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Landscaper Invoice Template NZFree, GST-Compliant & Ready to Use

A free landscaping invoice template for NZ sole traders and small landscaping businesses. Covers machine hire, plant and material supply, green-waste disposal, labour, and GST - for both one-off builds and recurring maintenance work. Or skip the template and use Invio to invoice straight from your phone.

No credit card • GST calculated automatically • Send from your phone

NZ Requirements

What Goes on a Landscaper Invoice in NZ

A GST-registered landscaper's invoice needs more than just a total. Here's what IRD requires and what your customer needs to see.

Your business details

  • Business name (or your name if sole trader)

  • GST number - same as your IRD number

  • Phone number and email

  • Physical or postal address

Invoice identifiers

  • Invoice number (sequential, for your records)

  • Invoice date

  • Payment due date

  • Bank account for payment

Job and line items

  • Description of work, e.g. "Retaining wall + garden makeover - front and side yard"

  • Machine/plant hire (digger, mulcher, etc.) as its own line

  • Materials at cost + markup - soil, bark, pavers, plants

  • Labour hours × crew rate

  • Green-waste or spoil disposal fee

GST breakdown

  • Subtotal (ex GST)

  • GST amount at 15%

  • Total amount payable (inc GST)

  • Customer name and address (required for invoices over $1,000)

Not GST-registered yet?

If your landscaping business earns under $60,000/year you do not have to register for GST. Leave out the GST number and GST lines - just show your total. Once you cross the threshold, registration is compulsory within 21 days. Check the full NZ invoice requirements guide if you are unsure.

Sample Invoice

What a Landscaping Invoice Looks Like

A realistic example for a retaining wall and garden makeover job in Hamilton.

INV-0071.pdf

Kauri Landscapes Ltd

45 Peachgrove Road
Hamilton East, Hamilton 3216
GST Number: 121-556-789
027 668 214

Tax Invoice

Invoice No.

INV-0071

Issue Date

23 Jul 2026

Due Date

6 Aug 2026

Billed To

Grant & Nadia Sallis

12 Riverlea Road
Hamilton East, Hamilton 3216

Job Reference

Retaining wall + garden makeover - front and side yard

Mini excavator hire

2-day hire, 1.7t digger for excavation and levelling

Rate

$220.00

Qty

2

Amount

$440.00

Labour - landscaping crew (2 person)

Excavation support, wall build, planting, clean-up

Rate

$130.00

Qty

14.0

Amount

$1,820.00

Retaining wall blocks & drainage

Firth Keystone blocks + geotextile, materials at cost + 20% margin

Rate

$1,650.00

Qty

1

Amount

$1,650.00

Topsoil & garden mix

12m³ delivered and spread

Rate

$85.00

Qty

12

Amount

$1,020.00

Plants & mulch

Native planting + bark mulch, materials at cost + 20% margin

Rate

$640.00

Qty

1

Amount

$640.00

Green waste & spoil removal

3 trailer loads to the transfer station

Rate

$95.00

Qty

3

Amount

$285.00

Payment Details

Please pay to:
Kauri Landscapes Ltd
04-2189-0453671-00
Reference: INV-0071

Subtotal

$5,855.00

GST (15%)

$878.25

Total Due

$6,733.25

Want this pre-filled with your business name, crew rates, and GST number?

Step-by-Step

How to Fill Out a Landscaper Invoice

Follow these steps after every job to get paid faster and keep plant hire, materials, and labour clearly split.

1

Fill in your business details

Add your trading name, GST number, address, phone, and email at the top. If you trade as Kauri Landscapes Ltd, use that - not your personal name. Your GST number must appear on every invoice if you are GST-registered.

2

Set the invoice number and dates

Use a sequential number - INV-0071 after INV-0070. The invoice date is today. Set a due date (14 days is standard for larger builds; maintenance work is often invoiced weekly or fortnightly on a shorter term). Consistent numbering helps if you ever need to prove payment history.

3

Add the customer details

For invoices over $1,000 you must include the customer's name and address. Do this on every job - most landscaping invoices cross that threshold once machine hire and materials are included.

