In this article
Upload the file, let the system read the fields, check the ones that matter, and send. The fields worth checking every time are the customer, the amount, the VAT treatment, the supply date and the invoice number, because those are the ones that make an invoice disputable if they're wrong.
Most of your invoicing time isn't spent deciding what to charge. It goes on retyping something that already exists.
The short version
- Any source document works: a supplier PDF, a spreadsheet of lines, a photo of a job sheet.
- Extraction gets you a draft, not a finished invoice. Five fields need a human eye.
- A UK invoice still needs its required fields whatever created it.
- Keep the source file. Your records need to show where the invoice came from.
- Adfin accepts PDFs, CSVs, Excel and images in any format, or imports from Xero and QuickBooks.
The short answer
Give the system the document you already have, let it pull the fields, correct what it got wrong, and send. Your work moves from typing to checking, which is faster and less error-prone, but it isn't zero.
Before you start
Three things are worth settling before you upload anything.
Decide what your source document actually is. A quote you're converting, a timesheet you're billing from, a supplier document you're rebilling, or a batch of lines in a spreadsheet. Each one needs a different check at the end.
Have your numbering settled. The invoice number comes from your own sequence and not from anything in the source file, because a number lifted off a quote or a supplier document is how duplicates get into a ledger.
And know your VAT position. Extraction can read a VAT amount off a document, but it can't know whether that treatment is right for your supply.
Step by step
- Upload the file. PDFs, CSVs, Excel and images all work in Adfin, in any format, and you can also import invoices from Xero, from QuickBooks or from another system via Adfin Bridge.
- Let it read the fields: customer, description, quantities, amounts, dates.
- Check the customer. Extraction reads names off documents, and documents carry trading names, group names and branch names. Your invoice needs the name you contract with.
- Check the amount and the arithmetic, particularly on a spreadsheet import, where a total may be a formula that didn't come across.
- Check the VAT treatment. The rate, whether VAT applies at all, and whether anything on the invoice is exempt.
- Check the supply date. It's a required field, it's separate from the invoice date, and it's the field extraction most often takes from the wrong place.
- Let your own numbering assign the invoice number, not anything printed on the source document.
- Add the payment route before you send. The point of shortening the raising step is to get to the paying step sooner.
What to check before it goes out
| Field | Why it is the one to check |
|---|---|
| Customer name | Must be who you contract with, not the trading name on the source file |
| Total and VAT | A formula that did not import leaves a total that looks plausible |
| VAT treatment | Extraction reads a rate; it does not judge whether that rate is right |
| Supply date | Required on every invoice, separate from the invoice date, and easy to mis-read |
| Invoice number | From your sequence. A number off the source document creates duplicates |
Everything else is worth a glance, but those five are worth stopping for.
Where this saves the most time
Four situations account for most of the saving.
Rebilling, where a supplier document becomes a customer invoice without you retyping the lines.
Timesheets and job sheets, where a photo of a paper sheet from site becomes an invoice the same day. That one matters, because your terms run from the invoice date.
Batch invoicing, where a spreadsheet of lines becomes a run of invoices, each with its own number from your sequence.
And practices billing from a schedule, where a fee schedule in Excel becomes the month's invoices. For recurring fees, a direct debit mandate then takes the payment decision out of it entirely.
The real gain isn't typing speed. It's the gap between the work finishing and the invoice existing, and that's the part of the cycle you actually control.
Common questions
Can I create an invoice from a PDF? Yes. Upload the PDF and the fields are read into a draft invoice for you to check and send. Adfin accepts PDFs, CSVs, Excel files and images.
Can I invoice from a photo? Yes. A photo of a job sheet or a handwritten note can be used as the source document. You still need to check the extracted fields before it goes out.
Will the invoice still be legally valid? It has to carry the same required fields as any other UK invoice, whatever created it. What produced the document makes no difference to what it must show.
Should I keep the original file? Yes. Your records should show where the invoice came from, and the source file is the fastest way to settle a query about a line on it.
What does extraction get wrong most often? The customer name, where a document shows a trading or group name, and the supply date, where a document carries several dates. Both are required fields, so both are worth a deliberate check.
Can I import invoices from Xero or QuickBooks instead? Yes. Adfin has a two-way sync with Xero and QuickBooks, so invoices you raise there can be collected through Adfin without being retyped.
Sources
- GOV.UK — invoices, what they must include (accurate as of August 2026)
Reviewed by the Adfin team. This article explains how invoice capture works and is not tax or legal advice. Last updated August 2026.
