GST on travel and meal expenses NZ

Do I charge GST on travel expenses?

If you are GST registered and you invoice a New Zealand client for travel you arranged as part of your service, you usually charge 15% GST on that line as well. IRD’s agency rules treat costs you incur as principal (you buy the flight or hotel to deliver your work, then recover the cost) as part of your taxable supply. Output tax sits on the full amount you charge, not only on your fee.

True disbursements paid as agent for the client can be different. Where the client is the legal recipient of the supply and you only pay on their behalf, the reimbursement may not be consideration for a supply by you. Most day to day contractor travel recharges are principal on charges, so GST applies. Detail on agency sits in IRD’s IS 21/01. Broader input tax context is in claiming GST NZ and the Business and Expenses GST category.

Zero rated or exempt services (for example some exports of services) can change the output tax answer. If your fee is zero rated, travel recharged as part of that supply may follow the same treatment. Check the supply characterisation before you assume 15%.

Claiming GST on travel you pay for

Separately, you may claim input tax on travel costs used in your taxable activity when NZ GST was charged and you hold taxable supply information. Typical claimable items include domestic flights, taxis, rental cars, mileage related running costs (business portion), and accommodation for overnight business trips.

• Business purpose: the trip must relate to making taxable supplies, not a private holiday dressed as work.
• NZ GST content: only claim GST that was actually charged. Many overseas suppliers charge no New Zealand GST.
• Apportionment: split mixed business and private days on a fair basis.
• Records: keep invoices, tickets, itinerary, and notes of business purpose for seven years.

Home to usual workplace commuting is generally private. Travel from a home office that is your main place of business to a client site can be business travel. Vehicle percentage claims are covered in claiming GST on a car or home office.

Meals: GST follows income tax

IRD’s meal expenses page is blunt: GST follows the same rules as income tax for meal expenses. If you cannot claim the expense, you cannot claim GST. The detailed position for self employed people is in IS 21/06 and the companion fact sheet.

For a self employed person or look through company owner, the cost of your own meals is usually private. Travelling between clients, working late, or staying overnight in a city with restaurants nearby does not by itself unlock a meal claim. You would still need to eat if you stayed home.

Limited exceptions for your own meals

IRD allows a narrow claim for extra meal costs when work forces you into remote or unusual conditions, for example remote accommodation with no realistic self catering option. Only the extra amount over your normal meal cost is in play, not the full restaurant bill. “Just working away” is not enough.

When a meal is entertainment (you host an existing or potential business contact), the 50% entertainment rules can apply instead. That path is separate from the private meal ban, and GST is claimed only on the deductible half. Deep dive: GST on entertainment expenses.

Employees and meal allowances

Employers can often deduct meal reimbursements or allowances paid under employment arrangements when staff travel overnight for work. GST claims need the actual taxable supply records for reimbursements of specific purchases. Flat daily meal allowances are not the same as reimbursing a named invoice. See claiming GST on staff reimbursements.

Light refreshments (tea, coffee, biscuits) provided to employees on premises during work hours are generally 100% deductible for income tax. Self employed owners stocking their own home office kitchen do not get that light refreshment break for themselves.

Travel meals vs entertainment while travelling

Keep these three patterns distinct:

• Sole trader eats alone on a business trip: usually no income tax deduction and no GST claim.
• Sole trader or company hosts a client dinner on the trip: usually 50% entertainment for income tax and GST.
• Employer reimburses an employee’s own meal while away overnight: often deductible for the employer; GST depends on reimbursement evidence and other rules.

Conference or training meals included in a course lasting four hours or more (excluding breaks) can be treated differently from a restaurant entertainment meal. Annotate receipts with who attended and why.

Domestic travel checklist

• Flights, ferries, and intercity buses for business: usually claimable GST if NZ GST was charged.
• Hotels, motels, and short stay accommodation for overnight work: usually claimable for the business nights.
• Taxis, rideshare, and rental cars for business legs: claimable to the business portion.
• Your own everyday meals: generally not claimable if you are self employed.
• Client entertainment meals: 50% path, not 100%.

Use the free GST calculator with 3÷23 when a receipt is GST inclusive. Filing steps sit in how to file your GST return in myIR.

