When should I send an invoice?

On the day you deliver the work or the goods, or on the stage dates agreed in the quotation. Every day of delay is a day added to when you are paid.

What should an invoice include?

Your and the customer's details, the invoice number and date, what was supplied with quantities and prices, the tax and total, the currency, the due date and how to pay. Tax rules in your country may require more on a tax invoice. See GST and tax invoices.

Can I send a proforma invoice before the work is done?

Yes. A draft invoice prints as a PROFORMA INVOICE you can send to ask for payment in advance; the customer owes nothing on it until you issue it.

Can I change an invoice after sending it?

Only its reference details, such as the Customer PO number. To change an amount, issue a credit note. See Edit an issued invoice.

Does easySales email the invoice for me?

No. You preview or download the PDF and send it yourself, so you choose the recipient and the wording.

How do I invoice the same customer every month?

Set up a recurring invoice. See Set up a recurring invoice.

Invoice on time

Copy for AI

The fastest way to be paid sooner is to invoice sooner. An invoice sent a week after delivery is paid a week later, and an invoice with the wrong name, a missing purchase order number or an unclear amount is sent back and paid later still. This article covers when to invoice, what to check, and how easySales keeps invoices quick and consistent.

Good practice

Invoice the day you deliver. Make it part of finishing the job: the work is handed over, the invoice goes out. For a long project, invoice by stage or by month as agreed in the quotation, not all at the end.

Use the details the customer gave you. The registered company name, the billing address, their tax registration number if they have one and the purchase order number if they use them. A large company’s accounts team may hold an invoice that does not quote its purchase order.

Make the amount match what was agreed. Raise the invoice from the accepted quotation so the lines, prices and terms are the same. A difference, even a small one, starts a query.

State the due date, not just the term. “Due 23 October” is clearer than “30 days”, and it is the date your reminders count from.

Send it to the person who pays, and copy the person who ordered. Ask the customer for their accounts email at the start. Then ask them to confirm they received it.

Check the PDF before it goes. Spelling, amounts, tax, the due date and your payment details. A correction after issuing means a credit note.

Do it in easySales

Raise it from the quotation. Raise invoice on the accepted quotation copies its lines, contact, payment term and Terms and conditions. See Raise an invoice.
Invoice by stage. A billing plan on the quotation sets the deposit, milestones or regular periods in advance, and each stage becomes its own invoice.
Invoice delivered goods together. For goods sent on delivery orders, raise one invoice from the delivered orders. See Invoice delivery orders.
Let regular charges draft themselves. A recurring invoice creates the same invoice each period; you check it and issue it. A scheduled invoice due to be raised appears in your To do.
Fill in the customer’s reference. Enter the Customer PO number on the invoice. It is one of the details you can still change after issuing. See Edit an issued invoice.
Check the payment term and due date. Payment term and Due date sit side by side. The term is the customer’s, else the company default, and the due date is counted from the invoice date. Due date is required, and a date you type yourself stays as typed.
Check the PDF, then issue. PDF shows it, headed PROFORMA INVOICE while it is a draft. Issue invoice gives it its invoice number. Save or print the PDF and send it yourself. See Issue an invoice and Invoice PDF.
Follow it to hear in the message centre when it is paid. See Follow a document.

Templates you can use

Sending the invoice

Subject: Invoice INV-10000319 from Lim & Co — due 23 October

Hi [Name], please find attached invoice INV-10000319 for SGD 2,260.00, for the counter and lighting installed on 23 September. It is due on 23 October. Payment details are on the invoice. Could you confirm you have received it? Thank you for your business.

Asking who should receive invoices

Hi [Name], before we send our first invoice: who should receive it in your accounts team, and do you need a purchase order number on it?

A stage invoice under a billing plan

Hi [Name], as the counter is now installed, please find attached our invoice for the second stage, SGD 1,079.10 including GST, as set out in the quotation. It is due on 23 October.

Common questions

When should I send an invoice? On the day you deliver the work or the goods, or on the stage dates agreed in the quotation. Every day of delay is a day added to when you are paid.
What should an invoice include? Your and the customer’s details, the invoice number and date, what was supplied with quantities and prices, the tax and total, the currency, the due date and how to pay. Tax rules in your country may require more on a tax invoice. See GST and tax invoices.
Can I send a proforma invoice before the work is done? Yes. A draft invoice prints as a PROFORMA INVOICE you can send to ask for payment in advance; the customer owes nothing on it until you issue it.
Can I change an invoice after sending it? Only its reference details, such as the Customer PO number. To change an amount, issue a credit note. See Edit an issued invoice.
Does easySales email the invoice for me? No. You preview or download the PDF and send it yourself, so you choose the recipient and the wording.
How do I invoice the same customer every month? Set up a recurring invoice. See Set up a recurring invoice.