Do I need to put bank details on my invoices?

Whenever you issue an invoice, you need to make sure that it contains key details about you, your customer and the products/services sold. But do you need to put bank details on your invoices?

In this article, we’ll cover:

• Mandatory information to include on your invoices

• Why it would be beneficial to include bank details on invoices

• Which bank details should be on your invoices

• How to add bank details to your invoices

What needs to be on an invoice?

For an invoice to be considered a legitimate, official document in the UK, it needs to contain some important pieces of information such as:

• Your registered business name (and a trading name if you use one)

• Your registered address

• A unique, sequential invoice number

• The date of issue

• Descriptions, prices, and quantities of the goods or services provided

• The total amount due

If you run an incorporated business, your invoices also need to contain your Company Registration Number, and if you’re registered for VAT, you’ll need to provide your VAT number, the tax rate applied to each product and the total amount of VAT due.

Unlike prices, issue dates, etc., bank details are not compulsory elements of an invoice. But while there are strict guidelines about the minimum amount of information that needs to be on your invoices, there are no regulations limiting which extra details you can add.

This means that while you’re not required to include your bank details, nothing is stopping you from doing so.

Why would I put my bank details on my invoices?

It’s up to you to decide whether or not you want to put bank details on your invoices, and it’s usually more appropriate to do so if payments are made directly to your bank account.

If you expect to be paid with a standing order or one-time bank transfer, you should clearly state this on your invoices. In this case, it’s highly recommended that you provide your bank details. 

Providing your bank details not only makes it easier for your customers to set up payments but it also limits the need for back-and-forth messages confirming your information.

If you don’t accept payments via bank transfer, you can still put your bank details on your invoices, but it isn’t necessary to do so. Sending invoices with unnecessary details can look a bit cluttered, and it might lead to confused customers who aren’t sure how they should pay.

Which bank details should be on my invoices?

If you decide to include your bank details on your invoices, it’s important to include enough information for your customers to set up their payments.

At a minimum, you should include your sort code and account number, but it’s usually a good idea to include the bank name and account holder’s name as well.

If you sell to customers outside of the UK, you should also consider including your IBAN and SWIFT/BIC code so that international customers can pay from foreign bank accounts.

How to add bank details to your invoices

It’s easy to add your bank details to your invoices with our free invoicing software - SumUp Invoices.

Simply click 'Select payment methods' from the invoice builder, then choose either your free SumUp Business Account or your external bank account. If you choose “External bank account”, you can either enter the details manually or automatically sync your transactions by linking your external bank account to SumUp.

Your sort code, account number, IBAN, etc. will save automatically, and any information you enter will appear on all of your future invoices.

With SumUp, you can open a free Business Account in seconds for free and link it to SumUp Invoices to receive next-day payouts. You can easily transfer money from your SumUp Business Account to an external bank account if you wish.