Goods and services tax (GST) is a tax on sales of goods and services that businesses collect from customers on behalf of the government. It operates differently in every country that has it: each one has its own thresholds, filing calendars, and penalty structures. GST can make up a considerable portion of a government’s annual revenue. Canada, for example, collected $52.5 billion Canadian dollars (CAD) in GST revenue in 2025.

If your business sells internationally, you need to track multiple GST deadlines. Missing any of them can carry costs that compound fast. Below, we’ll explain how GST filing periods work for both monthly and quarterly filers, what the payment process looks like once a deadline comes, and how obligations shift depending on your business type and whom you’re selling to.

Highlights

• GST registration thresholds and filing deadlines vary by country, so businesses that sell across borders must track multiple overlapping obligations.

• Monthly filers pay once every few weeks (often three to five weeks), while quarterly filers make larger lump-sum payments.

• Paying GST late leads to layered penalties in many jurisdictions, often with interest accruing daily. Repeat offenders typically face steeper rates than first-time late filers.

When is GST tax due for monthly vs. quarterly filers?

Certain thresholds often dictate whether you need to file monthly or quarterly. Monthly filing is typically required for businesses with higher turnovers, while quarterly filing is standard for smaller businesses that fall below these thresholds. Monthly filing means tighter deadlines on a rolling basis, while quarterly filing means larger payments fewer times each year.

This chart outlines whether you’ll need to file monthly or quarterly in different markets and what each set of deadlines entails.

What is the GST rate and who does it apply to?

GST doesn’t automatically apply to every business. You must register once you exceed a revenue threshold specific to each country you operate in. Here are the rules for different countries that apply GST.

Australia

The standard GST rate is 10%. A few categories, such as exports and basic food, are zero-rated (also called GST-free).

Any business or individual whose annual GST turnover is $75,000 Australian dollars (AUD) or more over a rolling 12-month period must register for GST. This includes:

• Australia-based businesses

• Foreign companies that sell digital products or services to Australian customers

• Foreign businesses that sell low-value goods under $1,000 AUD to Australian customers

• Online marketplaces (on behalf of their sellers)

Voluntary registration is available below the threshold.

Canada

The standard GST rate in Canada is 5%, with zero-rated exports and exemptions for basic groceries, prescription drugs, and certain medical devices.

Any business or individual whose taxable supplies exceed or are expected to exceed the registration threshold of $30,000 CAD in revenue during a rolling 12-month period must register for GST. This includes:

• Canada-based businesses

• Foreign companies that sell digital products or services to Canadian customers

• Online marketplaces (on behalf of their sellers)

Voluntary registration is available below the threshold. Note that Canada also operates harmonized sales tax (HST) in participating provinces, which combines GST with provincial sales tax at a higher combined rate.

India

India operates a tiered GST structure based on product category:

• 0% tax rate: Essential goods such as fresh food, education, and healthcare

• 5% tax rate: Household necessities such as packaged foods and transport services

• 18% tax rate: Many goods and services, including restaurants and software

• 40% tax rate: Luxury items, tobacco, and certain carbonated drinks

Businesses that sell services must register for GST once their annual aggregate turnovers exceed 2 million Indian rupees (INR). Those that sell goods must register once their turnovers exceed 4 million INR.

These include:

• India-based businesses

• Foreign companies that supply online information and database access services to Indian customers

• Ecommerce operators and sellers on those platforms

• Businesses engaged in interstate supply of goods or services, regardless of turnover

Some states impose higher thresholds for GST registration. Voluntary registration is available below the threshold.

New Zealand

The standard GST rate in New Zealand is 15%, with certain zero-rated financial services and exemptions for exports.

Any business or individual whose annual taxable supplies exceed the registration threshold of $60,000 New Zealand dollars (NZD) must register for GST. This includes:

• New Zealand–based businesses

• Foreign companies that supply remote services (including digital products) to New Zealand customers

• Online marketplaces (on behalf of their sellers)

Voluntary registration is available below the threshold.

Singapore

The standard GST rate in Singapore is 9%. Exports of goods and international services are zero-rated.

Any business whose annual taxable turnover exceeds $1 million Singapore dollars (SGD) in a 12-month period must register for GST. This includes:

• Singapore-based businesses

• Overseas companies that supply services and low-value goods to Singapore customers under the Overseas Vendor Registration (OVR) regime

• Online marketplaces (on behalf of their sellers)

Voluntary registration is available below the threshold.

Maldives

The Maldives operates a two-tier GST structure based on product category:

• 8% tax rate: General goods and services

• 17% tax rate: Tourism sector (i.e., hotels, guesthouses, resorts, vessels, and related tourism services)

Financial services, residential rent, and certain essential goods are exempt.

Any business that exceeds 1 million Maldivian rufiyaa (MVR) in annual taxable sales must register for GST. This includes:

• Maldives-based businesses that operate in the general or tourism sectors

• Foreign companies that provide taxable supplies within the Maldives

Voluntary registration is available below the threshold.

Papua New Guinea

The standard GST rate is 10%. Exports, international transport, and certain agricultural supplies are zero-rated.

Any business with an annual turnover greater than 250,000 Papua New Guinean kina (PGK) must register for GST. This includes:

• Businesses based in Papua New Guinea

• Foreign companies that supply goods or services within Papua New Guinea

Voluntary registration is available below the threshold.

How does GST payment work once a deadline arrives?

