Invoicing in Ireland: the complete guide for small businesses

An Irish VAT invoice must issue within 15 days of the end of the month in which you supplied the goods or services, and it must show the details on Revenue's list, including a unique sequential number, both parties' names and addresses, your VAT number, the VAT rate breakdown and the total VAT. For getting paid, put a payment date on every invoice: between businesses, if none is agreed, payment falls due 30 days after the later of the customer receiving the invoice or delivery. From 1 November 2028, every business must be able to receive structured e-invoices.

In this article

The short version

• A VAT invoice must issue within 15 days of the end of the supply month.
• Revenue lists the details every VAT invoice must show, including a sequential number.
• Put a payment date on every invoice, since late payment rights run from it.
• Every business must be able to receive e-invoices from 1 November 2028.
• SEPA direct debit pre-notification can go on the invoice itself.

The invoice rules in one line each

These are the rules most small businesses need day to day. Tax rules change, so confirm anything that affects your VAT return with Revenue or your accountant.

• A VAT invoice must issue within 15 days of the end of the month in which you made the supply.
• Every VAT invoice needs a unique sequential number, so don't reuse a number for a second invoice.
• Show the VAT-exclusive price, the VAT rate breakdown and the total VAT, not just a VAT-inclusive total.
• If you invoice in a currency other than euro, the invoice must show euro figures as well.
• Put a payment date on every invoice, so it's clear when statutory late payment interest starts to run.
• Between businesses, a payment term longer than 60 days has to be expressly agreed and must not be grossly unfair to you.
• If you collect by SEPA direct debit, the pre-notification of the collection can go on the invoice itself.
• From 1 November 2028, every business must be able to receive structured e-invoices.

What a VAT invoice must show

Revenue publishes the details a VAT invoice must contain. Most invoices need the first group below; the second group only applies to particular kinds of supply.

The details every VAT invoice needs:

• the date of issue
• a unique sequential number
• your full name, address and VAT registration number
• your customer's full name and address
• the quantity and nature of the goods, or the extent and nature of the services
• the date of supply
• the unit price excluding VAT
• any discounts or price reductions
• the breakdown of the amount by VAT rate
• the total VAT payable
• the date of any payment on account made before the supply

The extra details for particular supplies:

• reverse charge supplies need the customer's VAT number and the words "reverse charge applies"
• intra-Community supplies of goods need the customer's VAT number and a note that it's an intra-Community supply of goods
• triangulation needs a reference to the EC triangulation simplification and a statement that the recipient is liable for the VAT
• where a tax representative is involved, their name, address and VAT number
• invoices in a foreign currency need euro figures as well

If you invoice from accounting software, check your template once against this list, especially the VAT number, the supply date and the numbering. A missing supply date is easy to overlook when the invoice date and supply date usually match.

When to issue a VAT invoice

Revenue's rule is that a VAT invoice must issue within 15 days of the end of the month in which the goods or services are supplied. The deadline is tied to the month of supply, not to the date you finished the paperwork.

If you deliver a job on 10 March, the month of supply ends on 31 March and the VAT invoice must issue by 15 April. A job delivered on 30 March has the same deadline.

If you invoice monthly in arrears for ongoing work, issuing every invoice in the first two weeks of the following month keeps you inside the rule. Leaving invoices until a quieter week can push some past it, and where no payment date was agreed, it also pushes back the date the 30-day default starts.

Payment terms and payment details

Your payment terms decide when an invoice becomes late, and with it when statutory late payment rights start. In a sale to another business or a public body, the European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012 (S.I. 580 of 2012) apply. Where no payment date was agreed, payment is due 30 calendar days after the later of the customer receiving the invoice or delivery of the goods or services.

Between businesses you can agree longer terms, but anything over 60 calendar days from delivery has to be expressly agreed in the contract and must not be grossly unfair to you. Once an agreed date passes, statutory interest runs from the next day at 10.4% a year from 1 July 2026, with fixed compensation of €40, €70 or €100 depending on the invoice amount, and no reminder is needed. The rate is reset each 1 January and 1 July. None of this applies to consumers.

A few habits make the payment section of an invoice easier to act on:

1. Show the due date as a date, such as 30 November 2026, rather than only "30 days".
2. Say which payment methods you accept and how to use each one.
3. If you charge statutory interest on late payment, say so in your terms of business and on the invoice.
4. If you collect by SEPA direct debit, include the pre-notification of the collection, which the SEPA rules require at least 14 calendar days before the collection unless you and the customer agree another timeline.
5. Give a contact name or address for queries, so a disputed line doesn't hold up the whole invoice.

