Free carpenter invoice template.Carpenter prices already in it.
Six carpentry line items at real 2026 Australian prices, already typed. GST worked out, your ABN checked, every element the ATO requires. Free, nothing uploaded.
Six carpentry line items at real 2026 Australian prices, already typed. GST worked out, your ABN checked, every element the ATO requires. Free, nothing uploaded.
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ABN — — —
TAX INVOICE
#1001
Bill to
Customer
Dates
Issued 18/09/2026
Due 02/10/2026
| Description | Qty | Unit | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labour, first-fix or second-fix carpentry | 1 | $85.00 | $85.00 |
| Day rate, one chippy, own tools | 1 | $550.00 | $550.00 |
| Hang and fit an internal door including furniture | 1 | $180.00 | $180.00 |
| Supply and install skirting and architrave, per lineal metre | 1 | $25.00 | $25.00 |
| Build a merbau deck, supply and install, per square metre | 1 | $250.00 | $250.00 |
| Frame a stud wall, supply and install, per lineal metre | 1 | $120.00 | $120.00 |
Total price includes GST.
Live preview. This is exactly what prints.
Starting figures, not gospel. Yours depend on your city, your overheads and the job.
ServiceSeeking's carpenter guide of 23 February 2026 puts the average charge-out at $85.42 an hour from quotes on its platform, with 62% quoted hourly and 20% by the day. Its average day rate is $617.37, which works out at $77.17 an hour over eight hours. The band brackets both. For contrast, the Fair Work minimum for a CW3 carpenter under the Building and Construction General On-site Award is $31.79 an hour permanent and $39.03 casual from 1 July 2026, which is a wage, not a charge-out rate.
| Common carpentry line item | Typical price |
|---|---|
| Labour, first-fix or second-fix carpentry | $85 per hour |
| Day rate, one chippy, own tools | $550 to $700 |
| Hang and fit an internal door including furniture | $180 to $320 |
| Supply and install skirting and architrave, per lineal metre | $25 to $45 |
| Build a merbau deck, supply and install, per square metre | $250 to $400 |
| Frame a stud wall, supply and install, per lineal metre | $120 to $200 |
| Supply and install a built-in wardrobe, standard 2.4m opening | $1,200 to $2,500 |
| Site rubbish removal and tip fees | At cost plus 10% |
Hourly and day rate: ServiceSeeking carpenter pricing guide, 23 February 2026 (average $85.42 an hour, average day $617.37, 62% hourly and 20% daily). Wage floor for contrast: Fair Work Building and Construction General On-site Award MA000020, CW3 rate effective 1 July 2026, $31.79 permanent and $39.03 casual including the 25% loading and the industry allowance. Line items are the researched labour rate times a realistic time plus materials at trade cost. Licence thresholds: nsw.gov.au general building work ($5,000 including GST), QBCC 'when you need a licence' ($3,300), Victoria's $10,000 registration and major domestic building contract threshold, WA's $20,000. GST: ATO tax invoices and ATO NDIS guidance. No call-out range is given because carpenters do not generally charge one.
Licence and certificates
Carpentry itself is not separately licensed the way electrical and plumbing are, but the residential building work you do it inside almost always is, and the threshold varies by state. NSW requires a contractor licence for residential building work over $5,000 including GST in labour and materials. Queensland's QBCC threshold is $3,300 including labour, materials and GST. Victoria requires registration as a building practitioner for domestic building work of $10,000 or more, and a written major domestic building contract at the same figure. WA sets builder registration at $20,000. South Australia and the ACT license by type of work rather than one dollar figure. Structural work, restumping and demolition are off limits unlicensed regardless of value. Put the licence number on the invoice in any state where you hold one.
GST on carpentry work
Carpentry is a taxable supply, so 10% GST applies to labour and to timber you supply. Two things catch chippies out. First, if the client supplies the timber and you invoice labour only, you still charge GST on the labour. Second, home modification work funded under an NDIS participant's plan, such as a ramp, widened doorways or grab rail blocking, can be GST-free, but only where all four ATO conditions are met: the plan is in effect, the support is in the plan, there is a written agreement, and the supply is one the Health Minister has determined to be GST-free.
Payment terms that get paid
Small domestic jobs are paid on completion, 7 to 14 days. Anything with a real materials bill takes a deposit, and NSW caps the deposit at 10% of the contract price for residential work. Larger jobs run on progress claims tied to stages, frame up, lock up, fit off. As a subcontractor to a builder you are covered by the security of payment legislation: 20 business days after a payment claim in NSW, a maximum of 25 business days in Queensland with a 10 business day default if the contract is silent. Builders who ask for 45 day terms are asking for something the legislation does not have to give them.
Quoting without the argument
Quote the timber grade and the fixing method, not just the job. Merbau versus treated pine, or 90mm versus 70mm joists at 450 centres, is where a deck quote gets undercut and where a variation later gets argued. Name the species, the size, the spacing and the finish in the quote, then a client asking for an upgrade is asking for a variation with an obvious price.
It depends on the value of the job, not the task. Second-fix carpentry is residential building work in most states, so the state threshold applies. In Queensland that is $3,300 including labour, materials and GST, in NSW it is $5,000, in Victoria registration bites at $10,000, and in WA at $20,000. A single door hang is under every threshold. A whole-house second fix is over most of them. The threshold is the contract value, not the invoice value, so you cannot split one job across three invoices to stay under it.
Put it on as a materials line with your margin already in the price, and charge GST on it the same as the labour. Do not invoice it at cost as a favour and then feel it later. You are carrying the cash, the delivery, the wastage and the returns, so a margin on materials is normal and expected. Keep the supplier tax invoice, because that is what supports the GST credit you claim on the purchase. If the client insists on buying the timber, say so on the quote and price the labour on the assumption the right material shows up on time.
Give each extra its own line with its own date. A carpenter's invoice that reads as one large number for a fortnight of work invites a line-by-line argument at the end. One that lists Tuesday, hang laundry door, 1.5 hours, does not. If the extras are adding up, send a short interim invoice rather than saving them all for the final. Every state's security of payment regime is built on the idea of regular claims, and clients query a small amount far less than a large one that lands as a surprise.
Seven things for a sale under $1,000: that the document is intended to be a tax invoice, your identity, your ABN, the date it was issued, a description of the work including quantity and price, the GST amount payable, and which parts of the sale are taxable. At $1,000 or more you also need the buyer's identity or ABN. This tool fills all of them and blocks printing until they are there.
Carpentry itself is not separately licensed the way electrical and plumbing are, but the residential building work you do it inside almost always is, and the threshold varies by state. NSW requires a contractor licence for residential building work over $5,000 including GST in labour and materials. Queensland's QBCC threshold is $3,300 including labour, materials and GST. Victoria requires registration as a building practitioner for domestic building work of $10,000 or more, and a written major domestic building contract at the same figure. WA sets builder registration at $20,000. South Australia and the ACT license by type of work rather than one dollar figure. Structural work, restumping and demolition are off limits unlicensed regardless of value. Put the licence number on the invoice in any state where you hold one. Alongside the invoice you would normally issue: Home warranty or building indemnity insurance certificate where the job is over the state threshold, Timber and hardware warranties passed through to the owner, Termite management certificate where treated framing was installed, SWMS for any work with a risk of a fall over 2 metres.
Carpenter quote template
Same line items, set up as a quote.
Blank tax invoice
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Charge-out rate calculator
What your hour has to be worth.
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The hard part is the four that went out last month and never came back. BackOnTools raises the invoice off the finished job, takes the card payment on the link, and chases the late ones so you do not have to.
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