first things first
What Is an Invoice?
An invoice is simply a document that requests payment for your work. It outlines what you did, the hours and agreed rate, and how much money you're owed. Invoices relate to self-employed work only — and unless you agree otherwise, they must be paid within 30 days of issue.
One big invoice or lots of little ones? Depending on your arrangement, you can accumulate earnings into one invoice or send a separate one after each job or shift. Either way, record the work as soon as you've done it — details are easy to forget.
essentials
What to Include
Luckily for you, there's a free template. No need to build one from scratch — grab our free invoice template (a Word document — download it, fill in your details and reuse it) with all of the above already covered.
watch how easy it is
Generating an Invoice in the App
Record the income, create the invoice and email it to the employer — right there on the train home from the job. Here's how:
1
Generate invoice
Click Income > What am i owed? and choose 'invoice one' or 'invoice all' (all outstanding employer income in one invoice)
Drop screenshot: recording the income
2
Ready for print
Top 'x' the pop up, edit if needed and head to 'print.'
Drop screenshot: creating the invoice
3
Email it off
Want to email it? Zoom in and you have a PDF to copy and paste.
Drop screenshot: emailing the invoice
if you're not paid
Chase Late Payment
So 30 days has come and gone, and there's a hole in your bank account where this payment should be. Don't panic — here's the escalation, one step at a time:
1
Send a gentle reminder. Sometimes things get missed or forgotten — it happens. Something like: "Hi there, I don't have any record of this payment being made. It was due on XX/XX/XX — please send me details of when you made payment, or do so within the next seven days." Reattach the original invoice so it's really obvious.
2
Still unpaid after 7 days? Send a new invoice, due immediately. You can add interest (8% over the Bank of England base rate) plus a compensation fee for debt recovery costs. Note: you can only charge businesses interest and late fees, not direct consumers.
3
Go to the top. Tell them you'll put in an official complaint with the CEO/head of the company, include a new invoice with updated interest, and let them know your next step is the small claims court. In a union (EQUITY perhaps)? Tell them your union will be backing you — and don't forget to tell your union you're having trouble!
4
Small claims court. Hopefully it never gets this far — but if it does, you can file a case online and exercise your right to recover what you're owed.
Worried about an employer? Add this deterrent up front: "If payment is not received within 30 days, I will exercise my right to claim interest (at 8% over the Bank of England base rate) and compensation for debt recovery costs under the Late Payment legislation." It lets people know you're not messing around — and you can still charge it later even if you don't include it.
