How to fill out an invoice that gets paid
Every field a finance team looks for, the arithmetic that gets invoices rejected, and the payment terms that actually shorten the wait.
An invoice is a request for payment and a record of what was sold. Accounts payable teams reject invoices for missing information far more often than for disputed amounts, so the goal is a document that answers every question before it is asked: who, what, how much, by when, and how to pay.
Fields, in order.
- 01Header
The word Invoice, your business name, address, and tax or registration number if you have one.
- 02Invoice number
Unique and sequential. Finance systems reject duplicates and auditors look for gaps.
- 03Dates
Issue date and due date. Net 30 means 30 days from the issue date, not from when they open it.
- 04Bill to
The customer's legal name, address and, if they gave you one, a purchase order number. No PO number is the top reason large companies hold an invoice.
- 05Line items
Description, quantity, unit price and line total. One line per item or per task.
- 06Subtotal, tax, total
Subtotal of lines, tax at the right rate on the taxable lines, and the total due. The arithmetic must check.
- 07Payment terms
Due date, accepted methods, late fee if any, and early-payment discount if you offer one.
- 08Remit to
Bank name, account and routing number, or a payment link. Include the currency.
- 09Notes
Thank you, project reference, or anything the approver needs to match it to a contract.
Common mistakes.
A line edited by hand without recomputing the total is the single most common rejection. Recheck the subtotal, tax and total every time you change a line.
If the customer issued one, it goes near the top. Without it the invoice sits in a queue.
A duplicate number is flagged as a duplicate invoice and rejected.
The contract says net 45, the invoice says net 30. The contract wins and the invoice looks careless.
Terms you will see.
Ask the document what any of them means. The answer cites the page.
Fill it, check it, sign it.
Fill it by asking
Drop the PDF, paste the facts, and the agent fills every matching field. Unmatched fields are listed so nothing is skipped.
Check it before you send
Empty required fields, a missing signature, a date that disagrees with another page. The document check lists them with page numbers.
Sign it and send it
Draw your signature and place it, free. Or send it to someone else to sign on their phone, with an audit certificate. Free, 25 a month.
Invoice,
answered.
This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice.
Can I fill it on my phone?+
Yes. Open it in Fill & Sign and tap Fill step by step. Your progress saves as you go.
Can I send it and get it signed as approved?+
Yes. Fill it, choose Request signatures, and the client signs on their phone. You get the signed copy with a certificate of completion.
Should I send a PDF or a link?+
A PDF. It is what finance systems ingest, it cannot change after you send it, and it is the format auditors expect.
Fill your Invoice in about ninety seconds.
Type into it, sign with your finger and send it back. No card needed.