Is the 10% service charge subject to GST in Singapore?

Yes. For a GST-registered outlet, the service charge forms part of the value of the supply, so the 9% GST is calculated on the menu price plus the service charge. HelloBooks computes the stack in the correct order and posts service charge and GST to separate accounts.

How does HelloBooks handle GrabFood and Deliveroo commissions?

It decomposes each platform settlement into gross sales, commission (with input GST where the platform is GST-registered) and adjustments, posting each to the right account so your output GST is on gross sales and you recover input GST on the commission. The net payout reconciles to your bank feed.

Do I need to be GST-registered to run an F&B outlet?

Only once your taxable turnover crosses S$1 million (or you expect it to in the next 12 months). Many established outlets are registered; smaller ones may not be. HelloBooks works either way and flags when your rolling turnover approaches the registration threshold.

Singapore · Food & beverage

Accounting software for Singapore F&B businesses

POS reconciliation, service charge vs GST, delivery-platform commissions, food-cost tracking, and the IRAS GST F5 — built for Singapore restaurants, cafés and cloud kitchens.

SingaporeLast updated: 2026-07-10

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The short answer

Singapore F&B runs on thin margins and high transaction volume, and GST touches every cover. GST-registered outlets charge 9% GST, and most full-service venues add a 10% service charge — which is itself subject to GST, so the menu price, service charge and GST stack in a specific order that has to be right on every bill and in every return. Add POS batches, delivery-platform commissions from GrabFood, Deliveroo and foodpanda, and daily cash-and-card takings, and the reconciliation is where F&B books go wrong. HelloBooks reconciles the POS and platforms and prepares the GST F5 from the result.

The facts

Singapore food & beverage at a glance

Field	Value
Authority	Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) GST administered by IRAS.
GST rate	9% Standard-rated on dine-in and takeaway.
Service charge	Typically 10% Subject to GST; GST is computed on price + service charge.
Delivery platforms	Commission net of GST GrabFood, Deliveroo, foodpanda settle net of commission.
Registration threshold	S$1 million Compulsory; many established outlets are registered.
Typical books cadence	Daily POS + weekly platform High-volume reconciliation.

Rates and thresholds verified against IRAS as at 2026-07-10. Re-verify after each Singapore Budget.

Service charge and GST — the order matters

For a GST-registered full-service venue, the bill usually stacks as: menu price, plus 10% service charge, plus 9% GST calculated on the price-plus-service-charge subtotal. The service charge is part of the value of the supply, so GST applies to it too. Displaying or computing this in the wrong order under- or over-charges GST and confuses customers.

HelloBooks (and the POS integrations that feed it) computes the stack correctly and posts the service charge and GST to separate accounts, so your GST F5 output tax is right and your service-charge liability to staff is tracked separately.

POS and delivery-platform reconciliation

A single day generates cash, multiple card acquirers, e-wallets and several delivery platforms — each settling on its own schedule and net of its own fees. GrabFood, Deliveroo and foodpanda take a commission and pay you the balance, often days later. Booking only the bank deposits loses the gross sales and the input GST on commissions.

HelloBooks reconciles the POS Z-report to the takings and decomposes each platform payout into gross sales, commission and adjustments, so the GST F5 reflects gross sales and recoverable input tax, not just what landed in the bank.

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Singapore

GST & the IRAS GST F5

9% GST, the S$1M threshold, reverse charge and the F5 return.

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Singapore pricing

SGD billing, GST F5 preparation included on every paid plan.

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Accounting, GST, banking, inventory, AI assist.

HelloBooks prepares the IRAS GST F5 return from your ledger — standard-rated, zero-rated and exempt supplies, reverse charge on imported services, and input tax — plus Section 45 withholding tax on non-resident payments. For F&B it computes the menu-price + service-charge + GST stack correctly and reconciles POS Z-reports against daily takings.