What a UK invoice
must include

An invoice that misses a required detail is not just untidy. It can be rejected by a customer's accounts team, leave you without a clean record for your tax return, and for a VAT-registered business, fail as evidence for the customer's VAT reclaim. This is the full checklist, taken from GOV.UK and the VAT guide.

What every invoice must include

GOV.UK sets out the details for all invoices:

1. A unique identification number
2. Your company name, address and contact information
3. The company name and address of the customer you are invoicing
4. A clear description of what you are charging for
5. The date the goods or service were provided, the supply date
6. The date of the invoice
7. The amounts being charged
8. The VAT amount, if applicable
9. The total amount owed

That list applies whether you send one invoice a year or a hundred a week.

Extra details for sole traders

If you are a sole trader, the invoice must also show your name and any business name you use. If you trade under a business name, you must add an address where legal documents can be delivered to you. That lets a customer who is owed something, or who is in dispute with you, serve papers properly.

Extra details for limited companies

A limited company must show its full name exactly as it appears on the certificate of incorporation. If you choose to put directors' names on your invoices, you must name all of them, not just one.

Extra details for a VAT invoice

A VAT-registered business must issue a VAT invoice to a VAT-registered customer. On top of the list above, VAT Notice 700 requires, among other things:

• a sequential invoice number based on one or more series which uniquely identifies the document
• the time of supply, known as the tax point, if different from the date of issue
• your VAT registration number
• the customer's name and address
• a description of the goods or services, with the quantity of goods or extent of the services
• the unit price, the rate of VAT and the amount payable excluding VAT for each item
• any discount offered
• the total amount of VAT charged, shown in sterling

A VAT invoice must normally be issued within 30 days of the tax point. The VAT calculator works out the VAT on each line.

Simplified invoices for small sales

A VAT-registered business can issue a simplified VAT invoice when the supply is worth £250 or less and the customer agrees. It needs fewer details: your name, address and VAT number, the time of supply, a description, the VAT rate and the total including VAT. Customers can reclaim VAT from it in the usual way.

What does not have to be on an invoice

Payment terms and bank details are not legally required, but leaving them off is the most common reason invoices are paid late. Add the due date as a date, not only as "30 days", and the payment reference you want the customer to use.

A quick check before you send

Read the invoice as the customer's accounts clerk would. Is it clearly an invoice? Does it quote their purchase order? Is the number new and in sequence? Do the lines add up to the total? Is VAT shown only if you are registered? If all five are yes, it is ready to go. The step-by-step guide on how to write an invoice shows a complete example.

Invoices you receive

The same checklist works in reverse. When a supplier invoices you, check it carries a number, their details and a date before you pay and file it. If you are VAT registered and want to reclaim the VAT on it, it must be a proper VAT invoice, with the supplier's VAT number, or a simplified invoice for a small sale.

The checklist side by side

The requirements build in layers. Every invoice needs the first layer; your business type adds the second; VAT registration adds the third.

The VAT invoice and simplified VAT invoice definitions explain each type, and the guide on invoicing without a VAT number covers the unregistered case.

Details that are recommended, not required

Some lines are not in the legal list but make an invoice far more likely to be paid on time:

• The word "Invoice" at the top, so it is not mistaken for a quote.
• A due date written as a date, worked out with the invoice due date calculator.
• Payment details and the reference to quote.
• The customer's purchase order number, which many larger customers require before they will pay.
• A contact for queries.

Special cases

Some invoices need extra lines on top of the checklist:

• Construction under CIS. Show labour and materials separately so the contractor's deduction is right; see CIS invoice requirements.
• The domestic reverse charge. Show the VAT due but do not charge it, and add the reverse charge wording; see reverse charge invoice wording.
• Foreign currency. A VAT invoice must show the total VAT in sterling; see invoicing in a foreign currency.
• Self-billing. When the customer raises the invoice for you under an agreement, extra rules apply; see self-billing invoice.
• Retentions. Invoice the retained amount when it is due, with the VAT tax point rules for retentions; see retention payments in construction.

Reading an invoice as your customer does

It helps to think about what happens to your invoice after it lands. In a small business, the owner opens it, checks it against what they ordered and pays it. In a larger one, an accounts clerk enters the invoice number, date, supplier, amount and VAT into the accounting system, the system looks for a matching purchase order, a budget holder approves it, and a weekly or monthly payment run pays everything approved. Every legal detail on the checklist is also a field someone has to find. The easier each one is to find, the faster your invoice moves.

That is why layout matters as much as content. Put the invoice number, the invoice date and the due date together near the top. Keep one line per item. Show the total clearly, with VAT separated if you charge it. And make sure your business name on the invoice is the same name the customer has on their supplier list, or their system may not recognise you.

When a detail is missing

If you spot a missing detail before the customer has processed the invoice, you can usually agree to replace it with a corrected copy. Once it has been recorded, correct it with a credit note and a reissued invoice, as the guide on how to correct an invoice explains. For a VAT invoice, a missing VAT number or tax point can stop your customer reclaiming the VAT, so they may hold payment until you fix it.

Keeping the invoice

Once sent, the invoice is part of your business records. Keep it for at least 5 years after the 31 January filing deadline as a sole trader, or 6 years for VAT records and limited companies. The guide on how long to keep invoices has the detail, and a clean invoice number sequence makes those records easy to check.

Common questions about invoice details

Do I need my home address on the invoice? You need an address, and if you trade under a business name, an address where legal documents can be delivered to you. That can be a business address rather than your home, as long as documents sent there reach you.

Does the invoice have to be on headed paper? No. Any clear layout works, on paper or as a PDF, as long as every required detail is there.

Can one invoice cover several jobs? Yes. List each job as its own line with its own supply date, so the customer can see what each part is for, and so you can credit one line later without touching the others.

Do I need to show my bank details? They are not legally required, but an invoice without them is an invoice paid later. Add the account name, sort code and account number, and the reference you want quoted.

What if the customer asks for extra details? Add them. A customer's supplier requirements, such as a purchase order number, a cost centre or a named approver, are not law, but meeting them is the quickest way to be paid.