Freelancer invoice template
Freelancer invoice for work under a service contract: the monthly fee, extra work outside the agreed scope and expenses at cost, with the contract and period.
Templates by industry
- Monthly fee under the service contract
- Additional work outside the agreed scope
- Expenses at cost
How to invoice under a freelance service contract
Example workflow
Bill the month
Start with "Monthly fee under the service contract": the contract, the month and the agreed fee.
Add extras and expenses
Add approved extra work and expenses down to "Expenses at cost", each with its date and its basis.
Send and reconcile
Send the invoice on the date the contract sets, and reconcile payment against the invoice number.
Because the monthly fee under a service contract is fixed, most months bill themselves; the care goes into the edges. Work the contract does not cover, costs paid for the client and months that start or end partway through are where questions come from, so each gets a line of its own with its date or period. The client can then check the invoice against the contract without a phone call, and the fee line stays the same month after month.
Fields to prepare
- Deliverables and line items
- Monthly fee under the service contract, Additional work outside the agreed scope, Expenses at cost: bill the agreed monthly fee as one line, extra work outside the contract by the hour or by the task, and expenses at cost on their own line.
- Monthly fee under the service contract
- Name the contract and the month the fee is for; the amount stays the same whatever the hours, unless the contract ties it to time.
- Additional work outside the agreed scope
- Bill extra work at the rate the contract sets for it, which may differ from the monthly fee divided by hours.
- Expenses at cost
- Name the cost and the period it covers, such as one month of a software subscription, so the client can take it over when the contract ends.
- Contract and period
- Name the service contract (its title, number or date) and the month or period the invoice covers, so the client can match it to the agreement.
- Scope and extras
- Say what the monthly fee includes, and list each piece of extra work with the date it was requested or approved and the hours or the agreed price.
- Scope to agree
- Name the service contract and the period billed, say what the monthly fee covers, and put extra work outside that scope on its own line with the date it was approved.
Before sending
- Does “Monthly fee under the service contract” show the quantity actually supplied, not the quantity first quoted?
- Is “Additional work outside the agreed scope” charged at the rate the customer agreed to, with any change approved?
- Is “Expenses at cost” finished and accepted, or does it belong on a later invoice?
Show 3 more
- Check that the extras were approved before you did them, and keep the message or email that approved them.
- Keep the receipts for expenses billed at cost, and bill them without a markup unless the contract allows one.
- List the completed work for the period, then state the due date and any amount already received.
Worked example: one month of a service contract
The figures are an example, in dollars, with an example tax rate of 8%. A freelancer bills the monthly fee, five hours of approved extra work and a software subscription paid on the client’s behalf.
| Item | Quantity × unit price | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly fee under the service contract | 1 × $3,000.00 | $3,000.00 |
| Additional work outside the agreed scope | 5 × $50.00 | $250.00 |
| Expenses at cost | 1 × $24.00 | $24.00 |
| Subtotal | $3,274.00 | |
| Sales tax (8%) | $261.92 | |
| Total | $3,535.92 | |
The monthly fee, the extra hours and the expense add up to $3,274.00; tax at 8% is $261.92; the client pays $3,535.92. Check the hours against your time records before you send it.
Common mistakes on a freelancer invoice
- Billing extra work without saying when the client approved it.
- Folding expenses into the monthly fee, so the client cannot see them.
- Leaving out the contract or the period, so the invoice cannot be matched to the agreement.
- Adding a markup to expenses the contract says are billed at cost.
- Billing the same extra hours in two months.
What the document must show
These details make an invoice easier to approve and to file.
- Your business name, address and registration or tax number
- The customer's name and address
- Issue date and a document number you do not reuse
- Each line item with quantity, unit price and amount
- Tax shown separately from the net amount, and the total payable
- Payment terms: due date, bank details or accepted payment methods
The sales tax depends on where the work is supplied, so set the rate that applies to your customer before sending.
Official rate reference: US government: state and local taxes
Frequently asked questions
Freelancer invoice template: what should it include?
Start with the lines the template carries (Monthly fee under the service contract, Additional work outside the agreed scope, Expenses at cost) and change them to this month’s work. Then add your details, the client, the contract, the period and a number you have not used before.
What counts as work outside the agreed scope?
Whatever the contract does not list as included. Bill it only if the client asked for it, and name the request on the line.
Should expenses carry tax?
Bill them at cost and treat the tax as the rules for that kind of expense say. QuoteBill applies one tax rate to a whole document, so an expense taxed at another rate goes on a separate invoice.
The client deducts tax from my fee. What do I write?
Invoice the fee and the tax line as agreed and leave the deduction to the client, who knows the rule that applies to them. You can note the amount you expect to receive.
Can I invoice a month in advance?
If the contract says so, yes. Name the month the fee is for, and bill extras for the previous month once they are done.
How long should I keep these invoices?
As long as the tax rules where you work require for business records. Save each invoice as a PDF and keep it with the contract.
Read next
Reading for the Freelancer invoice template: How to write an invoice: a step-by-step example and Credit note vs invoice (and credit memo): how to issue one. The VAT and GST calculator works out the tax line for you.