paid.
- Tax Return Start Date: Select the start date for your reporting period based on your organisation’s fiscal year. Your first tax return will be generated from this date.
Click ENABLE GST.

GST will now be enabled for your organisation.

Tax Rates

Default Tax Rates

Once GST is enabled, the following GST rates will be available by default in the Singapore edition of Zoho Billing. These default tax rates cannot be deleted or marked as inactive. The available tax rates are listed below:

Tax Name	Code	Tax Percentage	Description
GST 0	ZP	0	Used for purchases with 0% GST.
GST 0	ZR	0	Used for sales with 0% GST.
GST 8	SR8	8	Used for sales with 8% GST.
GST 8	TX-8	8	Used for purchases with 8% GST.
GST 8	TXCA-8	8 Used when buying prescribed goods with 8% GST (Customer Accounting Applies)
GST 8	TXRC-TS-8	8	Used for imported services and LVG directly linked to taxable sales at 8% GST.
GST 9	BL	9	Used for expenses where GST is not claimable.
GST 9	IM	9	Used for importing goods with 9% GST.
GST 9	SRCA - S	9	Used when the supplier does customer accounting.
GST 9	SR	9	Used for standard-rated sales at 9% GST.
GST 9	TXCA	9	Standard-rated p
GST 9	TXRC-TS	9	Used for imported services and LVG directly linked to taxable sales at 9% GST.
GST 9	TX	9	Used for standard-rated supplies at 9% GST.

How Tax Rates Are Auto-Applied to Items in a Transaction

A tax rate is automatically assigned to an item in a transaction based on three key details:

Item’s Tax Category: When you create an item, you select its tax category (e.g., electronics, hardware, services). Based on the selected tax category, the GST rate that’s applicable to the item is determined.
Customer’s GST Eligibility: When you create a customer, you mark them as GST-eligible and enter the GST Registration Number. This helps determine whether GST should be charged and how it should be handled.
Customer’s Country/Region in Billing Address: You select the customer’s country or region in the billing address. This helps identify whether the transaction is local or overseas and ensures the correct GST rate is applied (e.g., 0%, 8%, 9%, or tax-exempt)

Based on these details, the correct GST rate is automatically applied to each item in a transaction.

Other Important Considerations on How Tax Rate Is Applied

In Singapore, local customers pay GST on standard-rated supplies, including default product, electronics, hardware, telecommunication services, and professional services, at different rates like 0%, 8%, or 9%, depending on the tax category.
Financial services and the import or local supply of Investment Precious Metals (IPM) are exempt from GST.
Overseas customers are charged 0% GST for exports across all tax categories.
Singapore-registered customers who buy Prescribed Goods (such as Blackberry devices, memory sticks, tablets, and smartphones) with a sale value over $10,000 must pay 9% GST under Customer Accounting.

Create a New Tax Rate

To create a new tax rate:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose Tax Rates.
Click + New Tax in the top right corner.
In the New Tax page, complete the following fields:
- Tax Name: Enter the tax name.
- Rate(%): Enter the tax percentage.
- This tax is a compound tax: Check this if there’s an additional tax on top of this one.
Click Save.

The new tax will now be created.

Create Tax Rates in Bulk

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose Tax Rates.
Click the + New Tax dropdown, and select Create Taxes in Bulk.
In the Create Taxes in Bulk page, enter the tax names and rates. Click + Add Tax to add more tax rates.
Check This tax is a compound tax if the taxes have additional taxes applied on top.
Click Save.

The tax rates you’ve configured will now be created in bulk.

Tax Operations

Edit a Tax Rate

Note: You cannot edit the default tax rates.

To edit a tax rate:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, click Tax Rates.
Hover over the tax rate, click the dropdown to the right, and choose Edit.
In the Edit Tax page, make the required changes.
Click Save.

The tax rate will be updated with your changes.

View Details of a Tax Rate

You can only view the details of the default tax rates. To view details of a tax rate:

Go to Settings.
Select GST under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, click Tax Rates.
Hover over the default tax rate, click the dropdown on the right, and choose View.

You’ll now see the details of that tax rate.

View Associated Records of a Tax Rate

You can only view the associated records for the tax rates you created manually. To view the associated transactions of a tax rate:

Go to Settings.
Select GST under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, click Tax Rates.
Hover over the tax rate, click the dropdown on the right, and choose View Associated Records.

In the Associated Records panel on the right, you’ll view all sales transactions listed under the Sales dropdown.

Mark a Tax Rate as Inactive

Prerequisite:

Default tax rates cannot be marked as inactive.
A tax rate cannot be marked as inactive if it’s been used in any transaction. To mark it as inactive, first disassociate it from the transaction.

To mark a tax rate as inactive:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose Tax Rates.
Hover over the tax rate, click the dropdown to the right, and choose Mark as Inactive.

The tax rate will now be marked as inactive.

Mark a Tax Rate as Active

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose Tax Rates.
Hover over the inactive tax rate, click the dropdown to the right, and choose Mark as Active.

The inactive tax rate will now be marked as active.

Delete a Tax Rate

Prerequisite:

Default tax rates cannot be deleted.
A tax rate cannot be deleted if it’s been used in any transaction. To delete the tax rate, first disassociate it from the transaction.

To delete a tax rate:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes and Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose Tax Rates.
Hover over the tax rate, click the dropdown to the right, and choose Delete.
In the following popup, click OK to confirm deletion.

The tax rate will now be deleted.

Enable Taxes for Your Customer

After you enable Taxes for your organisation, you can enable it for your customers and enter their GST details to ensure the correct tax rate is applied when creating transactions. To enable taxes for your customer:

Go to Customers on the left sidebar.
Click + New in the top right corner to create a new customer, or select an existing customer and click Edit on the Customer Details page.
In the New Customer or Edit Customer page, complete the required fields.
Next, go to the Other Details tab. In the GST Registration field, check This customer has a GST registered business, and enter the customer’s GST registration number.
In the Address tab, under Billing Address, select the customer’s country in the Country/Region field.
Click Save.

Taxes will now be enabled for the customer.

When you now create a transaction for the customer, the tax rates will automatically apply based on each item’s category.

Modify GST Settings

Prerequisite: You cannot edit the settings if tax returns have already been generated. To make changes, delete the existing returns first.

After setting up GST for your organization, you can update the settings as needed. To modify GST settings :

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes & Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose GST Settings.
Under Is your business registered for GST?, make the required changes.
Click Save.

Your organization’s GST details will be updated with the new information.

Insight: Taxes on sales transactions are automatically calculated using the customer’s address and item categories, so there’s no need to select tax rates manually.

Configure the Tax Automation Address Preferences for Sales Transactions

You can set up tax automation address preferences for your sales transactions in Zoho Books. To do this:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes under Taxes & Compliance.
In the Taxes pane, choose Tax Automation Settings.
Under Tax Automation Address Preference for Sales Transactions, choose one of the following:
- Billing Address: Use your customer’s billing address to apply tax to the sales transaction.
- Shipping Address: Use your customer’s shipping address to apply tax to the sales transaction.
Click Save.

The tax will now be applied to your customer’s sales transactions based on the address you selected.

Disable Taxes

Note: You cannot disable taxes if tax returns have been generated. Delete the existing returns before you disable taxes.

To disable taxes:

Go to Settings.
Select Taxes and Taxes & Compliance.
Click GST Settings on the left sidebar.
Hover over Is your business registered for GST? and toggle it to No.
Click Save.

Taxes will now be disabled for your organisation.

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