InvoiceSnap

Proforma invoice

A proforma invoice is a preliminary bill sent before goods or work are delivered. It shows the client exactly what a real invoice will say, without being a request for payment itself.

The InvoiceSnap editorial teamResearched and maintained by the team at FusionStudiosLast reviewed

This guide covers proforma invoices as used in the EU, the UK and international trade. Legal requirements differ per country, so every rule below names the country or bloc it comes from and links to the authority that publishes it. This is general information about published requirements, not tax or legal advice. See our editorial policy and methodology.

A proforma invoice is a preliminary bill sent before a sale is confirmed. It states what will be supplied and what it will cost, but it is not a demand for payment and it does not create a liability in either party's accounts. It is generally not a valid VAT invoice, so a customer cannot use it to reclaim tax. Its most common real use is export: it accompanies goods so customs can assess duty on a declared value.

Proforma vs. quote vs. invoice

All three describe a price before or after work happens, but they carry different weight. A quote is an offer the client can accept or reject. A proforma invoice goes a step further: it is used once a deal is essentially agreed, often to confirm exact figures for customs, an import declaration, or an internal purchase approval before the goods ship or the work starts. A final invoice, sent after delivery, is the one that actually requests payment.

When people send one

Proforma invoices are common in international trade, where customs or a bank needs a document showing the declared value of goods before they cross a border. They also show up when a buyer's finance department needs a firm number to raise a purchase order internally before your work can be scheduled.

How to create one here

InvoiceSnap does not have a separate proforma mode, so use whichever of the two builders reads closest to your situation, and make it clear the document is not a demand for payment:

When the order is confirmed, build the real invoice with the same line items and a clean number, following the invoice number format guide.

Sources

Every legal requirement on this page comes from the authority that publishes it. Dates below are the day we last opened each page.

Frequently asked questions

Is a proforma invoice legally a demand for payment?

No. A proforma invoice is a preview of what a final invoice will look like. It has no legal standing as a request for payment, which is why it should never carry the same number as the real invoice that follows it.

Can I turn a proforma into a real invoice?

Yes. Once the client confirms the order, re-enter the same line items in the invoice generator with a fresh invoice number and a due date, and send that as the real, payable invoice.

Does a proforma invoice include tax?

It usually shows the tax you expect to charge so the total is not a surprise, but treat the figure as an estimate until the final invoice, especially if rates or exchange rates can shift before the work is confirmed.

Can I reclaim VAT on a proforma invoice?

Generally no, and this is the most expensive misunderstanding about the document. A proforma is not issued as a VAT invoice: it is a preview of one. HMRC's VAT guide sets out what a VAT invoice must contain and when one has to be issued, and a document marked proforma is not it. The practical consequence is that your customer's bookkeeper cannot use it to recover input tax, and if they try, it comes back. Issue the real VAT invoice once the supply is confirmed.

Why do customs ask for a proforma invoice?

Because a shipment crossing a border needs a stated value before anyone has been billed. A proforma accompanies goods so customs can assess duty and tax on a declared value, which is the single most common real-world use of the document and the reason exporters produce them routinely. For that purpose it needs more than a normal quote: a description of the goods, quantities, unit values and total, the country of origin, the delivery terms, and the reason for export.

What is the difference between a proforma invoice and a commercial invoice?

A commercial invoice is the real, payable document issued once the sale is agreed, and it is the one that goes into both parties' accounts. A proforma comes first, is not a demand for payment, and does not create a liability. In an export context both may exist for the same shipment: the proforma to get the goods quoted, approved or cleared, and the commercial invoice to actually bill for them.

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