Freelancer Invoicing

Freelancer Invoicing

All Freelancer Node tiers include PDF invoicing. FREE tier is limited to 5 invoices per month; LITE and PRO tiers have unlimited invoicing. Access your invoices at /fl/{nodeId}/invoices from the sidebar navigation.

Invoice dashboard

The top of the invoices page displays a stats row with four key figures:

• Total Paid (green) — Sum of all invoices with status of paid.
• Total Pending (amber) — Sum of all invoices with status of sent that are not yet overdue.
• Total Overdue (red) — Sum of all invoices with status of overdue (sent invoices past their due_date).
• Total Invoices — Count of all invoices created.

Invoice list

Below the stats, invoices are displayed in a list. Each row shows:

• An avatar with the company icon or client initials.
• The invoice_number alongside a colour-coded status chip.
• The recipient name (company or external client).
• The formatted total amount (e.g. £1,234.56 via the getFormattedTotalAttribute).
• The issue_date.
• A menu with actions: View, Duplicate, Edit, Delete, and Send Reminder.

Use the search bar to find invoices by number or recipient. Filter by status (draft, sent, paid, overdue, cancelled) or by recipient (connected company or external client).

Creating an invoice

Navigate to /fl/{nodeId}/invoices/create to start a new invoice. The form includes:

1. Recipient — Select a connected company or an external client from your address book.
2. Invoice number — Auto-generated in INV-YYYY-XXXX format (e.g. INV-2026-0042). The prefix is customisable via the invoice_prefix setting in your profile. The generateNextNumber() method ensures sequential numbering within each year.
3. Issue date — Defaults to today. Stored in the issue_date field.
4. Due date — Defaults to the issue date plus your configured invoice_due_days setting (default 30 days). Stored in the due_date field.
5. Line items — Each line item (NodeInvoiceItem) has:
   • description — What the charge is for.
   • quantity — Number of units.
   • unit_price — Price per unit.
   • line_total — Automatically calculated as quantity × unit_price.
6. Tax rate — Defaults to 20% (UK VAT). Stored in tax_rate. Adjustable per invoice.
7. Notes — Pre-filled from your invoice_notes setting. Editable per invoice.
8. Currency — Defaults to GBP. Supports GBP (£), EUR (€), and USD ($).

Totals are recalculated automatically whenever you add, edit, or remove line items. The recalculateTotals() method sums all line_total values into subtotal, applies the tax_rate to produce tax_amount, and sets the final total.

Invoice statuses

Each invoice progresses through the following statuses:

1. draft — The invoice is saved but not yet sent. You can edit all fields freely. This is the default status.
2. sent — The invoice has been sent to the recipient via email with a PDF attachment. Limited editing is available.
3. paid — Payment has been received. The paid_date and optional payment_method are recorded via the markAsPaid() method.
4. overdue — The due_date has passed and the invoice has not been paid. Checked by the isOverdue() method.
5. cancelled — The invoice has been voided. Cancelled invoices remain in your records for accounting purposes.

Sending an invoice

When you send an invoice, the system generates a professional PDF and emails it to the recipient. The markAsSent() method updates the status to sent. The PDF path is stored in the pdf_path field for future downloads.

Payment tracking

When you receive payment, mark the invoice as paid. You can optionally record the payment_method (e.g. bank transfer, cash, cheque). The paid_date is automatically set to the current date.

Payment reminders

Automated reminders help chase overdue invoices:

• reminders_enabled — Toggle on or off per invoice (defaults to true).
• reminder_count — Tracks how many reminders have been sent.
• last_reminder_sent_at — Timestamp of the most recent reminder.
• next_reminder_at — When the next automatic reminder will be sent.

Reminders are sent via email and include a copy of the invoice PDF. You can also send manual reminders at any time from the invoice menu.

Recurring invoices

For regular work, set up a recurring invoice template (NodeRecurringInvoice). Configure the following:

• Frequency — weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, or annually.
• Interval — Multiplier for the frequency (e.g. interval of 2 with monthly frequency = every 2 months).
• Start date and optional end date — Define when the schedule begins and, optionally, when it should stop.
• Max occurrences — Optionally limit the number of invoices generated.
• Auto-send — When enabled (auto_send), generated invoices are sent immediately. Otherwise they are created as drafts for your review.

The schedule tracks occurrences_count, last_generated_at, and next_invoice_date. Each generated invoice is linked back to the template via recurring_invoice_id. Recurring templates can be paused, resumed, or cancelled at any time.

Document customisation

Customise the appearance of your invoices in Profile > Document Settings:

• Business name and address.
• Logo upload.
• Primary and accent colours for branding.
• Default payment terms text (invoice_payment_terms).
• Default notes (invoice_notes) — automatically included on new invoices.
• Invoice number prefix (invoice_prefix).
• Default due days (invoice_due_days).

No Stripe Connect

Freelancer invoicing is PDF-based only. NexusRMS does not process payments on behalf of freelancers. Invoices are sent as PDF attachments via email, and payment is handled externally via bank transfer, cash, or any other method you agree upon with your clients or companies. This means no transaction fees from NexusRMS.

Tips

• Configure your Document Settings before creating your first invoice so all defaults are in place.
• Use recurring invoices for regular weekly or monthly work to save time.
• Enable payment reminders on all invoices — a polite automated chase is more effective than manual follow-ups.
• Export your invoices regularly for your own accounting and tax records.
• The accounting_software and accounting_id fields support integration with external accounting tools if you use them.