How to write an invoice in Germany: the ultimate freelancer guide (2026)

Your first invoice in Germany is written quickly — and just as quickly written wrong. A missing mandatory field costs your client their VAT deduction (Vorsteuerabzug), a duplicate invoice number shows up in a tax audit, and without the right default notice you wait longer for your money than you need to. The good news: German invoicing follows a fixed pattern. Set it up properly once, and every invoice after that comes out right automatically.

Quick answer: invoicing in Germany at a glance

• Obligation and deadline: for services to other businesses you must issue an invoice within 6 months of performing the work (§14 Abs. 2 UStG). Skipping it risks a fine of up to €5,000 (§26a UStG).
• Contents: every invoice above €250 gross needs the ten mandatory fields under §14 UStG — from the service period to a sequential invoice number.
• VAT: 19% is the default, 7% the exception — small businesses (Kleinunternehmer) charge no VAT at all and add the §19 note instead.
• Language: invoicing in English is legal; the tax office may request a translation of individual invoices.
• Payment: without an agreed term, the client is in default at the latest 30 days after the due date and receipt of the invoice. In B2B you may then charge 9 percentage points above the base rate — currently 10.27% — plus a €40 flat fee.
• Retention: 8 years, stored unchanged.
• E-invoicing: from 2027 (prior-year turnover above €800,000) or 2028 (everyone), structured e-invoices become mandatory in B2B — Kleinunternehmer stay exempt permanently.

Who has to issue an invoice — and by when?

As soon as you perform a service for another business, you are obliged to invoice it — within six months of performance (§14 Abs. 2 UStG). The same applies to property-related work for private individuals, like renovating an apartment. For all other B2C transactions there's no legal obligation — an invoice is still a good idea, if only for your bookkeeping and as proof of the work.

The six-month deadline has teeth: not issuing an invoice (or issuing it too late) is an administrative offense the tax office can fine with up to €5,000 (§26a UStG). Separately, your claim itself expires three years after the end of the year it arose in (§195 BGB) — putting off invoicing eventually means giving away real money.

By the way, anyone may write an invoice — freelancers without a trade registration and even private individuals (say, for selling a used laptop). What matters is that the content and the VAT treatment match your status.

Step by step: how to structure the invoice

An invoice is read top to bottom — and that's exactly the order you fill it in. The details on each mandatory field are in the required-fields guide; here's the flow:

1. Header: your details. Full name and a real, deliverable address, plus your tax number (Steuernummer) or VAT ID (USt-IdNr.) — one of the two is enough. For EU business, use the VAT ID. A UG or GmbH additionally lists its legal form, register court, HRB number and managing directors (§35a GmbHG) — see the GmbH invoice guide.
2. Recipient. The client's name and address — in full, even for private customers.
3. Invoice number and invoice date. The number must be unique and sequential (more on that below); the date is the day you issue the invoice.
4. Describe the service specifically. "Concept and design, landing page, 16 hours" instead of "Consulting services". Add the service period (Leistungszeitraum) — the most commonly forgotten field. If it equals the invoice date, one line does it: "The date of supply corresponds to the invoice date."
5. Show the amounts. Net amount, VAT rate and VAT amount, then the gross total. If 19% and 7% both occur, split them out separately.
6. Add the mandatory note where needed. Depending on your case: the §19 sentence for small businesses, "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers" for reverse charge, or the reason for a VAT exemption.
7. Payment terms and bank details. Not legally required — but the part that decides whether you're paid on time. 14 to 30 days is standard; phrase it with a concrete date: "Payable by 26 June 2026" leaves less wiggle room than "payable within 14 days". Invoices to consumers also need the default notice (see below).

You don't have to invent the layout: a ready-made German invoice template for Word, Excel or PDF comes with all fields in exactly this order. For amounts up to €250 gross, the simplified small-value invoice is enough.

The invoice number: sequential doesn't mean gapless

Few invoice fields attract as many myths. What the law requires: a unique, sequential number (§14 Abs. 4 Nr. 4 UStG). The format is yours to choose — 2026-001, RE-2026-042 or a prefix per client all work. You may even run several number ranges in parallel, say per year or per project.

What many don't know: sequential does not mean gapless. Germany's Federal Fiscal Court has confirmed a "right to gaps" — a missing number alone doesn't entitle the tax office to estimate your income or add a safety surcharge, as long as you can explain gaps (e.g. cancelled drafts). Still: the cleaner your system, the shorter the discussion in an audit. Duplicate numbers, on the other hand, are always a finding — and they happen almost exclusively with hand-maintained lists.

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19%, 7% or none: getting VAT right

The standard rate is 19%. The reduced rate of 7% applies only to specific services — including many journalistic texts and illustrations (licensing of copyrights), books and food. When in doubt, check Annex 2 of the VAT Act or ask a tax advisor — a wrong rate hurts both sides.

As a Kleinunternehmer under §19 UStG — since 2025 with thresholds of €25,000 prior-year and €100,000 current-year turnover — you show no VAT at all: no rate, no amount, but the mandatory note "Gemäß §19 UStG wird keine Umsatzsteuer berechnet" (no VAT charged under §19 UStG). Important: if you accidentally show VAT anyway, you owe it to the tax office (§14c UStG) — the most common expensive beginner mistake.

