A designer finishes a menu update for a new café client. The owner approves the artwork and asks for the bill. The designer sends an invoice to the address they have used throughout the project. Two weeks later the owner explains that accounts never received it and asks for a purchase order number the designer has never seen. The work was finished on time. The paperwork took a route that stopped before anyone could approve it.

That fictional job illustrates why a first invoice needs a handoff. Someone has to connect your charge to the customer's agreement, confirm what was delivered and move the record into the payment process. This guide follows a UK business-to-business invoice from that first conversation through reconciliation. The aim is to make your invoice easy to identify and check, and to give you a record you can use if someone asks what happened.

Ask where the invoice will go before doing the work

The person who commissions the work may be your best contact for delivery questions. Ask them who receives invoices. In a small firm it may be the same person. A larger customer might have a shared accounts inbox, a portal or separate teams for different divisions. Ask which company name and billing address should appear on the invoice. A shop sign, a brand and the legal entity buying the service can have different names.

Confirm which event makes the work billable. It may be delivery of a complete job, a scheduled milestone or another point written in the agreement. Find out who confirms that event and what evidence the customer needs. If a buyer requires a purchase order, ask when it will be issued and whether the buyer expects that number before work starts. The Office of the Small Business Commissioner recommends asking for a required purchase order number early so it does not hold up submission.

Write down the customer's answer about payment timing in terms of an event you can identify. A phrase such as “30 days” leaves questions if the agreement doesn't say what date starts the count. Ask whether the reference point is the invoice date, receipt of a valid invoice or another agreed date. If the customer gives a calendar date, check that it fits the written terms before relying on it. Keep the original agreement and any later clarification together so you can explain where the due date came from.

For repeat customers, save a short billing record with the correct entity, approved invoice channel, expected attachment format and accounts contact. Confirm that information when a new project uses a different division or buyer. A document that passed for one customer last month may still need a different address or reference for the next job.

Give the approver something they can match

A purchase order gives the customer a reference for its authorised purchase. Your invoice number identifies the bill you issued. Put each in its own labelled field when a purchase order is required. Copy the buyer's reference exactly, including any leading zeros or letters, and check that the order is for the entity you are invoicing. Ask your contact about any discrepancy before submitting an invoice against it.

Start with the original quote or agreement and the record of what was delivered. Compare the descriptions, units and prices with the purchase order where one exists. If a buyer ordered a batch of signs and accepted half this week, an approver may need the invoice to identify the units in that delivery and any agreed permission to bill in stages. If the order shows the wrong quantity or a service was added informally, ask for written confirmation of how to record the change.

Suppose a fictional studio agreed to deliver a £480 menu layout and a £120 print-ready adaptation. The buyer's order covers both. The studio can enter two lines that use the language of the agreement, then total the charges at £600 in this illustrative example before considering any applicable VAT. “Design services, £600” may describe the work generally, but the two lines let a buyer who has never spoken to the studio match both charges without guessing what they cover.

An approver may also need the project location, milestone, internal department or delivery reference. Put the relevant information beside the charge or in a clearly labelled field near the invoice number. If the agreement calls for supporting material, identify it by name and date. A file labelled “menu approval, 4 November” is easier to connect to an invoice than a folder containing an entire email thread and several drafts.

Build an invoice with clear fields and dates

GOV.UK's invoice guidance sets out information including a unique invoice number, details for both businesses, a description of the supply, the supply date and invoice date, and the charges and total. Use distinct labels for the dates. If the design was supplied on 4 November and the invoice was issued on 6 November, record each against the event it describes. Put the due date where the reader can find it alongside the agreed payment terms.

The government guidance also distinguishes business types. A sole trader must include their own name and any trading name they use, plus an address for delivery of legal documents if using a business name. A limited company must use its full registered company name. GOV.UK also explains when VAT invoices are required and links to the separate VAT invoice guidance. Use the rules that apply to the transaction. The fictional price breakdown above illustrates matching charges to work and does not determine VAT treatment.

Use an invoice number sequence that your own records can track consistently. If you can search your records by the exact number, a call from accounts is easier to handle. A reference like INV-024 helps both sides identify the same bill when the company has several projects open. Keep the customer reference distinct from that number. The buyer's reference may be shared across multiple approved deliveries, while each bill needs a clear identity in your records.