4

List plant hire and material supply separately from labour

Split machine/plant hire, materials (soil, bark, pavers, plants) at cost + markup, and crew labour into their own lines. If you quoted a separate design fee, keep that as its own line too rather than folding it into the build cost.

5

Add green-waste or spoil disposal

If you removed spoil, old plants, or green waste, add it as its own line - flat fee or per-load - rather than absorbing it into your labour rate. It is a real cost, not a hidden markup, and the customer should see it.

6

Calculate GST and show it clearly

GST applies to the full invoice, including any hired-in machinery you are passing through. Multiply your subtotal by 0.15 and show subtotal, GST, and total as three separate lines. Use the free Invio GST calculator at /gst-calculator-nz if you want a quick check before sending.

7

Add your bank account details and send

Include your bank account number and ask the customer to use your invoice number as the payment reference. For one-off builds, send it as soon as the job is finished. For maintenance contracts, set the schedule up once and let it repeat automatically.

Watch Out For

Common Landscaper Invoice Mistakes

These mistakes slow payment, create disputes, or put you offside with IRD. Easy to fix once you know them.

No GST charged on hired-in plant

e.g. "Digger hire passed on at cost, no GST added"

If you are GST-registered, charge 15% GST on the full invoice - including any machinery or materials you are passing through. You claim back the GST the hire company charged you separately; it is not deducted from what you charge the customer.

Materials and labour lumped together

e.g. "Retaining wall job - $4,750"

List plant hire, materials (soil, blocks, plants), and labour as separate lines. Many customers - and any that need to claim GST back - will not approve payment until it is properly itemised.

No green-waste or disposal fee shown

e.g. Spoil and old plants removed with no line item for it

Add disposal as its own line - flat fee or per-load. It is a genuine cost and should not be hidden inside your labour rate.

Maintenance work invoiced ad-hoc

e.g. Mowing invoices sent whenever you remember to raise one

Set maintenance clients up on a recurring invoice schedule instead. It is one less thing to remember, and the client gets a predictable bill.

No bank details on the invoice

e.g. Invoice sent with no payment instructions

Always include your bank account number and ask for the invoice number as the payment reference. No bank details means slow or lost payments.

Sending the invoice weeks after a multi-day job

e.g. Invoice sent 3 weeks after a 4-day retaining wall build

Invoice promptly once the job is done, or bill in stages for longer builds. See our guide on chasing overdue invoices at /chase-overdue-invoices-nz if one is already late.

Line Item Guide

Landscaper-Specific Line Items

These are the line items most NZ landscapers use. Rates vary with plant availability, material cost, and region.

Landscaping crew labour

$110 - $150/hr

Ex GST, for a 2-person crew. Solo operators often bill $55 - $75/hr.

Machine/plant hire

$150 - $350/day

Diggers, mulchers, and similar. Usually passed through at cost, sometimes with a small margin.

Plant & material supply

Cost + 20 - 30%

Soil, bark, pavers, retaining wall blocks, plants. List at your sell price - you don't need to show your cost.

Green waste & spoil disposal

$80 - $200/load

Flat fee or per trailer/skip load, depending on volume and transfer station fees.

Design consultation

$75 - $120/hr or flat fee

For jobs where design is quoted separately from the build.

Maintenance visit

$60 - $110/visit

Mowing and garden upkeep - well suited to a recurring invoice schedule.

GST

15% on all items

Applied to the full subtotal, including hired-in plant, if you are GST-registered. Use the free /gst-calculator-nz to check.

GST example: Landscaper A bills $130/hr crew labour, plant hire passed through at cost, and materials at cost + 20% margin. For a 6-hour job with $220 in machine hire and $480 in materials: ($780 + $220 + $576) = $1,576 subtotal. GST: $236.40. Total: $1,812.40. Use the GST calculator to check your numbers before sending.

Invio vs Templates

Why Invio Beats Word and Excel for Landscapers

Templates are a fine starting point. But most landscapers move to proper software once they are juggling builds and maintenance rounds at the same time.

Invoice from the truck after the job

Fill in plant hire, materials, and crew hours before you pack up the trailer. No paperwork to reconstruct at the end of the week.

GST calculated automatically

Invio does the 15% for you across labour, materials, and any plant hire you're passing through - no spreadsheet formula to accidentally break.

