Sole trader invoices: what to put on one (UK)

An invoice is how you ask to be paid, and it’s also a record HMRC can ask to see. Get the details right and customers have no excuse to sit on it.

What every invoice must show

1. A unique invoice number, so no two invoices share one.
2. Your name, or your business name, with your address and contact details.
3. Your customer’s name and address.
4. A clear description of what you’re charging for.
5. The date you did the work or supplied the goods.
6. The date of the invoice.
7. The amount for each item, any VAT, and the total owed.

Extra rules for sole traders

Your own name must be on the invoice, even if you trade under a business name. So “J Smith trading as Smith Electrical” rather than just “Smith Electrical”. If you use a business name, you also need to give an address where legal documents can be sent to you.

VAT invoices

If you and your customer are both VAT registered, you must give them a VAT invoice, which needs more details, including your VAT registration number. If you’re not VAT registered, don’t charge VAT or show a VAT number. See when you need to register for VAT.

Worth adding, to get paid faster

• Your bank details: account name, sort code and account number.
• A due date, or payment terms such as “payment within 14 days”.
• A short thank you. It costs nothing.

Send it the day the job finishes. The longer you leave it, the longer you wait. Want to see it laid out? Here’s a free invoice template for tradesmen.

How Kev helps

Kev’s invoices number themselves and carry your details, your customer’s and your bank details every time. Send your customer a link that opens on their phone, and Kev shows you who has paid and who is overdue. On Kev Pro, Kev also emails a polite reminder when an invoice is overdue.

Sources

• gov.uk: Invoices, what they must include