List the payment information in the agreed format and use the buyer's established process for confirming it. If somebody requests different payment details unexpectedly, verify the request through the contact channel you already know before acting on it. Keep unrelated personal information and internal comments out of the invoice and attachments. Someone processing the invoice needs a clear bill and the agreed proof of delivery. They rarely need the entire working history.

Check the buyer's submission rules

Some customers accept invoices by email. Others give suppliers a portal that asks for the order reference, invoice number, date and total before they can attach a file. Use the method your customer confirms. A buyer's approval rules can be more specific than the general invoice guidance. Treat those as requirements for that buyer's workflow.

Hampshire County Council, for example, publishes supplier instructions that call for an approved purchase order, the correct ten-digit reference and one invoice per PDF for its process. It also tells suppliers to use the submission address indicated by the order or its specified portal route. That is an example of a particular customer's intake process. For your own customer, check the current supplier instructions rather than assuming the same number format or delivery route.

Before sending, open the final file and read it as if you had never seen the job. Check that the invoice number, name, dates and total are easy to find. If you used a PDF export, look at the last page for a total that has slipped onto a separate sheet. Compare the file with the amount you plan to enter in the portal. A good document can still get held if the portal value differs from the attached total.

If you submit by email, use the subject and attachments the buyer has requested. Keep the message focused on the invoice and any reference the recipient needs. If you submit through a portal, save its acknowledgement or tracking identifier. Record the actual submission date and where you sent it. If no acknowledgement arrives within the customer's usual intake window, use the established contact to check receipt before sending a second copy.

Follow the invoice through review and payment

Give each invoice a short status in your own records. “Sent” means you submitted it. “Received” means you have evidence that it reached the buyer's intake process. “Approved” means someone or a system confirmed approval. “Paid” means you have matched the money received to the bill. You may have fewer visible stages depending on the customer. Record the last stage you can actually verify.

If accounts says the invoice was rejected, ask which detail failed and whether they need a replacement, a supporting document or a correction through their portal. A missing order number is a different issue from a disagreement about the amount. When the fix changes a previously issued document, follow your accounting process for recording the correction and keep the trail of what changed. Sending competing versions with the same filename can leave both sides uncertain which one is current.

If there is no visible progress, refer to the submission date, invoice number and order number when checking with the responsible team. Ask whether it is waiting for approval, missing documentation or already scheduled. The Small Business Commissioner's guidance suggests checking with the person responsible before the due date to confirm they have what they need. Record the response and any date they give you so your next check can start from there.

A remittance notice can show how a buyer assigned a payment. Match the bank receipt as well, especially if the customer pays several invoices together. In a fictional example, a customer pays £850 to cover the £600 menu invoice and a separate £250 job. The bank line alone shows the combined amount. If the remittance lists both invoice numbers, you can match each invoice against the one receipt and close both records. If it only lists one bill, keep the allocation open until you can confirm what the rest covers.

Turn the first handoff into a reusable routine

After the first bill is settled, review the steps that caused friction. If the order number arrived late, move that question to the start of the next project. If accounts needed an attachment you already had, put it on the delivery checklist. If an ambiguous description delayed approval, agree how the buyer wants the next milestone described. Improve the actual handoff before redesigning the template.

Keep the checklist short enough to use while finishing a job. Start with the correct billing entity and agreed reference. Compare the work and prices against the agreement, record the supply and issue dates, confirm the due date, and verify the delivery route. After submission, save acknowledgement and check the status before marking the bill paid. Those actions belong to different moments, so keep them visible in your job tracker rather than trusting one final reminder.

Your copy of the records should let another colleague pick up the handoff. If you are away, they should be able to identify the submitted version, find the agreement and tell whether they are waiting for a customer answer or a scheduled payment. Store the records in a business location that the authorised team can access. If a buyer routinely changes its process, record when each set of instructions was confirmed so old details don't get copied into a new invoice.

The earlier work of comparing supplier quotes shows the other side of matching scope, quantity and delivery. That same specificity helps once the supplier needs to bill for what was delivered. Before sending your first invoice to a new customer, pick up the agreement, the evidence of delivery and the invoice together. If someone unfamiliar with the job can connect those three records, identify the payable amount and see where the invoice should go, you have a handoff that can be checked from start to finish.

Sources consulted 7 November 2026

Source / image note: GOV.UK, Office of the Small Business Commissioner and Hampshire County Council. Sources consulted 7 November 2026.