Overseas travel and GST

Most overseas flights, hotels, taxis, and meals do not include New Zealand GST, so there is usually nothing to claim as NZ input tax on those foreign invoices. Travel insurance bought in New Zealand before you leave may include NZ GST.

Income tax still needs a business purpose test and fair apportionment if you mix holiday days. IRD’s overseas travel deductibility guidance and companion questions are the income tax starting point. GST on the NZ side mainly matters for NZ purchases and for any GST you charge when you invoice a NZ client for the trip cost.

Keep a diary: dates, contacts met, time on business vs personal, and how you split shared costs such as airfares. Companion travel is only deductible where the companion makes a substantial business contribution.

Mixed business and holiday trips

If the main purpose is business and personal sightseeing is incidental, you can often claim the business travel costs in full for income tax (subject to meal rules). If the main purpose is a holiday and a short courtesy meeting is incidental, none of the travel may be deductible. Where both purposes are real, apportion airfares and claim only business nights of accommodation.

GST follows the same split for any NZ GST content. Do not claim full input tax on a mixed trip invoice without documenting the percentage.

Worked GST examples

Example 1: Domestic hotel. You pay $230 including GST for one night in Wellington for a client meeting. GST is $30 (3÷23). If the night is wholly business, claim $30 input tax and hold the taxable supply information.

Example 2: Client dinner while away. Dinner with a prospective client costs $230 including GST. Entertainment rules typically allow 50%. Claimable GST is about $15, not $30. Annotate the receipt with the client name and purpose.

Example 3: Sole trader lunch alone. You buy a $18 lunch between sites in Auckland. Under IS 21/06 this is generally private. Do not claim the GST.

Example 4: Recharging travel. You invoice a client $500 plus GST for your fee and $200 plus GST for domestic flights you booked as principal. Output tax is 15% on $700. You claim input tax on the airline invoice if it includes NZ GST.

Records IRD expects

Keep invoices, tickets, bank evidence, reasons for the trip, dates, and an itinerary that shows business vs private time. Meal and entertainment claims need who was there. Retention is seven years. See GST record keeping and taxable supply information.

Common mistakes

• Claiming 100% GST on every meal because you were “on the tools” or out of town.
• Billing travel to clients without GST when the recharge is part of a taxable NZ supply.
• Claiming NZ GST on overseas hotel and flight invoices that never charged NZ GST.
• Mixing holiday and work days with no diary split.
• Treating flat meal allowances as GST claimable reimbursements.
• Forgetting the 50% entertainment cut on client meals during a work trip.

Related traps for contractors are summarised in navigating the GST minefield. Publisher path: About Us and Contact Us.

FAQs

Do I charge GST on travel expenses billed to a client?

Usually yes if you are GST registered and you incur the travel as principal, then recharge it as part of your taxable service. True agency disbursements paid for the client can be different. Overseas costs often have no NZ GST for you to reclaim, but your NZ invoice to the client may still need output tax.

Can a sole trader claim GST on meals while travelling for work?

Generally no. IRD treats ordinary meal costs as private. GST follows income tax: if you cannot deduct the meal, you cannot claim the GST. Narrow exceptions include limited extra costs in remote locations or unusual hours, and 50% entertainment when a client is a guest.

Can I claim GST on flights and hotels for business travel?

Yes, when the trip is for your taxable activity, the supplier charged NZ GST, and you hold taxable supply information. Apportion any private holiday portion. International flights and overseas hotels usually have no NZ GST to claim.

Do employee meal reimbursements allow a GST claim?

Often yes for the employer when reimbursing the exact cost of a business meal under the employment arrangement and you hold the supplier records. Flat allowances are not the same as reimbursements. Entertainment or FBT rules can still apply in some cases.

Is GST on a client dinner while travelling 50% or 100%?

If the meal involves an existing or potential business contact as a guest, entertainment rules usually limit the claim to 50% for income tax and GST. That is different from a sole trader’s own meal eaten alone while travelling, which is usually not claimable at all.

Last verified 29 August 2026 against Inland Revenue meal expenses guidance, IS 21/06 and fact sheet, IS 21/01 GST and agency, charging GST, claiming GST, business.govt.nz claiming expenses, GST guide IR375, and the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985. Ads may fund this free site. Not Inland Revenue. Not tax advice.