Upload the file to an invoicing tool that can read it, let it pull out the customer, amounts, dates and line items, check the fields that matter, and send. The checks worth making every time are the customer name, the total and VAT, the supply date and the invoice number, because a mistake in any of them can turn the invoice into a query.
In this article
The short version
- You can create an invoice from a PDF, spreadsheet or photo and check the draft before sending.
- Always check the customer name, total and VAT, VAT treatment, supply date and invoice number.
- The invoice number should come from your own sequence, not the source document.
- Keep the source file with the invoice in case of a query.
- An invoice created this way needs the same details as any other UK invoice.
How it works
A lot of invoicing time goes on retyping something that already exists: a signed quote, a timesheet, a job sheet from site or a spreadsheet of lines. Creating the invoice from that document cuts out the retyping, so your work shifts from typing to checking.
The steps are much the same in any tool that does this:
- Upload the file. Tools that offer this usually accept a PDF, a spreadsheet, or a photo of a paper job sheet or handwritten note.
- Let the tool read it. It pulls out the details it can find, such as the customer, the amount, the due date and the line items, and builds a draft invoice.
- Check the draft against the source, starting with the fields in the table below.
- Add anything the source didn't carry, such as the supply date or a purchase order number.
- Send it with a way to pay, so the time you've saved on raising the invoice turns into getting paid sooner.
In Adfin, you can drag in a PDF, an image, an Excel file or a CSV, one at a time or several at once, and its AI reads each file and pulls out the customer, amount, due date and line items for you to review before anything is sent. You can also import invoices you raise in Xero or QuickBooks, so you only use file uploads for the work that doesn't start there.
What to check before it goes out
Software reads what's on the page, not what you agreed with your customer, so a few fields deserve a deliberate look every time.
| Field | Why it's worth checking |
|---|---|
| Customer name | Documents often carry a trading name, a group name or a branch. The invoice needs the business you're contracting with |
| Total and VAT | A spreadsheet total can be a formula that didn't come across, leaving a figure that looks plausible but isn't |
| VAT treatment | A tool can read a VAT rate off a document, but it can't tell whether that rate is right for this supply |
| Supply date | Required on every UK invoice, separate from the invoice date, and easy to take from the wrong place when a document carries several dates |
| Invoice number | It should come from your own sequence, never from a number printed on a quote or a supplier's document |
Everything else is worth a glance. Those five are worth stopping for, because they're the ones most likely to come back as a query or a duplicate.
Where it saves the most time
Most of the benefit shows up in four kinds of work.
When you rebill, passing a supplier's cost on to your customer, the supplier's document can become your invoice without the lines being typed in again, as long as you check the customer and the VAT treatment are yours rather than the supplier's.
With job sheets and timesheets, a photo of a signed sheet taken on site can become an invoice the same day. That can matter more than the typing saved, because most payment terms only start running once your customer has the invoice.
Batch invoicing from a spreadsheet works well for monthly billing, where one file of lines becomes a run of invoices, each with its own number.
And fee schedules kept in Excel, common in practices and agencies, can become the month's invoices in one go. For fees that repeat every month, a direct debit mandate can then take the payment decision away from your customer altogether.
How to keep your records straight
Whatever produced the invoice, it has to carry the same details as any other UK invoice: a unique number, your details and your customer's, a description, the supply date, the invoice date, the amounts, any VAT and the total. If you're VAT registered and invoicing another VAT-registered business, it needs the full VAT invoice details too.
Keep the source file alongside the invoice. If your customer queries a line, the original timesheet or quote is the quickest way to settle it.
Let one system own your invoice numbers. If invoices are created in more than one place, make sure they draw on the same sequence, or use clearly separate series, so two invoices never share a number.
Once the invoice is out, Adfin's two-way sync keeps it matched with Xero or QuickBooks, payments are reconciled back to the right invoice automatically, and its collection agents can chase anything left unpaid on the schedule you set.
Common questions
Can I create an invoice from a PDF? Yes. Upload the PDF and the tool reads the details into a draft invoice for you to check and send.
Can I invoice from a photo? Yes. A clear photo of a job sheet or handwritten note can be used, but check the extracted details before the invoice goes out.
Is an invoice created this way legally valid? It is if it carries the same details as any other UK invoice. How the invoice was created makes no difference to what it must show.
Should I keep the original file? Yes. It shows where the invoice came from and is the quickest way to answer a query about a line.
What gets read wrongly most often? Usually the customer name, where a document shows a trading or group name, and dates, where a document carries several. Both are worth a deliberate check.
Can I import invoices from Xero or QuickBooks instead? Yes. Adfin imports approved invoices from Xero and QuickBooks and syncs payments back, so invoices you raise there don't need uploading.
Sources
- GOV.UK - Invoicing and taking payment from customers: invoices, what they must include (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.gov.uk/invoicing-and-taking-payment-from-customers/invoices-what-they-must-include
- HMRC - Record keeping (VAT Notice 700/21) (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.gov.uk/guidance/record-keeping-for-vat-notice-70021
- Adfin - Adding invoices to Adfin (accurate as of October 2026) https://support.adfin.com/en/articles/15073148-adding-invoices-to-adfin
- Adfin - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/pricing
