How to issue invoices as a freelancer in 2022

You have to get paid in order to be successful. It doesn’t matter if you do one freelance gig or run a full-time freelance business, you have to calculate your time and invoice your clients. Being a freelancer can be a highly rewarding experience. After all, as the boss of your small business, you can set your hours and you are directly in charge of how much money you can make. On the one hand, it provides an incredible amount of freedom and on the other, it requires you to take many matters into your own hands. Many freelancers enjoy the freedom of being a freelancer while struggling with the financial burdens and to do’s. Actually, you don’t have to be intimidated by invoicing. All you have to do is to understand the basic elements of an invoice.

As a freelancer, you have to request payments and follow up on when your payment is due for your products or services that you agreed with a client. This can sometimes be difficult to do, especially if you are juggling many projects and clients simultaneously. Issuing a professional invoice can become overwhelming, so let’s talk about how to make it easier.

You’ve completed the hardest part by doing your job! The rest is easy. If you want your invoices to look more professional, check our invoice generator.

VAT invoices

Soon after you start freelancing, you will come across the concept of value-added tax (VAT). If a client lives somewhere VAT is in effect, they will want to see a VAT invoice. This type of invoice is a document that lays out the details of a service, your contact information (i.e. your phone number and email address) and any other relevant data such as your banking details.

Providing a VAT invoice will help your VAT-registered clients reclaim the VAT that was charged to them. It will also boost your client retention rates, especially when it comes to holding onto long-term clients.

When is an invoice valid?

A valid invoice contains the following:

The party being billed

A PO (purchase order) number when necessary and the contact person

Invoice number

Invoice date

Supplier details

Service details

Agreed amount to be charged to the client

Applicable VAT amount and VAT rate

When you send an invoice including a VAT statement, yet excluding a VAT number to your client, they will not be able to claim the VAT back. This may lead to a drawback from paying your invoice on its due date. If you do have a VAT number that you can include in the invoice, the invoice can act as a receipt for them, which they can use to deduct the VAT amount from their taxes.

Countries requiring VAT ID for invoicing and VAT rates

Country	Tax Rate
AUSTRALIA	GST2 10%
AUSTRIA	VAT 20%
AZORES (Portugal)	VAT 18%
BELARUS	VAT 20%
BELGIUM	VAT 21%
BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA	VAT 17%
BOTSWANA	VAT 12%
BRAZIL	VAT 7-18% (per state)
BULGARIA	VAT 20%
CANADA	GST 5%
CANARY ISLANDS	VAT 0%
CEUTA (Spain)	VAT 0%
CHILE	VAT 19%
CHINA	VAT 17%
CORSICA (France)	VAT 20%
COTE D’ IVOIRE	VAT 20%
CROATIA	VAT 5-25%
CURACAO	VAT 6-9%
CYPRUS	VAT 19%
CZECH REPUBLIC	VAT 10, 15, 21%
DENMARK	VAT 25%
ESTONIA	VAT 20%
FAROE ISLANDS (Denmark)	VAT 25%
FINLAND	VAT 24%
FRANCE	VAT 20%
GERMANY	VAT 19%
GIBRALTAR	VAT 0%
GREECE	VAT 24%
GUADELOUPE (France)	VAT 2.1, 8.5%
GUERNSEY (United Kingdom)	VAT 0%
HONG KONG	GST 0%
HUNGARY	VAT 27%
ICELAND	VAT 24%
INDIA	VAT 1-5%, 15%
INDONESIA	VAT 10%
IRELAND	VAT 23%
ISLE OF MAN (United Kingdom)	VAT 20%
ISRAEL	VAT 17%
ITALY	VAT 22%
JAPAN	VAT 8%
JERSEY (United Kingdom)	GST 5%
KAZAKHSTAN	VAT 12%
LATVIA	VAT 21%
LEBANON	VAT 11%
LESOTHO (SACU)	VAT 15%
LIECHTENSTEIN (Admin by Switz.)	VAT 7.7%
LITHUANIA	VAT 21%
LUXEMBOURG	VAT 0-17%
MACAU, CHINA	VAT 0%
MACEDONIA	VAT 18%
MADAGASCAR	VAT 20%
MADEIRA (Portugal)	VAT 22%
MALAYSIA	SST (VAT) 5-10%
MALTA	VAT 18%
MARTINIQUE	VAT 2.1, 8.5%
MAURITIUS	VAT 15%
MAYOTTE (France)	VAT 0%
MELILLA (Spain)	VAT 0%
MEXICO	IVA 5 16%
MIQUELON (France)	VAT 0%
MOLDOVA	VAT 20%, reduced rate: 8%
MONACO (Admin by France)	VAT 20%
MONGOLIA	VAT 10%
MONTENEGRO	VAT 19%
MOROCCO	VAT 20%
NAMIBIA (SACU)	VAT 15%
NETHERLANDS	VAT 21%
NEW CALEDONIA (France)	GTC (VAT) 3-22%
NEW ZEALAND	GST 15%
NORWAY	VAT 25%
PAKISTAN	GST 13-17%
POLAND	VAT 5-23%
PORTUGAL	VAT 23%
PUERTO RICO (USA)	VAT 11.5%
REUNION ISLAND (France)	VAT 2.1-8.5%
ROMANIA	VAT 18%
SENEGAL	VAT 18%
SERBIA	VAT 20%
SINGAPORE	GST 7%
SLOVAKIA	VAT 20%
SLOVENIA	VAT 9.5-22%
SOUTH AFRICA	VAT 15%
SOUTH KOREA	VAT 10%
SPAIN	VAT 21%
SRI LANKA	VAT 15%
ST. BARTHELEMY (France)	VAT 2.1-8.5%
ST. MARTIN (French side)	VAT 5%
ST. PIERRE (France)	VAT 0%
SWAZILAND (SACU)	Sales tax (VAT) 15%
SWEDEN	VAT 25%
SWITZERLAND	VAT 8%
TAHITI (France)	VAT 16%
TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA	VAT 5%
TASMANIA (Australia)	GST 10%
THAILAND	VAT 7%
TUNISIA	VAT 19%
TURKEY	VAT 18%
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES	VAT 5%
UKRAINE	VAT 20%
UNITED KINGDOM	VAT 20%
WALLIS & FUTUNA (France)	VAT 2-6%

Make invoicing easy

By choosing Ruul, you can easily create an invoice, track your payments and get paid on time. Ruul enables freelancers to issue VAT invoices without having to be a business owner! After you issue your online invoice, your actual commercial invoice is sent to your e-mail address immediately. You can use this VAT-ready freelance invoice to secure your payments and get paid faster.