Every invoice needs a few core details: who it’s from, who it’s to, a unique number, a date, what you supplied, what it costs and how to pay. Some countries add their own requirements on top, especially if you charge VAT or GST. Here’s the full checklist.
Whatever country you’re in and whatever you sell, these are the details that make a document a proper invoice rather than a friendly note asking for money. Leave one out and you risk a delayed payment, a confused accounts team or a record that won’t stand up if a tax office ever asks.
The invoice number is how you and your client refer to the bill in emails, remittance notes and bank references. Without one, matching a payment to the right job gets messy fast. Dates matter because they start the clock on payment terms and, in many tax systems, decide which period the sale belongs to.
Descriptions are worth more care than most people give them. “Website work” forces your client to ask questions; “Homepage redesign, 3 revision rounds, delivered 12 March” gets approved. If your client has a purchase order number, add it, because many larger companies won’t pay an invoice without one.
Finally, put your payment details on the invoice itself. A client who has to email you for your bank account is a client who pays a week later.
Description: Logo design, 3 concepts and 2 revision rounds
Quantity: 1
Rate: {your rate}
Tax: {tax rate, if you charge tax}
Amount: {line total}If you’re not VAT-registered in the UK, the core checklist above covers you, and you must not add VAT or show a VAT number. Registration is compulsory once your taxable turnover passes the threshold, currently £90,000 (check HMRC for changes).
Once you are registered, your invoices to VAT-registered customers become VAT invoices and need more detail. The standard VAT rate is 20%, though some goods and services use other rates.
The US has no national VAT or GST, so most invoices simply follow the core checklist. Sales tax is set by individual states and sometimes localities, and many services aren’t taxable in many states, which is why plenty of freelancers don’t add any. If you do sell taxable goods or services, show the sales tax as its own line and check your state’s rules for what else it expects.
Business clients often ask a freelancer for a Form W-9 before the first payment, and some will want your EIN or SSN for their tax reporting. That information usually goes on the form, not the invoice itself.
In Australia, only businesses registered for GST issue a “tax invoice”. Registration is required once annual turnover reaches A$75,000 (A$150,000 for non-profits), and GST is 10%. A business that isn’t registered issues an ordinary “Invoice” and should still quote its ABN, because a payer may have to withhold tax from a supplier who doesn’t provide one.
A GST-registered business in India needs to show more than the basics. GST is split into CGST and SGST for sales within your state and IGST for sales to another state, so the place of supply decides which you charge. Registration is generally required once turnover passes ₹20 lakh for services (₹10 lakh in special category states). Export of services is zero-rated, typically under a Letter of Undertaking (LUT).
VAT rates differ across EU countries, but one situation catches many freelancers out: business-to-business services supplied to a client in another EU country. These are generally under the reverse charge, meaning you don’t charge VAT and your client accounts for it in their own country instead.
The invoice should show both your VAT number and your client’s, charge no VAT, and include a note such as “Reverse charge”. Exact wording and reporting rules vary, so check your country’s guidance or ask your accountant.
In BillFlow you can add a tax ID for both you and your client, set tax to none, and type the reverse charge wording into the notes so it prints on the PDF.
In most countries a signature isn’t required on an ordinary invoice. India’s GST rules are a notable exception, where a physical or digital signature of the supplier or an authorised person is expected.
Yes. A logo makes an invoice look more polished, but no tax system requires one. What matters is that your name, contact details and the legal details for your country are present.
It isn’t required, but it helps. Many businesses route invoices to a specific accounts email, so adding the right contact speeds up approval and reduces the chance your invoice sits in the wrong inbox.
Don’t edit and resend it under the same number without telling your client. For small errors a corrected copy may be fine; for tax mistakes the usual approach is a credit note and a new invoice. Check with your accountant if tax is involved.
No. An invoice asks for payment; a receipt confirms that payment has been made. Some businesses mark a paid invoice as “Paid” and send it back as a receipt, which is usually fine for simple cases.