Animation Invoice Template - New Zealand

Yes, once your annual turnover exceeds NZD $60,000 you're required to register for GST with Inland Revenue and add the current 15% rate to every invoice, including animation and motion design work. Below that threshold, registration is voluntary, though many studios register early to reclaim GST paid on equipment and software. Once registered, your animation invoice must display your GST number, the GST amount charged separately from the subtotal, and whether pricing is GST inclusive or exclusive. Missing this breakdown is one of the most common compliance issues IRD flags during freelance and studio reviews.

List each production phase as its own line item — character design, storyboarding, 2D or 3D animation, background illustration, and post-production/color grading — rather than billing one lump sum. This mirrors how a typical invoice itemizes character design at an hourly rate alongside a fixed fee for a finished animation sequence. Breaking work into stages gives clients transparency into where budget is spent, makes partial payments easier to justify, and protects you if a project stalls partway through production. It also simplifies GST calculation, since the tax applies uniformly across every listed service on the invoice.

Most New Zealand animators mix pricing models depending on the task — hourly rates suit exploratory work like character design or storyboarding, while fixed per-second or per-deliverable rates work better for finished footage such as a completed 2D animation sequence. Charging per second of finished animation protects you against scope creep on complex scenes, whereas hourly billing rewards accuracy on revision-heavy design work. Whatever structure you choose, state the unit clearly on the invoice — hours, seconds of footage, or number of illustrations — so clients understand exactly what they're paying for and disputes are less likely.

Net 7 to Net 20 days is standard practice among New Zealand animation studios, with many freelancers requesting a 30–50% deposit before starting character design or storyboarding and the balance due on final delivery. For larger projects spanning several weeks, milestone invoicing — billing after storyboard approval, after rough animation, and after final post-production — improves cash flow and reduces the risk of chasing a large unpaid balance at project end. Whatever terms you set, state the due date and any late payment interest clearly on the invoice, since verbal agreements are difficult to enforce if a client disputes payment later.

Define how many revision rounds are included in your original quote — typically two to three — and add a separate line item, such as "Additional Revision Round," billed at your standard hourly rate for anything beyond that scope. Animation and motion graphics projects are especially prone to scope creep because feedback often arrives after storyboards, rough cuts, and final renders, each requiring different amounts of rework. Documenting this policy in your contract or quote before work begins means the extra charge on the invoice won't surprise the client, and it protects your time on labor-intensive tasks like voice-over resynchronization or color correction.

An animation invoice should specify whether the fee transfers full copyright ownership to the client or grants a limited license for specific use, such as a single marketing campaign or platform. Under New Zealand copyright law, the creator generally retains rights unless a written agreement states otherwise, so omitting this detail can leave both parties uncertain about how footage may be reused. Many studios add a line noting "includes full usage rights for digital and broadcast media" or charge an additional licensing fee for extended or exclusive use, which keeps commercial expectations clear and avoids disputes after the animation is delivered.

Animation services supplied to an overseas client are generally zero-rated for GST, meaning you still record the transaction on your invoice but charge 0% tax rather than the standard 15%, provided the client is outside New Zealand and the work is used offshore. State the currency clearly on the invoice, since many studios bill in NZD to avoid exchange-rate risk while others invoice in USD or GBP for larger international clients. Confirm bank transfer fees and SWIFT details in advance, as international payments to a New Zealand account often incur charges that should be factored into your quoted rate.

The most costly mistake is failing to itemize services clearly, which makes it difficult to justify charges when a client questions the bill or a payment dispute reaches the Disputes Tribunal, whose claims limit is currently $30,000. Other frequent errors include forgetting to add GST once registered, omitting a due date or late payment terms, and not specifying whether pricing covers unlimited revisions. Animators who skip a written scope of work before invoicing character design, storyboarding, or post-production often end up underbilling for extra rounds of feedback, since there's no documented baseline to invoice additional work against.