Invoice example and free template for South African small businesses
A valid South African invoice shows your details, the client's details, a unique invoice number, the date, what you supplied, the quantity and price, and the total due. If you are VAT-registered it must also be marked as a tax invoice and show your VAT number and the VAT charged. Copy the template below, or build one in the free invoice generator.
On this page: what an invoice needs · the R50 and R5,000 rules · invoice example · copy-paste templates · Excel and Word downloads · more templates · common mistakes · questions
Invoice or tax invoice: what is the difference?
An invoice is a request for payment. A tax invoice is an invoice issued by a VAT-registered business that also meets the SARS rules, so the client can claim the VAT back as input tax. If you are not registered for VAT, you issue a plain invoice. You do not show VAT, you do not quote a VAT number, and you do not use the words "Tax Invoice".
SARS lets the document be headed "Tax Invoice", "VAT Invoice" or "Invoice". What matters is the content, not the heading. Registration is compulsory only once your turnover passes the threshold, which SARS says rose from R1 million to R2.3 million on 1 April 2026. Most sole traders and small service businesses sit below that line and issue plain invoices.
Every invoice, VAT-registered or not
- Your business name, address and contact details
- A unique invoice number. Do not reuse or skip numbers: a broken sequence is one of the first things a bookkeeper or auditor questions
- The invoice date
- The client's name and address
- A clear description of the goods or services supplied
- The quantity and the price
- The total due, the due date and how to pay (banking details)
Add these if you are VAT-registered
- The words "Tax Invoice" (or "VAT Invoice")
- Your VAT registration number
- The VAT charged, shown separately or stated as included at the applicable rate (15%)
- Your client's VAT number, if they are a VAT vendor and the sale is above R5,000
The R50 and R5,000 rules
For VAT-registered businesses, how much detail you need depends on the value of the sale. SARS sets these tiers:
| Sale value | What you issue | Client details needed? |
|---|---|---|
| R50 or less | No tax invoice required (a till slip or sales docket showing the VAT is enough) | No |
| Above R50, up to R5,000 | An abridged tax invoice | Not required |
| Above R5,000 | A full tax invoice | Yes: name, address and, if a VAT vendor, their VAT number |
A full tax invoice also needs an accurate description of the goods or services, the quantity or volume, the value, the VAT charged and the total. It must be issued within 21 days of the supply. For a deeper walk through each tier, see our guide to VAT invoice requirements in South Africa.
Invoice example: a filled-in South African invoice
082 555 0134 · thandiwe@example.co.za
8 Fig Avenue, Durbanville, 7550
| Description | Qty | Price | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly garden maintenance — mowing, edging, hedge trim | 1 | R650.00 | R650.00 |
| Refuse removal (green waste) | 1 | R150.00 | R150.00 |
Example only — business name, numbers and banking details above are illustrative, not real.
The VAT works out as 15% of the subtotal: R800 × 0.15 = R120, so the client pays R920. If your prices already include VAT, divide the total by 1.15 to find the pre-VAT amount (R920 ÷ 1.15 = R800). The VAT calculator does either direction for you.
Copy-paste templates
1. VAT-registered (tax invoice)
TAX INVOICE
[Your Business Name]
[Your Address]
[Your Phone] · [Your Email]
VAT No: [Your VAT Number]
Invoice #: [INV-0001]
Date: [DD Month YYYY]
Due: [DD Month YYYY]
Bill to:
[Client Name]
[Client Address]
[Client VAT No, if a VAT vendor and the sale is above R5,000]
Description Qty Price Total
--------------------------------------------------------------
[What you supplied] [1] [R0.00] [R0.00]
[What you supplied] [1] [R0.00] [R0.00]
Subtotal: [R0.00]
VAT (15%): [R0.00]
Total due: [R0.00]
Banking details: [Bank], Acc [Account Number], Branch [Branch Code]
Payment due within [14] days of invoice date.
2. Not VAT-registered (plain invoice)
Same layout with the "Tax Invoice" heading, the VAT number and the VAT line taken out. Nothing else changes.
INVOICE
[Your Business Name]
[Your Address]
[Your Phone] · [Your Email]
Invoice #: [INV-0001]
Date: [DD Month YYYY]
Due: [DD Month YYYY]
Bill to:
[Client Name]
[Client Address]
Description Qty Price Total
--------------------------------------------------------------
[What you supplied] [1] [R0.00] [R0.00]
[What you supplied] [1] [R0.00] [R0.00]
Total due: [R0.00]
Banking details: [Bank], Acc [Account Number], Branch [Branch Code]
Payment due within [14] days of invoice date.
Prefer to fill it in on screen and print or save a PDF? Use the free invoice generator. It adds up the lines and the 15% VAT for you.
Download the template for Excel or Word
Prefer a file you can keep and reuse? These are free and need no signup. The Excel version adds up the lines and the VAT for you, with a Yes/No switch for VAT-registered businesses. The Word versions are blank layouts to type into.
