One of the most practical questions new UGC creators face is: how do I actually invoice brands? Whether you’re working directly with a company or through an agency, getting your invoicing right matters for your professional reputation and your tax records.
Do You Need to Invoice?
Yes. When you receive payment for UGC work, always issue an invoice. It creates a paper trail of your income for HMRC, protects you in any payment dispute, and signals to brands that you’re running a professional operation.
What Should a UGC Invoice Include?
Your invoice doesn’t need to be complex, but it must include:
- Your full name (or business name) and address
- Your contact email
- The brand or agency’s name and address
- A unique invoice number (e.g. INV-001, INV-002 in sequence)
- The date of the invoice
- A clear description of the work (e.g. ‘3 x UGC videos for Instagram — June 2025’)
- The amount due
- Your payment terms (e.g. payment within 14 or 30 days)
- Your bank details
If you’re not VAT registered, you do not need to add VAT or include a VAT number. Most UGC creators won’t be registered unless their turnover exceeds £90,000.
Do You Need to Add VAT?
Only if you’re VAT registered. The current registration threshold is £90,000 turnover in a rolling 12-month period. If you’re below that, your invoice total is simply the agreed fee. Full detail at gov.uk/vat-registration-thresholds.
What Payment Terms Should You Use?
14 or 30 days from the invoice date is standard. For new brand relationships or larger projects, consider requesting a 50% deposit before starting with the balance due on delivery. Under UK law, you’re entitled to charge statutory interest on overdue invoices. The rules are at gov.uk/late-commercial-payments-interest-debt-recovery.
What Tools Can You Use to Create Invoices?
Free tools like Wave or Zoho Invoice work well for straightforward invoicing. Paid options like QuickBooks or Xero are more comprehensive and connect to your bank account, making bookkeeping much easier at tax time. At Simplr, we set our creator clients up with cloud accounting software that handles invoicing and income tracking automatically.
How Does Invoice Income Affect Your Tax?
Every invoice you raise is income for your Self Assessment tax return. Keep a record of all invoices issued, including those paid late. Tax is generally calculated on income received in the tax year, so timing of payments matters.
For the full picture on tax as a UGC creator, see our guide to UGC creator tax UK. For anything else, visit our accountant for UGC creators page or book a free discovery call.