{"id":"F2025L01055","name":"A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Simplified Accounting Methods – Supermarket and Convenience Stores) Determination 2025","slug":"a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":442951,"registerId":"F2025L01055-fast-fetch-1775957861200","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Simplified Accounting Methods – Supermarket and Convenience Stores) Determination 2025","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nA New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Simplified Accounting Methods – Supermarket and Convenience Stores) Determination 2025\n\nI, Ben Kelly, Deputy Commissioner of Taxation, make the following instrument.\n\nDated   4 September 2025\n\nBen Kelly\n\nDeputy Commissioner of Taxation\n\n \n\nContents\n\n1  Name\n\n2  Commencement\n\n3  Authority\n\n4  Definitions\n\n5  Schedules\n\n6  Entities that may choose to use the simplified accounting method\n\n7  Simplified Accounting Method\n\nSchedule 1—Repeals\n\nA New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 Simplified GST Accounting Methods Determination (No. 29) 2015\n\n \n\n \n\n1  Name\n\n  This instrument is the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Simplified Accounting Methods - Supermarket and Convenience Stores) Determination 2025.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this instrument specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n \n\n- Commencement information\n- Column 1 Column 2 Column 3\n- Provisions Commencement Date/Details\n- 1. The whole of this instrument The day after this instrument is registered.\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under paragraph 123-5(1)(a) of the Act.\n\n4  Definitions\n\nNote: A number of expressions used in this instrument are defined in section 195-1 of the Act, including the following:\n\n(a) consideration;\n\n(b) GST-free;\n\n(c) GST return;\n\n(d) GST turnover;\n\n(e) input tax credit;\n\n(f) invoice;\n\n(g) net amount;\n\n(h) registered;\n\n(i) retailer;\n\n(j) simplified accounting method;\n\n(k) taxable supply;\n\n(l) tax period.\n\n  In this instrument:\n\nAct means the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999.\n\nadequate point-of-sale equipment means point-of-sale equipment that can identify and record:\n\n (a) a sale as being a GST-free supply or a taxable supply;\n\n (b) the total consideration received for all goods sold as GST-free supplies in a specified period; and\n\n (c) the total consideration received for all goods sold in a specified period.\n\n5  Schedules\n\n  Each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to this instrument is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this instrument has effect according to its terms.\n\n6  Entities that may choose to use the simplified accounting method\n\n  An entity may choose to use the simplified accounting method in section 7 to work out its net amount for a tax period, if:\n\n (a) the entity is registered throughout the tax period;\n\n (b) during the tax period, the entity is a retailer that mainly sells a range of food and other goods commonly sold at supermarkets or convenience stores;\n\n (c) less than 5% of the total consideration received for goods sold during the tax period is for goods that:\n\n (i) are sold as a taxable supply; and\n\n (ii) consist of, or include, goods that were sold to the entity as a GST-free supply;\n\n (d) the entity’s GST turnover does not exceed $2 million;\n\n (e) the entity possesses adequate point-of-sale equipment throughout the tax period; and\n\n (f) the entity is not a retailer that mainly sells fuel.\n\n7  Simplified Accounting Method\n\n (1) Where an entity chooses to use a simplified accounting method for a tax period under section 6, the net amount for the tax period must be worked out using the following formula:\n\n  GST minus Input tax credits\n\n  where:\n\n  GST is the sum of all of the GST for which the entity is liable on the taxable supplies that are attributable to the tax period.\n\n  Input tax credits is the amount worked out using the following method statement:\n\n  Step 1 - If the entity accounts on:\n\n (i) a cash basis – work out the total consideration the entity provided during the tax period for the goods they purchased; or\n\n (ii) a non-cash basis – work out the total consideration for those goods the entity purchased for which an invoice was issued, or any part of the consideration was provided, during the tax period.\n\n  Step 2 – Work out the total consideration received for goods the entity sells during the tax period that are GST-free supplies.\n\n  Step 3 – Work out the total consideration received for all goods the entity sells (taxable and GST-free) during the tax period.\n\n  Step 4 – Divide the step 2 result by the step 3 result.\n\n  Step 5 – Multiply the step 4 result by the step 1 result.\n\n  Step 6 – Subtract the step 5 result from the step 1 result.\n\n  Step 7 – Multiply the step 6 result by one-eleventh.\n\n  Step 8 – Work out the total input tax credits for all other creditable acquisitions and creditable importations the entity makes that are attributable under sections 29-10 and 29-15 of the Act to the tax period.\n\n  Step 9 – Add the step 8 result to the step 7 result.\n\n (2) However, the net amount for the tax period may be increased or decreased if the entity has any adjustments for:\n\n (a) supplies; and\n\n (b) acquisitions or importations included in step 8 of the input tax credits method statement for that period.