With GST, filing and paying are often separate steps. Some countries use a single lodgment that handles both, such as Australia’s business activity statement (BAS). Others link the return and payment but keep the mechanics of each distinct, such as India’s Goods and Services Tax Return-3B (GSTR-3B).

To determine how much you owe, you’ll need accurate records of every taxable transaction, exempt sale, and input tax credit you’re claiming. Payments infrastructure can help with this. Stripe Tax automatically calculates, collects, and records GST on transactions across multiple jurisdictions and generates transaction-level data that makes reconciliation at filing time considerably cleaner.

Once you’ve calculated the right amount, many major GST jurisdictions accept payment through the following methods:

• Direct bank transfer: Jurisdictions often take payment through electronic funds transfers (EFTs) or wire transfers. This is typically an easy option for businesses with established banking relationships in the relevant country.

• Business online banking: Payment is often possible through approved financial institutions. Exactly which institutions qualify varies by jurisdiction and sometimes by bank.

• Card payment: This can be credit or debit. Tax authorities often charge a processing fee on top of the amount owed.

Installment arrangements are available in some jurisdictions for businesses that can’t pay in full by the deadline. Terms vary, and interest usually still accrues.

What happens when GST is paid late?

Many GST systems impose layered penalties if GST is paid late. These penalties can compound quickly, and tax authorities track your penalty history.

Here’s how some countries approach late payments.

Australia

The Australian Taxation Office levies a general interest charge (GIC) on unpaid amounts. The GIC rate is updated quarterly. Within the last few years, it has often fallen within a 10%–12% range.

There’s also a failure-to-lodge penalty for returns not submitted on time, which has a flat unit structure that increases with how late the lodgment is. Businesses with histories of late lodgments (a common mistake with Australian GST) get less leniency when they request remission.

Canada

The Canada Revenue Agency can apply several penalties for GST or HST noncompliance. If you file late and owe money, a late filing penalty applies. That penalty is calculated as 1% of the amount owed, plus 25% of that amount multiplied by the number of complete months the return is overdue (up to a maximum of 12 months). No penalty applies if you have a nil or refund return.

Reporting information incorrectly carries a separate penalty of at least 5% of the incorrect amount, plus 1% per month until the information is corrected. On top of penalties, interest accrues on any overdue balance. In some unique circumstances, penalties and interest might be canceled or waived.

India

Late fees run 50 INR per day for returns with a tax liability, capped at 5,000 INR. Nil returns carry a lower fee of 20 INR per day. Interest on unpaid tax runs at 18% per annum.

Due to compounding daily interest structures, paying a large quarterly remittance even a week late can mean a high additional cost before you’ve even addressed the underlying filing. Tax authorities generally have some discretion and might remit penalties for first-time late filers with clean histories, but that goodwill isn’t unlimited or guaranteed.

Is GST due the same way across all business types?

The type of business you run, what you sell, and where you sell it all affect how and when GST is due. A digital service provider is often on a different schedule than a nonprofit.

Here’s how it works for some common business types:

• Digital service providers: Because digital products can be sold anywhere with an internet connection, digital service providers can exceed registration thresholds in multiple countries simultaneously. Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and Singapore all have GST rules that specifically address foreign digital service providers, each with its own filing calendar.

• Marketplaces and platforms: Marketplaces and platforms often operate under “deemed supplier” rules, which means the platform itself is liable for collecting and remitting GST on behalf of third-party sellers. This can create both a compliance obligation and a data problem for platforms.

• B2B sellers: B2B sellers often shift GST liability to the buyer through reverse charge mechanisms. When a US business sells services to a GST-registered Australian business, the Australian buyer must self-assess and remit the GST.

• Nonprofits and charities: Nonprofits frequently have different thresholds from commercial businesses, as well as access to special concessions. Australia’s higher registration threshold of $150,000 AUD for nonprofits is one example.

• Seasonal businesses: Companies with highly variable revenue sometimes have access to modified payment arrangements to avoid the mismatch between when GST is collected and when it’s due. Australia’s installment option for quarterly filers exists partly for this reason.

No single GST due date or process applies universally. Businesses that manage GST across currencies and geographies can use Stripe’s GST calculator to help with transaction-level calculations.

How Stripe Tax can help

Stripe Tax reduces the complexity of tax compliance so you can focus on growing your business. Stripe Tax helps you monitor your obligations and alerts you when you exceed a sales tax registration threshold based on your Stripe transactions. In addition, it automatically calculates and collects sales tax, value-added tax (VAT), and GST on both physical and digital goods and services—in all US states and in more than 100 countries.

Start collecting taxes globally by adding a single line of code to your existing integration, clicking a button in the Dashboard, or using our powerful application programming interface (API).

Stripe Tax can help you:

• Understand where to register and collect taxes: See where you need to collect taxes based on your Stripe transactions. After you register, switch on tax collection in a new state or country in seconds. You can start collecting taxes by adding one line of code to your existing Stripe integration or add tax collection with the click of a button in the Stripe Dashboard.

• Register to pay tax: Let Stripe manage your global tax registrations and benefit from a simplified process that prefills application details—saving you time and simplifying compliance with local regulations.

• Automatically collect tax: Stripe Tax calculates and collects the right amount of tax owed, no matter what or where you sell. It supports hundreds of products and services and is up-to-date on tax rules and rate changes.

• Simplify filing: Stripe Tax seamlessly integrates with filing partners, so your global filings are accurate and timely. Let our partners manage your filings so you can focus on growing your business.

Learn more about Stripe Tax, or get started today.