Is a proforma invoice a real invoice?

No, and that is the point of it. It states what an invoice will say so a buyer can arrange payment or clear customs, but it does not record a debt and should not go in your sales ledger.

Can I claim VAT on a proforma invoice?

No. VAT is reclaimed against a full VAT invoice, not a proforma. Issue the real invoice once the goods or the payment have moved.

Does a proforma invoice go in my accounts?

Normally no, because no sale has taken place yet. The accounting entry belongs to the real invoice you issue afterwards. If you are unsure how your own bookkeeping treats it, ask whoever prepares your accounts before you start raising them.

Can a customer pay against a proforma?

Yes, and that is one of the main reasons to send one. Treat what arrives as a prepayment and issue the full invoice when you supply, making sure the totals reconcile to what they already paid.

What is the difference between a proforma and a quotation?

A quotation offers a price for work you might do. A proforma sets out a sale that both sides have already agreed in principle, in the shape of the invoice that will follow, usually so payment or customs can be arranged first.

Free Proforma Invoice Generator

A commitment to invoice, for prepayment or customs. Fill the form, watch it build itself, download the PDF. No sign up, no watermark, and nothing you type is sent anywhere.

Live preview

A4, updates as you type

A promise to invoice, not a demand for payment

A proforma invoice states what a real invoice will say. It lets a buyer arrange payment, open a letter of credit or start a customs process before the sale has formally happened.

It is not a demand for payment and it does not create a debt. It normally does not go into your sales ledger and, in VAT and GST systems, it usually does not carry a tax point. Treatment varies between countries, so confirm the position where you are trading.

Because of that, a buyer cannot normally reclaim tax against a proforma. They need the full invoice, which you issue once the goods or the money have moved.

Asking for payment before you ship

This is the everyday use. A new customer, a large order, or a job where you would rather not carry the risk: send a proforma, take payment against it, then ship and issue the real invoice.

Give it a validity date. The prices on it are an offer and the same reasoning applies as to a quotation.

Number proformas in their own series, separate from your invoices. Mixing them is how a document that records no sale ends up in your turnover.

Sending goods across a border

For international shipments a proforma is often used to declare the nature and value of the goods before a commercial invoice exists.

What customs authorities ask for differs by country and by what you are shipping, and a proforma is not always accepted in place of a commercial invoice. Check the destination's requirements rather than assuming.

Where it is used, the detail usually matters more than the layout: a clear description of the goods, the quantity, the value, the currency, the country of origin and the delivery terms you have agreed.

Turning it into the real thing

Issue the full invoice when the supply actually happens: when the goods ship, or when the service is delivered, depending on what you agreed.

Carry the proforma number onto it so the buyer can match the two, and make sure the final figures match what they already paid against.

If anything changed between the two documents, say what and why on the invoice. A buyer reconciling a prepayment against a different total will otherwise assume an error.

A worked proforma invoice

A supplier wants payment before shipping an order abroad, so sends a proforma rather than an invoice.

Proforma PI-0041, issued 8 March, valid 14 days.
40 units at 18.50: 740.00, plus carriage 95.00.
Country of origin and delivery terms stated, because it is crossing a border.
Total payable before dispatch: 835.00.

It is numbered in its own series, not the invoice sequence. A document that records no sale should never land in your turnover.

It carries a validity date for the same reason a quotation does: the prices on it are an offer.

The real invoice follows when the goods ship, quoting this number so the buyer can reconcile what they already paid.

How to make a proforma invoice

Enter the seller and the buyer.
List the goods, with values and quantities.
Add shipping terms and country of origin if it is crossing a border.
Download the PDF.

Questions about proforma invoices

Is a proforma invoice a real invoice?: No, and that is the point of it. It states what an invoice will say so a buyer can arrange payment or clear customs, but it does not record a debt and should not go in your sales ledger.
Can I claim VAT on a proforma invoice?: No. VAT is reclaimed against a full VAT invoice, not a proforma. Issue the real invoice once the goods or the payment have moved.
Does a proforma invoice go in my accounts?: Normally no, because no sale has taken place yet. The accounting entry belongs to the real invoice you issue afterwards. If you are unsure how your own bookkeeping treats it, ask whoever prepares your accounts before you start raising them.
Can a customer pay against a proforma?: Yes, and that is one of the main reasons to send one. Treat what arrives as a prepayment and issue the full invoice when you supply, making sure the totals reconcile to what they already paid.
What is the difference between a proforma and a quotation?: A quotation offers a price for work you might do. A proforma sets out a sale that both sides have already agreed in principle, in the shape of the invoice that will follow, usually so payment or customs can be arranged first.