How to invoice
as a freelancer

Most UK freelancers are sole traders, so the legal rules for their invoices are the same: your name, any business name, the customer's details, a unique number, a description, dates, amounts and the total. What differs is how freelance work is priced, and that shapes how each invoice should read.

Before the first invoice: agree the terms

Put the essentials in writing before you start, even if it is a short email the client replies to: the rate, what it includes, how often you will invoice, when payment is due, any deposit, and which expenses the client will cover. An invoice that matches an agreement is paid; an invoice that surprises someone is queried.

Invoicing a day rate or hourly rate

Show the dates worked, the number of days or hours, the rate and the line total. For a month of days across several weeks, list each week or attach a timesheet. A client approving your invoice wants to see that it matches what they expected, and a line such as "Consultancy, 12 days at £450, 1 to 19 March" does that.

To see what a day rate adds up to over a year, and what it leaves after tax, use the day rate calculator.

Invoicing a project

For a fixed-price project, invoice against milestones you agreed at the start: for example 30% to begin, 40% on delivering the first draft and 30% on sign-off. Each invoice names the milestone reached. These stage payments keep cash coming in during long projects and limit how much you are owed at any one time.

Deposits

A deposit is usually invoiced before work starts. It shows the client is committed and covers your early costs. If you take one, say on the invoice that it is a deposit against the project and how it will be credited in the final invoice.

Expenses and disbursements

Agree in advance which costs the client will pay for, such as travel to their site or stock images bought for their project. List each on the invoice as its own line. A cost you incur purely as the client's agent is a disbursement and is passed on at cost. Costs of running your own business, such as your laptop or software, belong in your rate, not on the invoice.

VAT

Charge VAT only if you are VAT registered. Many freelancers who work for VAT-registered businesses register voluntarily, because those clients can reclaim the VAT, but it brings extra records and returns. The guide do I charge VAT on my invoice sets out when you must register.

Getting paid on time

Send the invoice the day the work or milestone is finished. Address it to whoever pays invoices, quote any purchase order and put the due date in the email. If the date passes, chase the next working day, politely and in writing; the guide on chasing an unpaid invoice has a sequence that works.

If the client is a business and your contract sets no other rate, you can add statutory interest and fixed compensation to a late invoice; the late payment interest calculator works out how much. Few freelancers claim it, but saying at the outset that you will is often enough to keep payments on time.

Clients abroad

For an overseas client, agree the currency before you start, show your bank's details for international payments, and note that exchange rates can move between invoice and payment. The guide on invoicing in a foreign currency covers the VAT side.

Keep the paper trail

Save every invoice, the email or contract it relied on, and a note of when it was paid. Those records back up your tax return, settle disputes about what was agreed, and show at a glance which clients pay promptly and which you should ask for a deposit next time.

Pricing models and how each is invoiced

Turning a salary into a rate

Many freelancers price by working back from the salary they would earn in a job. That undersells: a freelancer bills fewer days than an employee works, and pays for their own holidays, sick days, pension and equipment. The day rate calculator shows what a rate adds up to over a realistic year and compares the take-home as a sole trader, through a limited company and inside IR35, and the salary to hourly calculator shows what a salary is worth by the hour.

A £400 day rate: gross income by billable days

• 180 days£72,000
• 200 days£80,000
• 220 days£88,000
• 232 days£92,800

Writing a statement of work that makes invoicing easy

The best invoice is one that simply matches something the client already agreed. A short statement of work does that. It should cover the deliverables, the timetable, the price or rate, what counts as extra work and how it is priced, the invoicing schedule, the payment terms, and what happens if payment is late. When the invoice arrives, the client's approver ticks it against the statement of work and passes it for payment. When there is a query, the statement of work settles it.

Handling scope creep on the invoice

Extra requests are normal. What causes disputes is billing for them without a record. When a client asks for something outside the agreed scope, reply in writing with the price or estimate before you start. Then show it on the invoice as its own line with a reference to that agreement: "Additional landing page, agreed by email on 14 May". The guide on invoice disputes shows how that record resolves arguments.

Working through agencies and platforms

If you work through a recruitment agency or a freelance platform, you may invoice the agency rather than the end client, or the platform may raise invoices for you. Check who your customer actually is, whose terms apply, and whether the platform issues self-billing invoices on your behalf, in which case you should not send your own invoice for the same work. Contracts through agencies can also bring IR35 into play; the IR35 calculator shows the difference it makes.

Common questions from freelancers

Should I charge in pounds or the client's currency? Agree it upfront. If you invoice in another currency, you carry the exchange risk. See invoicing in a foreign currency.

Can I send invoices before the work is finished? Yes, if you agreed it: a deposit, a stage payment or a monthly invoice for ongoing work. A proforma invoice is another way to request payment in advance.

How long should I give clients to pay? Fourteen or 30 days is common for business clients. With no agreed date, the law treats payment as late 30 days after they receive the invoice. See invoice payment terms.

What should I do if a client disappears without paying? Keep chasing in writing, then send a formal letter before action setting out the debt and the date by which you will start a claim. For business clients you can include statutory interest and compensation. If they still do not pay, a small claim is designed to be brought without a solicitor. See how to chase an unpaid invoice.

Freelance invoicing and your tax

Every invoice you send becomes part of your trading income. Most freelancers are sole traders and report their profit, income less allowable expenses, on a Self Assessment return, and those in Making Tax Digital for Income Tax send quarterly updates too. Keep your invoices, the agreements behind them and your payment records together; they are the evidence behind every figure you report. Setting aside a share of each payment as it arrives, rather than waiting for January, makes the tax bill far easier to meet. The sole trader tax calculator estimates how much to put aside.

When a client asks for longer terms

Some larger clients ask freelancers to accept 60 or even 90 days. You can say no, or agree it in return for something: a higher rate, a deposit, or monthly invoicing so that no single invoice is large. Beyond 60 days, an agreed term with a business must be fair to both sides. A clear answer early is better than a long wait you did not plan for.

A freelancer's invoicing checklist

Agree scope, rate, schedule and terms in writing before starting. Take a deposit from new clients on bigger projects. Invoice the day each milestone or month ends. Show dates, quantities and rates on every line. List agreed expenses separately. Send to whoever pays, with the due date in the email. Chase the day after the due date. Keep everything. It is a short list, and following it every time is what separates freelancers who are paid on time from those who spend their evenings chasing.