Special cases: EU clients, non-EU clients, and credit notes

Three situations fundamentally change how your invoice looks:

• B2B client in the EU (reverse charge): you issue a net invoice without German VAT, state both parties' VAT IDs and add the note "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers" (tax liability of the recipient). Your client accounts for VAT in their country; you report the sale in the EC Sales List. Step-by-step instructions: EU B2B invoices as a freelancer.
• Client outside the EU: for most B2B services the place of supply is where your client sits — no German VAT applies, and the invoice carries a note that the service isn't taxable in Germany. Details and country examples: invoicing non-EU clients.
• Credit note (Gutschrift): if your client self-bills (common with platforms and agencies), the document must explicitly be labelled "Gutschrift". How self-billing works is covered in its own guide.

Can you invoice in English — or in dollars?

Both are allowed. German VAT law sets no language requirement — an English invoice is just as valid as a German one. The catch: the official language of the tax administration is German (§87 AO), so the Finanzamt may request a translation of individual invoices. Practical tip: keep the legally prescribed notes — the §19 sentence or the reverse-charge wording — in German on the invoice (with an English translation alongside if your client needs it). That's the safest way to keep both your client and the tax office happy.

Invoicing in US dollars, pounds or francs is fine too. One condition: the VAT amount must additionally be shown in euros. On non-EU invoices without German VAT, the issue usually doesn't arise at all.

Payment terms and late payment: when the client doesn't pay

You're free to set the payment term — 14 to 30 days is common. It gets interesting when nothing was agreed: then your client is automatically in default at the latest 30 days after the due date and receipt of the invoice (§286 Abs. 3 BGB). For consumers this only applies if your invoice explicitly says so — which is why this one sentence belongs on every B2C invoice: "Note: you will be in default at the latest 30 days after the due date and receipt of this invoice."

From the moment of default you're entitled to interest (§288 BGB). With the base rate at 1.27% (as of the first half of 2026), the current numbers are:

The proven sequence when money doesn't arrive: first a friendly payment reminder (often enough — many invoices are simply forgotten), then a formal dunning letter (Mahnung) with a deadline, and finally the court dunning procedure (gerichtliches Mahnverfahren) — applied for online, far cheaper than a lawsuit. How many dunning levels make sense and which fees you may charge is covered in the dunning guide.

E-invoicing: what already matters when you invoice today

Since 1 January 2025, every business in Germany must be able to receive e-invoices. For issuing them, a phased plan applies: from 1 January 2027, structured e-invoices become mandatory in B2B for businesses with prior-year turnover above €800,000; from 1 January 2028, for everyone. Two exemptions are permanent: invoices to private customers — and Kleinunternehmer, who will never be obliged to issue e-invoices (§34a UStDV).

Key concept: a PDF is not an e-invoice. The law means structured formats like XRechnung or ZUGFeRD that accounting systems process automatically. If you already work with a tool that creates e-invoices, there's simply nothing to switch in 2027/2028.

Made a mistake? How to correct an invoice properly

Never edit a sent invoice in the file — that violates the GoBD bookkeeping rules and makes your records attackable. Instead: fix minor formal errors with a supplementing correction document; for wrong amounts or a wrong recipient, neutralize the invoice with a cancellation invoice (Stornorechnung) and issue a new one. Both usually work retroactively — the cancellation and correction guide shows exactly how. Keep the originals unchanged for 8 years.

Frequently asked questions

How long do I have to issue an invoice?

To other businesses: six months after performing the service (§14 Abs. 2 UStG). For private customers there's no statutory deadline — except for property-related work. Your claim itself expires after three years (§195 BGB).

Can I issue an invoice before doing the work?

Yes. Advance and down-payment invoices are allowed and common for larger projects. VAT then becomes due when the payment arrives. After completion you issue a final invoice that openly deducts the advance payments.

What happens if I never issue an invoice?

In B2B it's an administrative offense: up to €5,000 in fines (§26a UStG). And the clock on your claim keeps ticking anyway — so you lose twice: first the fine risk, then eventually the claim itself.

Do invoice numbers have to be gapless?

No — they must be unique and sequential. Explainable gaps (e.g. cancelled drafts) are fine; the tax office may not impose a surcharge over a gap alone. Duplicate numbers, however, are always a problem.

Does the invoice have to be in German?

No, any language is permitted. The tax office may, however, request a translation of individual invoices (§87 AO). Best practice: keep mandatory notes like the §19 sentence in German as well.

What do I do if the invoice isn't paid?

Payment reminder, then a dunning letter with a deadline, then the court dunning procedure. Unless agreed otherwise, your client is in default at the latest 30 days after due date and receipt — from then on, late-payment interest runs (currently 10.27% in B2B) plus the €40 flat fee.

Conclusion

Writing an invoice in Germany is craft, not magic: ten mandatory fields in a fixed order, the right VAT treatment, a clear payment term — and the right additions for special cases like EU clients or self-billing. The most common mistakes (forgotten service period, duplicate numbers, VAT shown by a Kleinunternehmer) almost always come from manual work. Let software create the invoice and the mandatory fields, the number sequence and — from 2027/2028 — the e-invoice are handled automatically. With Norman, that's free for good.