- Excel invoice template (.xlsx): VAT on or off, automatic totals, due date calculated from your payment terms
- Word tax invoice template, VAT-registered (.docx)
- Word invoice template, not VAT-registered (.docx)
More free document templates
An invoice is one document in a chain. These templates cover the others, each with the fields to include and a copy-paste layout:
- Quote template: the offer you send before the work
- Proforma invoice template: a request for payment ahead of the work, which is not a tax invoice
- Purchase order template: the buyer's written order to a supplier
- Delivery note template: proof that the goods arrived, signed by the customer
- Credit notes: how to correct or cancel an invoice you already sent
Seven invoice mistakes that delay payment
- No invoice number, or a repeated one. Clients' accounts teams match payments to numbers. Duplicates get queried, and a gap in the sequence invites questions.
- No due date. "Payable on receipt" is vague. Write an actual date and the terms (for example 14 days).
- Charging VAT without being registered. This is not allowed, and a VAT number you do not hold on the page is worse.
- A VAT-registered supplier leaving out the VAT number. A VAT-registered client cannot claim the input tax without it, so their bookkeeper has a good reason to hold payment.
- Vague descriptions. "Work done" invites a dispute. Say what was supplied, where and when.
- Banking details missing or wrong. Check the account number and branch code. Payment to the wrong account is slow to fix.
- Sending it late. For a tax invoice, SARS expects it within 21 days of the supply. For everyone, the longer you wait, the longer you are paid after the job.
When to send it, and how
Send the invoice as soon as the work is done, or on the agreed milestone. Attach it as a PDF and put the amount and due date in the email or message itself, so the client does not have to open the file to know what to pay. WhatsApp is fine for sending it, as long as the invoice is still a proper document and not a single line in a chat. Keep a copy of every invoice you issue, in number order.
If the due date passes, follow up politely and early. Here is a follow-up sequence that gets paid without burning the relationship. If you invoice more than a handful of clients, read why a spreadsheet stops working and what tracking should do instead, and consider sending clients a monthly statement to show everything outstanding in one place.
Questions people ask
What must a South African invoice legally include?
At minimum: your business name and contact details, an invoice number, the date, a description of the goods or services, the quantity and price, and the total due. If you are registered for VAT, it must also say "Tax Invoice", include your VAT number, and show the VAT amount or state that the price includes VAT at the applicable rate.
What is the difference between an invoice and a tax invoice?
A tax invoice is an invoice from a VAT-registered business that carries the extra details SARS requires, such as the supplier's VAT number and the VAT charged. A business that is not registered for VAT issues a plain invoice without any VAT wording.
Do I need a VAT number on my invoice if I am not VAT registered?
No. VAT registration is compulsory only once your turnover passes the threshold, which SARS says is R2.3 million from 1 April 2026. Below that you can register voluntarily, but if you have not, leave the VAT fields off entirely. Adding a VAT number or charging VAT without being registered is not allowed.
How long do I have to send a tax invoice?
SARS says a tax invoice must be issued within 21 days of the supply. In practice, send it as soon as the work is done, because the due date is counted from the invoice date.
Can I send an invoice as a WhatsApp message?
You can send it over WhatsApp, but the invoice itself should still be a proper document with all the required fields, not a one-line price in a chat bubble. Send it as a PDF or as formatted text within the message rather than replacing the invoice with the message.
What should I do if I made a mistake on an invoice I already sent?
Do not quietly overwrite it. Issue a credit note that cancels the wrong invoice and send a new, correct one with a new number, so both your records and the client's still reconcile. Ask your accountant how to handle this for VAT.
What invoice number format should I use?
Use a simple sequence that never repeats, such as INV-0001, INV-0002 and so on. A gap or a repeated number is the first thing a bookkeeper or auditor will question. Give quotes, credit notes and proformas their own series. See invoice numbering in South Africa.
What payment terms should I put on an invoice?
Write an actual due date and the terms. Due on receipt or 7 days suits small jobs and private customers, and 14 or 30 days is common for ongoing business clients. Choose terms you can carry cash flow for. See invoice payment terms in South Africa.
Is a proforma invoice the same as an invoice?
No. A proforma invoice is a preview sent before the work to ask for payment up front. It is not a tax invoice, so a VAT-registered client cannot claim VAT on it. Issue the proper tax invoice when you supply. There is a free proforma invoice template.
Is there a free invoice template for Excel or Word?
Yes. You can download a free Excel template that calculates the totals and VAT for you, and two Word templates, one for VAT-registered businesses and one for businesses that are not registered. None of them needs a signup.
Zuvo generates invoices like this automatically
From your own price list, correctly formatted and numbered every time — no template to keep re-filling by hand.
Try Zuvo free for 14 days, no cardGeneral business guidance based on SARS's published tax invoice rules, checked on 20 October 2026. Not a substitute for advice from your own accountant on VAT registration or invoicing requirements specific to your business.