Home

Guide · Tanzania · Published 2026-10-11

How to invoice in Tanzania: what to include

The fields a Tanzania invoice needs, how to number and date it, when to show VAT, the e-invoicing rules, and how to fix a mistake with a credit note.

  • TSh TZS
  • VAT 18%
  • TIN
  • A4
  • English

Figures and dates in this guide come from public sources as of 2026-10-11 and have not yet been checked against Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA)'s current publications. Confirm anything you rely on.

What every invoice must show

  • A fiscal receipt or invoice from an EFD (electronic fiscal device); an ordinary PDF is not a fiscal receipt.
  • Withholding VAT of 3% on goods and 6% on services applies where the buyer is a designated agent, from 1 July 2025. Since 1 July 2026 the supplier keeps 15% (goods) or 12% (services) of the VAT, and the agent pays the withheld amount to TRA within 10 days.

Numbering, keeping and correcting invoices

Section 90 of the VAT Act (Cap. 148 R.E. 2023) requires fiscal receipts and tax invoices to be serially numbered, true and correct. They must be issued no later than the day VAT becomes payable. Only one original exists; a registered customer who loses it gets a copy marked as such.

To change a sale, issue an adjustment note (credit or debit note) under section 91. It shows the date, your TIN and VAT registration number (VRN), the event and the supply it relates to, and the effect on the VAT. Buyers lose input tax that is not claimed within six months of the invoice date.

Tax records may be kept in Kiswahili or English (Tax Administration Act s.37). Keep invoices, adjustment notes and the VAT account for at least five years from the end of the tax period, or longer while an audit, objection or appeal is open (VAT Act s.93; Tax Administration Act s.43). Electronic records need a primary data server in Tanzania.

Failing to keep proper documents costs 1 currency point a month for an individual and 10 for a company (Tax Administration Act s.88). One currency point has been TSh 20,000 since 1 July 2024.

Electronic invoicing in Tanzania

Every seller must issue a fiscal receipt unless TRA has excluded them (Tax Administration Act s.44), and an electronic fiscal device is compulsory once annual turnover reaches TSh 11 million.

Sources

How this guide was made

Written from published tax-authority guidance and reviewed on 2026-10-11. Everything here is indicative rather than a ruling on your circumstances, and rules change. Confirm anything you rely on with Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) before acting on it, and tell us if you find something out of date so we can correct it.

This guide explains the rules in general terms and is not tax advice for your circumstances. Confirm your position with a qualified adviser or with Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA).