Payment terms tell your client when an invoice must be paid. They are short, but they decide how long you wait for your money, so they are worth choosing on purpose rather than copying from the last invoice you saw.
The common terms
- Due on receipt. Payment is expected as soon as the invoice arrives. In practice clients take a few days, but it sets the expectation that you are owed now.
- Net 7, Net 14, Net 15. Payment within that many days of the invoice date. Common for freelancers billing individuals and small businesses.
- Net 30. Payment within 30 days. The default for many companies, and what a larger client’s accounts team will often ask for.
- Net 45, Net 60 and longer. Some large companies pay on these schedules. Agree them before the work starts and price them in, because you are lending the client money for that long.
- 2/10 Net 30. A 2% discount if the client pays within 10 days, otherwise the full amount within 30. It can speed up payment, at a cost.
Which terms to choose
Shorter terms get you paid sooner, but only if the client can work with them. A small business or an individual can usually pay in 7 or 14 days. A large company pays on its own cycle, and asking for Net 7 there just means the invoice waits in a queue and then counts as late.
A good rule: use the shortest terms the client agreed to in writing before you started. If you have no agreement, Net 14 is a fair default for freelance work.
How to write them on an invoice
Write the due date as a date, not only as a term. “Due 14 November 2026 (Net 14)” leaves no room for doubt about when the clock started. Put it near the total, where the person paying will look, and add how to pay you right below it.
Deposits and milestones
For a large fixed-price project, terms alone are not enough. Ask for a deposit before you start, often 25 to 50%, and invoice the rest on agreed milestones or on delivery. Each of those invoices has its own terms.
Late fees
Some freelancers add a late fee, such as a percentage each month an invoice is overdue. Whether you can charge one, and how much, depends on where you and your client are, and it should be in your agreement before it appears on an invoice. This guide is general advice, not legal advice.
How to get paid sooner, whatever the terms
- Send the invoice the day the work is done. Terms count from the invoice date, so every day you wait adds a day.
- Send it to the person who pays, usually an accounts address, with any purchase order number they need.
- Make paying easy: bank details or a payment link on the invoice itself.
- Follow up on the due date, not a month after it. See How to follow up on an unpaid invoice.
How Involets does it
Set your payment terms once in Settings, Invoicing: on receipt, 14 days or 30 days after the issue date. Every new invoice gets its due date from them, printed on the PDF beside your payment details. Once you mark an invoice sent, Involets watches the due date and shows it as overdue, with the days late, when it passes. See Invoice numbers, due dates and tax.