Saved clients and standard rates

Store your repeat customers and standard crew and hire rates. Next job for the Sallis family? Two taps and the invoice is half-filled already.

Recurring invoices for maintenance work

Set a mowing or garden-upkeep client up once and let the invoice go out automatically every visit - no more remembering to bill for a fortnightly round. Invio Pro also sends automatic reminders when one-off invoices go overdue.

IRD-compliant every time

Every Invio invoice has the right fields: GST number, date, breakdown, customer address when required. You can't accidentally send a non-compliant invoice.

PDF ready to email or print

Send the invoice by email directly from Invio, or download a clean PDF if the customer or body corporate prefers paper.

Ready to invoice your next landscaping job properly?

Start with the free NZ invoice template, or sign up to Invio and send your first landscaping invoice in under two minutes - GST calculated, crew rates saved, and the PDF ready to email before you leave the site.

FAQ

Landscaper Invoice FAQs

Common questions from NZ landscapers about invoicing, GST on plant hire, and getting paid.

Do I need to add GST to my landscaping invoice?
If your landscaping business has annual turnover over $60,000, you must be GST-registered and charge 15% GST on the full invoice - labour, plant hire, and material supply included. Show it clearly: subtotal, GST amount, and GST-inclusive total as three separate lines. If you are under the threshold and not registered, leave out the GST lines entirely.
What's the minimum information a landscaper invoice needs in NZ?
For invoices over $200, your invoice needs your business name, GST number (if registered), invoice date, description of the work, and the GST treatment or amount. For invoices over $1,000, you also need the customer name and address. See the full breakdown at invio.co.nz/tax-invoice-requirements-nz.
Do I charge GST on hired machinery I am passing through to the client?
Yes. If you are GST-registered, you charge 15% GST on the full amount you bill the customer, including any digger, mulcher, or truck hire you are passing through - even though the hire company already charged you GST on their invoice to you. There is no double GST: you claim that hire-company GST back as input tax on your own GST return, and separately charge output tax on your invoice to the customer.
How do I invoice for plant and material supply separately from labour?
List them as their own lines rather than folding everything into one "landscaping - $X" total. Typical split: machine/plant hire (digger, mulcher), materials at cost + markup (soil, bark, pavers, retaining wall blocks, plants), and labour (your crew's time). This makes the invoice easier to check against the quote and easier for the customer to understand what they paid for.
Should maintenance contracts be invoiced differently from one-off jobs?
Yes - a one-off build (retaining wall, new garden, planting) is usually a single detailed invoice once the job is done. A maintenance contract (weekly or fortnightly mowing and garden upkeep) is better set up as a recurring invoice that goes out automatically each visit, rather than something you have to remember to raise manually. Invio supports recurring invoices for exactly this.
How do I charge for green waste disposal?
Most landscapers charge either a flat disposal fee per job or a per-load/per-trailer rate for green waste and spoil removal - typically $80 to $200 depending on volume and transfer station fees. List it as its own line rather than absorbing it into your labour rate, so the customer can see it is a real cost, not a markup.
Do I need a building consent for retaining walls or decks?
Some landscaping work - larger retaining walls, decks, or anything affecting drainage or a building's structure - may need a building consent from the local council. That is usually arranged by the client or head contractor, but if you built a retaining wall as part of the job, referencing the consent number on your invoice (the same way an electrician references a Certificate of Compliance) is good practice. If you are unsure whether a specific job needs consent, check with the council before you start - the thresholds vary by wall height and loading.
How much deposit should I ask for on a landscaping design and build job?
A deposit of 20-30% before ordering materials or booking machine hire is common practice, especially for jobs involving retaining walls, pavers, or bulk soil and plants where you are paying suppliers upfront. State the deposit on your quote, then reference it on the final invoice (e.g. "Less: deposit paid $800.00"). For a separate design fee, some landscapers credit part or all of it against the build cost if the client goes ahead.
Get Started

Invoice Every Landscaping Job Correctly, From Your Phone

Invio is free for sole traders. Set up your crew rates once, send GST-compliant invoices from site, and let recurring billing handle your maintenance rounds automatically - free on your first 3 invoices, unlimited on Pro.

Free to start • GST calculated automatically • No credit card required