Sole trader invoice template free and legally complete
Self-employed and need an invoice that will not come straight back to you? This one carries everything a UK sole trader invoice legally needs, works whether or not you are VAT registered, and arrives as a clean A4 PDF in your inbox. No signup and no card.
Three steps, about two minutes
Add your details. Your business, your client, and what you did. Drop in a logo if you have one and pick a colour that looks like you.
Check the preview. The invoice updates as you type, at real A4 proportions. What you see on screen is exactly what comes out of the PDF.
Get it by email. Tell us where to send it and a print-ready PDF lands in your inbox, ready to forward to your customer, print, or drop in your accounts folder.
What a sole trader invoice must include
You must show your own name and, if you trade under a different one, your business name. You need your address, the customer's name and address, a unique invoice number, a clear description of what you supplied, the supply date, the invoice date, the amount owed and your payment terms.
You do not need a company number, because you do not have one. That is a limited company requirement. If somebody asks you for one, they have mistaken you for a company.
Invoice numbers that hold up
Numbers must be unique and should follow a sequence with no gaps. INV-001, INV-002 and so on is perfectly acceptable and easier to defend than a date-based scheme you abandon halfway through the year.
Reusing a number, or leaving gaps you cannot explain, is the sort of thing that turns a routine HMRC enquiry into a longer one. Pick a format on day one and stick to it.
If you are not VAT registered
Below the VAT registration threshold you do not charge VAT, and you must not show a VAT line or imply one. Leave VAT switched off here and no VAT appears anywhere on the document.
You also must not show a VAT number you do not have. If you register later, your invoices from that date need the number, the rate and the VAT total added.
Nothing you type is sent to us
The whole thing runs in your browser. Your business details, your client's details and your prices stay on your own device, and the PDF is built there too. We do not need your email to use the generator and we do not store your invoice.
Your last invoice is remembered locally so a refresh does not cost you ten minutes of typing. Use Start again to wipe it whenever you like.
Frequently asked questions
What must a sole trader invoice include in the UK?
Your name and any trading name, your address, the customer's name and address, a unique invoice number, a description of what you supplied, the supply date, the invoice date, the amount owed and the payment terms. If you are VAT registered you also need your VAT number, the rate applied and the VAT total.
Do I need a company number on my invoice?
No. Company numbers are a limited company requirement. As a sole trader you show your own name, plus your trading name if you use one, and your address.
Do I charge VAT as a sole trader?
Only if you are VAT registered. Registration is required once your taxable turnover passes the threshold and is optional below it. If you are not registered you must not show VAT on your invoices at all.
How should I number my invoices?
Uniquely and in sequence, with no unexplained gaps. Something simple like INV-001 upward is fine. The important thing is that you can produce a complete, gapless run if anyone ever asks.
Is the invoice generator really free?
Yes. Build as many invoices as you like and we email you every one as a PDF. There is no signup, no trial and no card required. The only thing on the finished invoice is a small 'Made with Zappy' line in the footer.
Is my data stored anywhere?
The invoice is built in your browser, and your last one is kept in your browser's local storage so a refresh does not lose it. Start again clears it. When you ask us to email the PDF we keep that invoice and your email address so we can send it and so you can pick it up again later. We never sell it on, and marketing emails are a separate tick box you can opt out of at any time.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. On a phone the form breaks into short steps with the preview at the end, and the finished PDF arrives by email exactly as it does on a laptop. Handy for invoicing from the van before you have driven home.
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