InvoiceNow Singapore: What are the Benefits and How to Get Started

If you’ve got a Singapore business, you may have heard of InvoiceNow Singapore¹, and crucially, the GST InvoiceNow requirement² which is starting to be rolled out throughout 2025/6.

This guide looks at the overarching goals of InvoiceNow, why it is important for Singapore businesses and the benefits you can expect. We’ll dive into details on how to register, and also give you a handy timeline for businesses to take note of in order to stay compliant with the regulator’s requirements for adopting InvoiceNow.

While you’re thinking about streamlining your business finances, we’ll also touch on how Wise Business can fit into your company’s efforts to lower costs, digitalise payments, and adopt InvoiceNow.

What is InvoiceNow?

In short, InvoiceNow is a nationwide e-invoicing network for Singapore, which operates on the open standard Peppol framework. It’s an Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system which allows different business finance systems to directly transmit invoices in a digital format.

This means that - unlike with a PDF invoice - your customer will not need to key in the details from your invoice to their accounting system. Instead, the information can sync automatically. The same goes for your business when you receive an invoice from a supplier. This direct transmission reduces the time it takes to manage and reconcile your accounts, and can also cut costs and potential errors.

InvoiceNow is being rolled out by IMDA - Infocomm Media Development Authority - which is the authority responsible for developing and regulating the infocomm and media sectors in Singapore³. It is initially being used for business to business invoices, and invoices which include government agencies such as IRAS.

If you’re invoicing the government for goods or services, you’ll also need to use the Singapore InvoiceNow system and format.

Benefits of InvoiceNow

At the point of writing, InvoiceNow is not mandatory for all businesses.

However, it is being rolled out to voluntarily GST registered companies at present, and looks set to expand to all businesses over time.

So what are the benefits you can expect when this system reaches you?

Some of the InvoiceNow benefits include:

• Simpler payment processes, which can mean getting paid quicker by customers and clients
• Reduced manual handling of invoices and payments, which can save time, money and potential errors
• Reduction of invoice storage, retrieval and delivery costs through the unified approach to the invoicing system

Cut the costs of invoicing in foreign currencies with Wise Business

InvoiceNow is being brought online in Singapore to help cut down administration and costs when processing business invoices.

Wise Business may also be a handy tool when streamlining your payment processes, particularly when working across currencies.

Wise Business can help Singapore businesses in their digital transformation initiatives, streamlining expense management, making paying invoices simple even with foreign currencies, and reducing the potential errors and costs involved with manually processing payments.

Learn more about Wise Business

What is the GST InvoiceNow requirement?

Now for the obvious question: is InvoiceNow mandatory in Singapore, and what does this mean for GST compliance?

Ultimately, GST-registered businesses will use InvoiceNow to send invoice data to IRAS for tax administration. However, the requirements are not effective right away. Instead, InvoiceNow is being rolled out in the following adoption phases²:

Some businesses are exempt from InvoiceNow GST registration, including:

• Overseas entities
• Overseas vendors that are registered under the Overseas Vendor Registration regime
• Businesses registered under the Reverse Charge regime

📄 Bear in mind that you will still need to comply with all of your usual duties regarding tax and GST reporting once InvoiceNow is live for your business. However, this unified system can make the process far easier, quicker and less prone to manual errors which can be costly to fix.

How to connect to InvoiceNow

If you’re preparing for your first InvoiceNow login, you’ll need to follow the InvoiceNow connection information available from IMDA. Here’s an outline of the steps to take, depending on the circumstances of your business.

Newly incorporated businesses which activated Corppass after 1 Apr 2024 can get complimentary InvoiceNow services for one-year from an IMDA approved InvoiceNow Accelerate Solution Provider. Just look out for notification from IMDA to tell you what to do to register with your preferred provider.

SMEs with an existing accounting or finance solution will need to check if the existing provider is Peppol-ready and listed on IMDA’s pre-approved provider list. Assuming the provider is already IMDA approved, they can activate the InvoiceNow feature on your existing solution, and you can use InvoiceNow right away.

Large enterprises can get in touch with a pre-approved IMDA Access Point Provider which can support your business to connect to the Peppol Network in the most cost effective way.

Many government vendors already use InvoiceNow, and this system is being rolled out to all vendors in the next few years.

FAQs

Does my business still need to file GST returns to IRAS if I adopt InvoiceNow?

Yes. Businesses still need to fulfil their obligations to IRAS even once InvoiceNow is live. The InvoiceNow process can make this easier to manage, and help cut down on errors and administration.

Are there any grants or support available for acquiring InvoiceNow solutions?

IMDA is running regular business briefings which are available to businesses implementing InvoiceNow. There are also FAQ documents online, and specific business types including new businesses and large enterprises will also be given details of how to get extra support for sign up. Look out for information from IMDA which will be sent directly to your registered business address.

How is InvoiceNow different from a PDF e invoice?

With a PDF invoice, the recipient will need to manually key in all of the payment information to their own accounting system upon receipt. This can be prone to errors and takes time - which means it costs more. InvoiceNow removes the duplication of effort, by allowing finance systems to ‘talk’ to each other, and directly transmit information from business to business.

Conclusion

InvoiceNow is being rolled out to Singapore businesses to make invoicing processes frictionless. As an EDI system, InvoiceNow allows business finance systems to communicate directly through standardised format invoices which can reduce manual handling and make invoicing and accounting processes less prone to errors. This can make it easier to get paid by others, and cut the costs of managing your business finances overall.

As InvoiceNow is being gradually rolled out to newer businesses in 2024/5, with plans to sign up all businesses over time, being on the front foot is a smart move.

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Sources checked on 18 February 2025