How can I make an invoice easily and correctly?

How do I draw up an invoice? It's not easy to come up with a clear, comprehensive answer when you're just starting out and are new to business management. What information must be included ? How do you manage VAT ? How can you prepare your accounts for your accountant with peace of mind?

This article tells you everything you need to know to draw up an invoice in the correct form and in compliance with the law.

On the programme: best practice, Excel invoice template and software selection. After that, you won't have to worry about invoicing - you can concentrate on your business and your customers!

See all software Billing and Invoicing

1 - Choosing the right type of invoice

The invoice is a commercial document issued in duplicate, which must be given to the customer and kept by the supplier of the product or service.

There are several types of invoice. Each type of invoice is used for a specific purpose:

• the credit note invoice, issued to correct an incorrect invoice, cancel an invoice if the sale is not made, or to grant a discount,
• the deposit invoice, issued when the customer pays part of the amount to be paid in advance,
• the balance invoice, issued after a deposit has been paid, for final payment,
• the recurring invoice, for subscriptions for example,
• progress invoices or status invoices, common in the construction and public works sector, which correspond to intermediate invoices issued as work progresses on a site,
• the pro forma invoice, which is not really an invoice, but rather an estimate that takes the form of an invoice; it has no legal value,
• the adjustment invoice, issued when the provisions for charges are lower than the actual consumption,
• the final invoice, issued at the end of a contract.

How do you draw up an auto entrepreneur invoice ? The status of self-employed entrepreneur or microentrepreneur requires simplified VAT management. You can find the method, advice and tools you need in our article on invoicing for self-employed contractors.

2 - Respecting invoicing deadlines

The time to issue an invoice comes once the sale has been completed or the service provided.

1. 👉 For a sale of goods : the invoice is issued when the buyer and seller have jointly agreed on an order.
   NB. In some cases, the invoice is issued at the time of delivery of the goods, which may differ from the date of sale.
   
   
2. 👉 For services : the invoice is issued when the service is performed.

For longer services, it is possible to issue progress invoices to stagger payments and thus not wait until the service has been completed before invoicing.

3 - Fill in the compulsory information

In addition to the invoice reference in the header, here are all the compulsory details to be included:

• The seller's identity
  • the company name or the name of the seller,
  • the address
  • SIRET number and place of registration,
  • VAT identification number, if the invoice is for more than €150,
  • legal status,
  • the amount of share capital, if applicable.
    
    
• The identity of the buyer
  • the company name or name of the seller,
  • the address,
  • Invoice reference
  • the number - it must be unique, and the numbers must follow each other,
  • the date of the invoice.
    
    
• The list of goods or services invoiced
  • their description
  • the unit amount
  • quantity
  • the date of delivery or the date on which the service was completed.
    
    
• The invoice amount
  • the total amount excluding VAT of the goods or services invoiced,
  • the applicable VAT rate,
  • the total amount including VAT,
  • whether or not VAT is charged,
  • any price increases or discounts.
    
    
• Terms of payment
  • the due date for payment,
  • penalties applicable in the event of late payment
  • discount terms in the case of early payment - otherwise, indicate Discount for early payment: none.

4 - Understanding invoice retention obligations

Companies are required to keep all documents issued and received.

Invoices, whether from customers or suppliers, must be kept for 10 years from the end of the financial year (article L123-22 of the French Commercial Code).

Companies are of course free to keep and archive invoices for longer if they wish. This applies to both paper and electronic invoices.

5 - Create your invoice using an Excel template

Say goodbye to paper invoices that you risk crossing out, having to start again or even losing!

The easiest way is to use an Excel template that you can customise to suit your business. The predefined formulas automate the calculations.

How do I create an invoice in Excel? Appvizer lets you download a free Excel invoice template :

6 - Or (finally) switch to electronic invoicing

In addition to simplifying your invoicing and guaranteeing its compliance, the dematerialisation of invoices gradually concerns all businesses since the 2020 Finance Act. The aim is to combat VAT fraud.

Whether you're a self-employed entrepreneur or an SME, e-invoicing will :

• save you time
• ensure that you issue compliant invoices.

All without having to worry about formulas, as you would with Excel.

How do you create an online invoice with ease?

By using dedicated invoicing software. Its advantages include

• ready-to-use invoice templates ,
• automation of tasks
• easy sending of invoices in several formats (email, PDF, etc.),
• fewer errors (typing errors, VAT calculations, etc.),
• the assurance of issuing compliant invoices,
• easier management of reminders and recurring invoicing,
• tracking of incoming payments,
• simplified exchanges with your chartered accountant, if necessary.

💡 Good to know: electronically signing your invoices online guarantees their integrity and authenticates their origin. To do this, get approved electronic signature software such as Universign, to affix your signature to an e-invoice and, in just a few clicks, give it legal value thanks to the electronic certificate.

How do you choose your invoicing software?

Low-cost online invoicing software, or even free software such as Henrri, can drastically simplify your invoicing.

To help you, here is a selection:

• INFast is a French solution aimed at small businesses. Its credo is that managing quotes and invoices should no longer be a chore, but should be quick and easy :
  • create, customise and send compliant quotes and invoices,
  • support for professionals: advice, best practice and 7/7 support,
  • an easy-to-use interface, with nothing superfluous, just the essentials,
  • an offline mode so you can work anywhere, even without internet access.
    
    
• IPaidThat is an assistant for automatically collecting and entering your invoices. It's particularly popular with start-ups and very small businesses :
  • customisable invoice templates
  • automatic reminders in the event of unpaid invoices,
  • financial analysis of your business using dashboards,
  • simplified communication with your chartered accountant.

• Kafinea is an online accounting software package developed for SMEs and VSEs. It offers a simple and effective solution for managing your company's finances, with :
  • the creation of customisable invoices based on your services and your sector,
  • automated invoicing for regular services,
  • invoicing based on the progress of your work, taking into account invoices already issued for the same project.

• Quickbooks Invoicing is popular with contractors and freelancers because of its attractive price:
  • personalised, compliant invoices that reflect your image,
  • sent to your customers in just a few clicks,
  • ideal for service companies,
  • connection between Quickbooks and your bank account.
    
    
• Sage 50 Compta et Facturation is an online accounting, sales and invoicing management tool for very small businesses and tradespeople. Its features include
• creation of estimates and all types of invoices,
• automatic conversion of estimates into invoices, and of invoices into accounting entries,
• simplified payment thanks to online payment,
• not forgetting automatic reminders and VAT management.

• Sellsy Facturation & Gestion is a highly intuitive French invoicing software package designed for VSEs and SMEs. These companies particularly appreciate it for :
  • transforming quotes into invoices in just one click,
  • the automation of recurring invoices
  • automatic reminders for unpaid invoices,
  • the integration of electronic signatures and online payment,
  • its pre-accounting functions (connection to bank accounts, chart of accounts, reporting, etc.).

• Zervantmakes it easy for entrepreneurs and very small businesses to produce and send compliant electronic invoices. Key features include
• • create an invoice in less than a minute,
  • Invoices can be sent by email, PDF or post,
  • automatic reminders for unpaid invoices,
  • tracking of transactions and generation of pre-accounting reports.

See all software Billing and Invoicing

✅ Invoicing becomes a formality

We bet that by the end of this article, your question will no longer be " How do I draw up an invoice?", but rather "How am I going to use the time I've saved by automating my invoicing?".

Invoicing software doesn't just save you time by making it easier to process your invoices. It also enables you to prepare your accounts better for your accountant.

Will you take the plunge and opt for an online tool?