Document types

Invoice

An invoice is a commercial document a seller issues to a buyer to request payment for goods or services delivered, listing the line items, total amount due, a unique sequential invoice number, the payment terms, and the seller's payment details.

Applies in: Global

An invoice is the canonical document of B2B commerce. It does three things at once. It is a payment request: the seller is asking the buyer for a specific amount of money. It is a tax record: in VAT, GST, and most other jurisdictions, the invoice is the primary document the tax authority uses to track who owes what. And it is an audit trail: the invoice plus the corresponding purchase order plus the receiving record is what AP teams reconcile to before they pay.

Every jurisdiction has its own minimum-content rules. The common core across most of the world: a unique sequential invoice number, the issue date, the seller's name and tax ID, the buyer's name and (often) tax ID, a clear description of what was sold, the quantity and price per line, the subtotal, any tax amount, and the total due. VAT and GST jurisdictions add stricter requirements (the supplier's VAT number, per-line tax rates) and a label requirement ("Tax Invoice" in Australia, "VAT Invoice" in some contexts).

An invoice is distinct from related documents: a quote (price offer before agreement), a proforma invoice (invoice-shaped quote, no tax record), a purchase order (buyer-side authorisation), a credit note (reverses an invoice), and a receipt (confirms payment received). The invoice sits in the middle of that workflow as the moment the seller crystallises the obligation to pay.

Common questions about Invoice

What is the difference between an invoice and a receipt?
An invoice is issued before payment, requesting it. A receipt is issued after payment, confirming it. The same transaction usually produces both: invoice goes out when work completes; receipt goes back when the buyer pays. Some sellers issue a single document combining both functions on point-of-sale transactions where payment is immediate.
What fields are required on an invoice?
The minimum almost everywhere: unique sequential invoice number, issue date, seller name and address, buyer name and address, description of goods or services, total amount, and payment instructions. VAT and GST jurisdictions add: the supplier's tax registration number, per-line tax rates, the tax amount, and (in many cases) the document label ("Tax Invoice" or "VAT Invoice").
Do invoice numbers have to be sequential?
Yes in most jurisdictions that have VAT or GST, because the tax authority relies on the sequence to audit completeness. Gaps trigger questions. JupiterInvoice auto-increments by default and lets you set a custom prefix (e.g. INV-2026-001) or start the sequence at a specific number, but it does not let you delete a number out of the middle of the sequence.

Use JupiterInvoice for Invoice

Invoice on a JupiterInvoice invoice is a field, a label, and an audit trail your buyer can act on without an email back-and-forth.

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Recipients add PO numbers, fix billing entities, and update AP contacts directly on the invoice. Every change is versioned and revertable.

Every edit is a version. Revert anything in one click.

Every invoice edit creates an immutable snapshot. See what changed, who changed it, and revert any change with one click. Full audit trail b...

Related terms

Tax invoice Proforma invoice Credit note Purchase order Receipt Quote

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