Invoice examples by business, from deposit to final balance

The kinds of invoice, and when each one is sent

A deposit invoice is sent when a job is accepted and pays for what the business must spend before it starts. A progress invoice bills a finished stage of a longer job. A retainer invoice bills a month of reserved time in advance. A final invoice closes the job and shows what has already been paid. A tax invoice is not a separate kind so much as a standard: in Australia it is the invoice that lets a GST registered buyer claim the GST back, and it has to show particular details. Each example names its kind and shows how it fits into the job.

What every invoice here carries

Each one has a number, an issue date, a due date, the business and the client, every line with its quantity, price and tax rate, the subtotal, the tax, the total, anything already paid and the amount due. Most also carry bank details and a note on terms. Every invoice is issued with a pay link: the client opens a page with the amount due and can pay by card through Stripe Checkout, which sends the money to the business's own connected Stripe account. Reminders can run on a schedule before and after the due date.

Check the rules where you trade

The examples are Australian unless the page says otherwise, with GST at 10 percent and amounts in Australian dollars. Tax invoice rules, late payment rules and what you may charge for paying late differ by country and sometimes by state, so each page links the regulator's own guidance. Read it before you rely on a detail, because thresholds and wording change and an invoice that is missing a required field can delay the payment it was sent to collect.

Every page in this collection

• Deposit invoice example for an accepted quote

  A deposit invoice asks for part of an accepted quote before work starts, and should say which quote it relates to, what share it is, and what is left to pay. This example from an Adelaide joiner to a bakery bills a 40% deposit of $8,228 including GST on a quote for display counters, due on receipt so the timber can be ordered.

• Final invoice example with the deposit deducted and a pay link

  A final invoice closes a job: it lists everything delivered, deducts what has already been paid, and leaves one clear amount due. This example from a Melbourne event technology company bills a two day health summit at $44,370 plus GST, shows the $12,100 deposit as paid, and asks for a balance of $36,707 by card or bank transfer.

• Freelance invoice example for a sole trader not registered for GST

  A freelancer who is not registered for GST sends an invoice, not a tax invoice, and charges no GST, but still needs to quote an ABN so the client does not have to withhold tax from the payment. This example from an illustrator to a book publisher bills $5,180 for a cover, twelve chapter openers, a map and two extra hours, with the licence terms in the notes.

• Invoice example for Canada with HST at 13%

  A Canadian business registered for GST/HST must charge the rate for the province where the supply is made and show what its customer needs to claim input tax credits. This example from a Toronto user research firm to a credit union in Hamilton bills a usability study at $10,260 with $1,216.80 of HST at 13%, with its GST/HST number, the buyer's name, payment terms and one untaxed pass through line.

• Invoice example for the US, from an Oregon business

  The US has no federal sales tax and no national rules for what an invoice must contain, so a US invoice is shaped by the seller's state and by what the client's accounts payable team needs. This example from a Portland photography studio to an outdoor retailer bills $9,280 with no sales tax, because Oregon has none, notes the attached Form W-9, and states the image licence and net 30 terms.

• Invoice with a late fee: an overdue invoice and its interest

  A late fee can only be charged if the client agreed to it before the work, and the invoice should say which term it relies on and how it is worked out. This example from a Sydney printer shows an overdue $4,092 invoice to a real estate agency, quotes the interest clause from the accepted quote, and bills 28 days of interest separately.

• Progress invoice example for a frame stage claim

  A progress invoice bills a stage of a larger job once that stage is complete, as a share of the contract price set out in the contract. This example from a western Sydney builder claims the frame stage of a new home, 20% of a $412,000 contract, plus a signed variation, $85,260 including GST, with the inspection and the claims to date in the notes.

• Retainer invoice example with extra hours billed in arrears

  A retainer invoice bills a fixed monthly fee in advance and, where the client used more than the retainer covers, the extra time from the month before. This example from a Ballarat HR consultancy to an engineering firm bills the October retainer, three and a half extra September hours and a fixed fee investigation report, $4,627.50 plus GST.

• Tax invoice example for Australia with GST free and taxable items

  An Australian tax invoice must let the buyer work out the GST they can claim, which matters most when some lines carry GST and some do not. This example from a Brisbane produce supplier to a cafe mixes GST free fruit, vegetables and eggs with taxable packaging and cleaning products, shows GST line by line, and prints the buyer's ABN because the total is over $1,000.

• Tax invoice example for New Zealand with GST at 15%

  Since April 2023 New Zealand no longer requires a tax invoice as such, but a GST registered seller must give taxable supply information that depends on the size of the sale. This example from a Christchurch tree care company to a retirement village shows a $6,270 job with GST at 15%, the seller's GST number, and the buyer's details because the sale is over $1,000.

• VAT invoice example for a UK business

  A UK VAT invoice has to carry the details HMRC lists for a full VAT invoice, including the VAT registration number, the tax point and the VAT rate on each line, so the customer can reclaim the VAT. This example from a Bristol design studio to a coffee roaster bills packaging design at £3,300 plus VAT at 20%, with 30 day terms and the statutory late payment interest stated.