Audiobook narrator
invoice template

Audiobook narrators invoice publishers, production companies and independent authors for narration, often priced per finished hour. Below is a ready-made audiobook narrator invoice template, with worked example lines, the VAT and payment rules that apply, and the mistakes that most often delay payment.

What goes on a audiobook narrator invoice

Give the title, finished running time, the rate per finished hour, and editing or mastering if you provide them.

Line by line: Narration, per finished hour, 9 hours × £250.00 = £2,250.00; Editing and mastering, per finished hour, 9 hours × £75.00 = £675.00. The subtotal is £2,925.00. The example assumes you are not VAT registered, so there is no VAT and the total due is £2,925.00. The figures are illustrative, not a price guide, so use your own rates.

The legal minimum is the same for every trade. GOV.UK says an invoice needs a unique number, your business name and address, the customer's name and address, a description of the work, the supply date and invoice date, the amount charged, VAT if you charge it, and the total due. This template lays each of those out for audiobook narrators; for the detail, read what a UK invoice must include.

Give each invoice the next number in a single sequence and never reuse one. A cancelled invoice keeps its number and is cancelled with a credit note. If you want a format that stays tidy for years, try the invoice number generator.

How audiobook narrators price their work

Per finished hour of audio, with editing and mastering priced separately; some authors offer a royalty share instead.

Keep the pricing visible. Each line should show the quantity, the unit and the rate, so the customer can match it to the quote. To set rates that cover your costs and your tax, try the day rate calculator; for materials and stock you resell, the profit margin calculator shows the margin you really make.

Agree this before you start

Agree the rate per finished hour, an estimate of the finished length, pronunciation notes and who supplies them, the number of pickups included, the audio specification (such as the retailer's technical requirements), and the delivery schedule for chapters.

When to send a audiobook narrator invoice

On delivery of the finished audio.

An invoice sent on the day tends to be paid on time; one sent weeks later tends to be paid weeks later. Email it as a PDF and keep a copy. The invoice due date calculator shows exactly when payment falls due under your terms.

VAT on audiobook narrator invoices

Standard-rated for a registered narrator.

Once registered, audiobook narrators charge 20% on fees, usage licences and recharged expenses alike. Work for a business overseas is usually outside the scope of UK VAT, because the service is supplied where the business customer belongs; write that on the invoice instead of charging VAT.

Registration is compulsory once taxable turnover in the last 12 months passes £90,000, or when you expect to pass it within the next 30 days. Check your position with the VAT registration checker; until then, see invoicing without a VAT number.

Who audiobook narrators invoice

Put your rights on the invoice. A creative fee usually includes a licence for a defined use, and clients who later want more (another territory, a longer period, paid advertising) should expect to pay for it. Agencies and brands also need their PO number on the invoice; without it many accounts teams will not pay.

Royalty share deals pay through distributor statements rather than invoices; keep those statements.

Recharging costs and expenses

When you agreed to pass on costs, list them separately: mileage at an agreed rate, parking, materials or anything bought for the customer. The recharge is income and the cost is an expense, both in full. Registered businesses charge VAT on the recharge as part of their service; a true disbursement, paid as the customer's agent, is the narrow exception. Use the mileage calculator to value your business miles.

Usage, rights and kill fees

Rights are part of the price. Record the licence on the invoice or in terms it refers to: where the work can be used, for how long, and whether it is exclusive. Copyright stays with you unless you assign it in writing, and a transfer of full rights deserves a higher fee. Agree a kill fee for cancelled commissions and the number of revisions included, so any extra round is a new line rather than a dispute.

Deposits, stages and cancellations

Half on starting is common with independent authors.

Take a booking fee or deposit to hold dates, and invoice the balance on delivery. Longer commissions work best with stage invoices at each milestone, and a kill fee agreed in advance protects you if the client pulls the project.

Payment terms for audiobook narrators

Publishers on 30 days.

Between businesses, the default when nothing is agreed is 30 days from receipt of the invoice or the work, whichever comes later, and agreed terms should not normally exceed 60 days. Late business payers owe statutory interest at 8% above Bank Rate plus fixed compensation per invoice; the late payment interest calculator does the sums. Private individuals are not covered by that Act, so agree your terms with them in writing before the work starts.

Getting paid faster

Put everything the customer needs to pay on the invoice: your bank name, account name, sort code and account number, and the reference to use, normally the invoice number. Give a due date, not just "on receipt". Then follow a routine: a reminder the day after the due date, another a week later, and a firmer letter after two weeks. Most late payment is disorganisation, not refusal, and a routine fixes it. Invoice payment terms compares the common options, and the due date calculator turns them into a date.

If a customer disputes the invoice

When a customer queries an invoice, reply quickly and in writing, quote the quote or agreement, and ask them to pay the part they accept while you resolve the rest. A credit note can settle a partial dispute cleanly. Unpaid after reminders? Send a letter before action with a final date; in England and Wales, claims up to £10,000 can then go to the small claims track. Invoice disputes and small claims for an unpaid invoice have the detail.

Common audiobook narrator invoicing mistakes

• Invoicing by recording time. Use the finished running time; recording and editing time is already built into the per finished hour rate.
• Unlimited pickups. Agree how many corrections are included.
• No technical specification. Agree the delivery format so files are not rejected by the retailer.
• Leaving out the due date. "Payment due within 14 days" or a date on the invoice gives you something to chase against. Without one, business customers default to 30 days.
• Losing track of what is unpaid. Chase on the day after the due date, not a month later; the guide to chasing an unpaid invoice has the wording.

Checklist before you send it

A quick check before sending saves a chase later:

• The invoice number is the next in your sequence and has never been used.
• The customer's name and address are right, with their purchase order or reference if they use one.
• Each line shows what was done, the quantity, the unit and the rate.
• The subtotal and total add up, and VAT appears only if you are VAT registered.
• The invoice date, a due date and your bank details are on it.
• A copy is saved with your records before you press send.

Keep a copy of every invoice

Your invoices are the evidence behind the income on your tax return, so keep a copy of every one. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax makes that digital: from 6 April 2026 for qualifying income over £50,000, from April 2027 over £30,000, and from April 2028 over £20,000, with quarterly updates to HMRC. Check your start date with the MTD requirement checker.

Download the audiobook narrator invoice template

Download it as a Word document for Word or Google Docs, as an Excel workbook whose totals are live formulas, or as a print-ready PDF. Prefer to fill it in on screen? The free invoice generator opens pre-filled with the example audiobook narrator lines, lets you choose a template and colour, and makes a finished PDF in a minute, with nothing stored.

For the tax side of the trade, from allowable expenses to Making Tax Digital, read the self-employed audiobook narrator tax guide. A TapTax account, free to start, keeps your invoices and records together and files your quarterly updates to HMRC.