\n\n (3) The following goods must not be included or taken into account in the calculations at steps 1 to 7 of the input tax credits method statement, but should be included or taken into account at step 8 of that statement:\n\n (a) goods not held by the entity for the purposes of sale or exchange in the ordinary course of business;\n\n (b) goods not part of the range of food and domestic goods commonly sold at supermarkets or convenience stores;\n\n (c) goods held by the entity in substantially greater quantity or variety than is common for supermarkets or convenience stores; or\n\n (d) alcoholic beverages.\n\n (4) If the entity’s GST return for a tax period, for which a choice to use this simplified accounting method is not in effect, takes into account an input tax credit for a purchase for an earlier tax period where the choice was in effect, the entity’s net amount for that earlier tax period must be increased by the amount of that credit.\n\n\n\n\nSchedule 1—Repeals\n\nA New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 Simplified GST Accounting Methods Determination (No. 29) 2015\n\n1  The whole of the instrument\n\nRepeal the instrument\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":6,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"This instrument replaces the 2015 simplified-methods determination (Schedule 1) and narrows and specifies the cohort eligible for the simplified method. New limits include a $2 million GST turnover cap, a requirement for adequate point-of-sale equipment, an exclusion for retailers that mainly sell fuel, and a <5% rule limiting certain resale situations (s6). It also carves out particular goods (including alcoholic beverages and non-range or unusually stockpiled items) from the ratio calculation, redirecting them to the general input-tax-credit treatment (s7(3))."},"complexity_factors":["Multi-step ratio-based input tax credit calculation (Steps 1–7) that requires aggregation of purchases and sales data (s7(1), Steps 1–7).","Eligibility gatekeeping with multiple cumulative conditions (registration, retailer type, turnover cap, POS capability, exclusion for fuel retailers, and the <5% resale-of-GST-free-goods rule) (s6).","Technical definition and operational requirement for adequate point-of-sale equipment capable of categorising GST-free versus taxable sales (definition of adequate point-of-sale equipment in s4; s6(e)).","Specified exclusions from the ratio calculation (goods not held for sale, non-range items, atypical stock volumes, alcoholic beverages) that must instead be treated under the general input credit rules (s7(3)).","Interaction with substantive attribution rules in the GST Act (input tax credits attributable under ss 29-10 and 29-15) for step 8, creating cross-references to the Act (s7(1) Step 8).","Adjustment and correction mechanics that can increase or decrease net amount if adjustments are needed for supplies or acquisitions, and a rule addressing reclaiming credits across periods when the method is turned off (s7(2); s7(4)).","Repeal of the prior 2015 simplified-methods determination, which raises transitional and compliance-readiness considerations for affected entities (Schedule 1)."],"plain_english_summary":"This determination creates a simplified GST accounting option for small supermarkets and convenience stores. Eligible, registered retailers with GST turnover ≤ $2 million, adequate point-of-sale equipment, not mainly selling fuel, and meeting a <5% resale-of-GST-free-goods test may use a ratio-based method to calculate input tax credits and their net GST for a tax period. It changes the mechanical calculation of GST liabilities for covered retailers and repeals the prior 2015 simplified-methods instrument."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This is a straightforward re-enactment/replacement of an existing simplified accounting method determination. The scope remains tightly focused on providing an optional streamlined GST calculation method for small supermarket and convenience store retailers, consistent with the original intent of the 2015 instrument being repealed."},"complexity_factors":["9-step calculation method with nested dependencies (each step relies on previous steps)","Multiple eligibility conditions in section 6 (6 separate criteria including percentage thresholds and equipment requirements)","Cross-references to primary legislation (A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999, specifically sections 29-10, 29-15, and 123-5)","Defined terms imported from parent Act (12 terms listed in section 4)","Exclusion rules in subsection 7(3) requiring goods to be excluded from steps 1-7 but included in step 8","Adjustment provisions in subsection 7(2) and 7(4) creating conditional modifications to the base calculation","Cash vs non-cash accounting basis bifurcation in Step 1"],"plain_english_summary":"This rule lets small supermarkets and convenience stores use a simplified, formula-based method to estimate GST owed and input tax credits instead of tracking every item. It replaces the 2015 determination with updated rules for modern retail systems.\n\nEligible businesses must be GST-registered, mainly sell supermarket-type goods, have annual turnover ≤ $2 million, POS that distinguishes GST-free vs taxable sales, not primarily sell fuel, and have under 5% taxable resale of GST-free purchases. It reduces compliance costs while keeping reasonable tax accuracy."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st","history":"/api/acts/a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st/history","analysis":"/api/acts/a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/a-new-tax-system-goods-and-services-tax-simplified-accounting-methods-supermarket-and-convenience-st/documents"}}