A payment link on the invoice lets a customer pay by card or another method on the spot. With Adfin, payment links go out by email, SMS or WhatsApp, and customers can pay by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfer or SEPA direct debit. Pricing is 20c + 1% per successful payment, with the 1% part capped at €2 on SEPA direct debit and bank transfer, though not on cards, and there's no monthly fee, setup fee or contract.

VAT on the moneys received basis

Revenue allows some businesses to account for VAT on the moneys received basis, also called the cash receipts basis. You can opt for it if your turnover doesn't exceed, and isn't likely to exceed, €2,000,000 in any continuous 12 months, or if at least 90% of your supplies go to customers who aren't entitled to deduct all of the VAT they pay.

Whichever basis you use, the invoice rules above still apply. Ask your accountant whether the moneys received basis suits your business before you opt in.

E-invoicing in Ireland from 2028

Revenue has set out three phases for structured electronic invoicing and real-time reporting.

For most small businesses, the first date to plan for is 1 November 2028, when you'll need to be able to receive e-invoices from large suppliers. Ask your accounting software provider how it will handle that.

After the invoice goes out

An invoice with correct details and a clear due date still needs following up when it isn't paid. ISME's survey of SME owners for the first quarter of 2026 found they waited 44 days on average to be paid.

Xero Ireland can send automatic payment reminders before or after the due date, and QuickBooks Online Ireland can send up to three automatic reminders on unpaid invoices that have already been emailed. If you haven't switched them on yet, that's a quick first step.

Adfin works with Xero and QuickBooks as a certified app with two-way sync, and its free Essential credit control sends unlimited reminders by email, SMS and WhatsApp, produces customer statements and shows an aged debtors view of what each customer owes and how long it's been outstanding. When a customer pays through Adfin, the invoice is marked paid in Xero or QuickBooks automatically. Enhanced credit control costs 0.3% per paid invoice, only when it's used, and adds statutory late payment interest on overdue business invoices and Adfin's collection agents, which pick the timing, channel and tone of each reminder within rules you approve.

Common questions

How long do I have to issue a VAT invoice in Ireland? A VAT invoice must issue within 15 days of the end of the month in which the goods or services were supplied. For a supply in March, that means by 15 April.

Does an Irish invoice need a sequential number? Revenue's list of VAT invoice details includes a unique sequential number. Each invoice needs its own number, following on from the one before.

What payment terms apply if my invoice doesn't state any? Between businesses, payment is due 30 calendar days after the later of the customer receiving the invoice or delivery of the goods or services, under S.I. 580 of 2012.

Can I invoice in sterling or dollars? You can invoice in another currency, but Revenue's list requires euro figures on a VAT invoice issued in a foreign currency.

When does e-invoicing become mandatory in Ireland? From 1 November 2028, VAT-registered large corporates must issue structured e-invoices for domestic business-to-business sales, and every business must be able to receive them. Cross-border EU business-to-business trade follows from 1 November 2029.

Can I add late payment interest to an invoice for a consumer? Statutory late payment interest and compensation only apply to sales to other businesses and public bodies. The Regulations don't cover consumers.

Sources

• Revenue - Information required on a VAT invoice (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.revenue.ie/en/vat/vat-records-invoices-credit-notes/invoices/information-required-vat-invoice.aspx
• Revenue - What is a VAT invoice? (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.revenue.ie/en/vat/vat-records-invoices-credit-notes/invoices/what-is-vat-invoice.aspx
• Revenue - Who can opt for the moneys received basis (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.revenue.ie/en/vat/accounting-for-vat/accounting-for-vat-on-moneys-received/who-can-opt-moneys-received-basis.aspx
• Revenue - eInvoicing implementation phases (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.revenue.ie/en/corporate/consultations-and-submissions/modernising-vat/einvoicing/implementation-phases/index.aspx
• Irish Statute Book - S.I. No. 580/2012, European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012 (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2012/si/580/made/en/print
• European Payments Council - 2025 SEPA Direct Debit Core Rulebook, version 1.0 (accurate as of November 2026) https://europeanpaymentscouncil.eu/sites/default/files/kb/file/2024-11/EPC016-06%202025%20SDD%20Core%20Rulebook%20version%201.0.pdf