To take your first payment you need three things: a bank account for the money to land in, an invoice or payment link to ask for it, and one payment method your customer can use. A plain bank transfer usually costs nothing per payment but relies on your customer typing your details correctly; a payment link with card and pay by bank is quicker for them and easier to match. Most other decisions can wait until you have more customers.
In this article
The short version
- You need a bank account, an invoice or payment link, and one payment method.
- An invoice is only a legal requirement when both sides are VAT registered.
- Bank transfers are free but rely on your customer typing your details correctly.
- Without agreed terms, a business customer has 30 days to pay.
- A merchant account, your own SUN and a second provider can all wait.
What you need before you can take money
The list is short.
- Somewhere for the money to land. A business current account keeps your bookkeeping clean from the first payment. Many banks expect business activity to go through a business account, so check your terms before using a personal one.
- A way to ask for payment: an invoice, a payment link, or an invoice with a link on it.
- One payment method your customer can use today. You don't need three.
- A record of what you agreed and what you were paid.
You don't need a limited company. A sole trader can invoice and be paid in exactly the same way.
An invoice is only a legal requirement if both you and your customer are registered for VAT. Below that, it's still the sensible way to set a due date, explain the charge and keep a record. An invoice isn't a receipt: it asks for payment, while a receipt confirms you've been paid.
Which payment method to start with
Plenty of new businesses take their first payments by plain bank transfer, and there's nothing wrong with that. It usually costs nothing per payment, your customer already knows how to do it, and the money usually arrives within seconds over Faster Payments.
It has two limits that show up quickly. Your customer has to type your sort code, account number and reference correctly, and a Faster Payment can't be recalled once it's sent, so a wrong reference leaves you with a payment you can't match and a wrong account number leaves the money somewhere else. And bank details sent in an email are what invoice fraudsters target: changing a few digits in a convincing copy of your email can send your customer's money to the wrong account.
A payment link avoids both. Your customer taps the link and pays by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or pay by bank, with your details and the reference already filled in. Here's what that costs on Adfin's published pricing, with no monthly fee or minimum:
| Method | Fee per payment | On a £300 invoice |
|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer to your account | Nothing | £0 |
| Pay by bank | 1% + 20p, with the 1% capped at £4 | £3.20 |
| Standard UK card, Apple Pay, Google Pay | 1% + 20p | £3.20 |
| Business card or Amex | 2% + 20p | £6.20 |
| Direct debit | 1% + 20p, with the 1% capped at £4 | £3.20 |
At a handful of customers, the difference between providers comes to a few pounds a month, so it's not where your attention is best spent. It matters more as invoices grow, because card fees keep rising with the amount while capped bank and direct debit fees stop.
Terms to put on your first invoice
Your terms decide when a payment is late, so it's worth ten minutes before you send invoice number one.
If you haven't agreed a payment date, a business customer has 30 days from receiving your invoice, or the goods or service, to pay. You can set your own terms instead, including asking for payment up front, and for a new business asking for a deposit on a first job is normal and easier to agree before the work starts than after.
Put the due date, your payment details or link, and what happens if payment is late on the invoice itself. If your customer is a business and pays late, you're entitled by law to claim interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate (11.75% a year at the current 3.75%) and a fixed sum of £40 to £100 per invoice, even if your terms don't mention it.
What can wait until later
Each of these is a real decision for a business further along, and a distraction with your first few customers:
- A merchant account in your own name. A payment provider can let you take cards under its own arrangements, so you can start quickly. Your own merchant account is worth pricing once card volumes are large.
- Your own direct debit Service User Number. Many providers, Adfin included, collect under their own number, so you don't need one to offer direct debit.
- A card surcharge policy. Surcharging personal cards is banned, and on business cards you can only pass on your cost, so read the rules before writing anything into your terms.
- A card machine, unless you take payment in person. A link works over email, text or WhatsApp.
- A second provider as a backup, which mostly creates reconciliation work.
As the business grows, a few things change the picture. When income starts to repeat, direct debit lets you collect on a date you set. When invoices move into the thousands, capped bank payments start saving real money over cards. And when chasing starts taking real hours, it's time for reminders that go out on their own.
Adfin covers those later steps from the same account: direct debit alongside card and pay by bank on one invoice link, payments matched back to Xero or QuickBooks, and Customer Agents that can chase unpaid invoices over email, SMS or WhatsApp on a schedule you set. It's free to open an account, so it can wait until you have an invoice to put through it.
Common questions
Do I need a business bank account to take my first payment? Not always, as many sole traders start with a personal account. Separating business money early makes your bookkeeping much easier, and your bank may expect it.
Do I have to issue an invoice? By law, only if both you and your customer are registered for VAT. Otherwise an invoice is still how you set a due date and keep a record.
How long does a customer have to pay? If you haven't agreed terms, a business customer has 30 days from receiving your invoice or the goods or service. You can set your own terms, including payment up front.
What's the cheapest way to take a first payment? A bank transfer straight to your account, usually with no fee per payment. The trade-off is that your customer types the details and a mistake can't be recalled.
Do I need a merchant account to accept cards? No. A payment provider can let you take cards under its own arrangements, and your own merchant account only becomes worth pricing as card volumes grow.
When should I add direct debit? Once some of your income repeats. Direct debit needs a mandate and advance notice, so it suits regular fees more than a first sale.
Sources
- GOV.UK - Invoicing and taking payment from customers (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.gov.uk/invoicing-and-taking-payment-from-customers
- GOV.UK - Late commercial payments: charging interest and debt recovery (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.gov.uk/late-commercial-payments-interest-debt-recovery
- Bank of England - The interest rate (Bank Rate) (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/the-interest-rate-bank-rate
- Adfin - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/pricing
