Invoicing and Getting Paid

For most UK small businesses, getting paid late is the single biggest source of cash-flow stress. The fix is rarely one big change — it's a set of small operational habits: clear payment terms agreed upfront, invoices that are easy to pay, and a polite escalation routine for the small minority of clients who slip. This hub is built around those habits.

Make your invoice impossible to ignore

UK invoices have a legal minimum content set: a unique invoice number, the date issued, your business name and address (and company number if you're incorporated), the client's name and address, a clear description of what was supplied, the amount due and the due date. If you're VAT registered there are extra requirements (your VAT number, VAT rate and VAT amount, plus a VAT-invoice-specific tax point). Our invoice writing guide covers each line, and the free template gives you a starting point.

Beyond compliance, the best invoices are the easiest to pay. Put the payment methods at the top, include a payment link or bank details prominently, and make the due date a specific calendar date — not "Net 14".

Set terms before you start work, not after

Payment terms are part of your scope of work, not a footnote. Agree them in writing with the client before the project starts — ideally as a clause in your engagement letter or quote acceptance. For new clients or larger projects, consider deposits (commonly 30–50% upfront), milestone billing for long engagements, and shorter terms (Net 7 or Net 14) for retainer work. The right terms depend on your industry: 30 days is conventional for B2B services, but many freelancers now successfully use Net 7.

Reduce payment friction with the right payment method

For most UK B2B work, bank transfer (Faster Payments) remains the standard and the cheapest. For B2C, recurring work or international clients, payment links via Stripe, GoCardless (Direct Debit), PayPal or Wise tend to convert faster — clients pay in two clicks rather than logging into their bank. Each has different fees and settlement times, covered in our payment links guide.

Chase early, politely, in writing

The single most effective change most small businesses can make is to send a polite reminder on day one past due, not day fourteen. Most overdue invoices are simple oversights, and a one-line nudge resolves them. Our reminder email templates give you scripts for friendly, firm and formal stages, and the chasing late payments guide explains when to escalate to phone calls, letters before action, or a debt-recovery service.

Track what's owed, automate what you can

Even with five clients, a simple debtors list (invoice number, amount, due date, days overdue) prevents things slipping through the cracks. Most accounting software will generate this automatically and send reminder emails on a schedule you set — turning chasing from a stressful task into a background process. Pair the tools in this hub with our monthly finance review checklist to catch slow payers early.