What to include in a proforma invoice
Use this page as the template check before you send a proforma invoice. Each of the 9 fields below has a reason and an example, because the point of a proforma invoice is that the buyer can act on it without asking a question.
The 9-point checklist
Think of the proforma invoice as evidence that may be read months later by someone who was not there: an accountant, an auditor, a new employee. The 9 fields are what that reader needs to reconstruct the deal.
- Proforma number. A separate sequence, labelled proforma, so it is never mistaken for a tax invoice in the ledger. Example: PF-0311
- Issue date. Starts the clock for validity, delivery and payment terms; for invoices it usually sets the tax point. Example: 18 September 2026
- Valid until. Protects you from price changes; after this date the offer lapses. Example: Valid until 2 October 2026
- Seller name, address and contact. Identifies who is supplying and who to contact about the document. Example: Northgate Joinery Ltd, 14 Mill Lane, Leeds LS1 4AB, accounts@northgatejoinery.co.uk
- Buyer name, address and contact. Identifies who is ordering or paying; on invoices the legal entity name matters for tax. Example: Harbour Café Ltd, 3 Quay Street, Bristol BS1 6XN
- Line items. Description, quantity, unit price and line total for each item, so both sides can check the arithmetic. Example: 12 × oak worktop 3 m @ $185.00 = $2,220.00
- Subtotal, tax and total. Shows the tax separately so the buyer can reclaim it and the seller can report it. Example: Subtotal $2,220.00, VAT 20% $444.00, total $2,664.00
- Payment terms. States when and how payment is expected; on quotes and POs it sets expectations, on invoices it is enforceable. Example: 50% deposit on order, balance within 14 days of delivery
- Shipping terms. Who pays freight and insurance and where risk passes; essential for cross-border proformas. Example: FOB Rotterdam, buyer arranges freight
Numbering
Numbering: Numbered separately from real invoices, and clearly labelled 'proforma', because it must not enter the sales ledger or a tax return. Keep the sequence unbroken; a gap looks like a missing document to anyone checking the books.
What it does in the accounts
What the proforma invoice does to the books: it is not booked as a sale; no tax point is created. Get the date and the totals right on the document itself; correcting them later means issuing another document, not editing this one.
The mistake to avoid
Watch for one error above all: recording a proforma as revenue or claiming tax on it, when it is not a tax invoice. It is usually a template problem, so fix the template rather than the individual document.
Make a proforma invoice now with the Invoice Maker; it carries every one of the 9 fields on this list and runs in your browser.
Compare it with the documents it is most often confused with: Quote vs proforma invoice, Proforma invoice vs invoice, Purchase order vs proforma invoice, Proforma invoice vs receipt.