The schedule
| When | What to send |
|---|---|
| A few days before it's due | A friendly heads-up, with the invoice attached |
| On the due date | A short reminder with the payment details |
| 7 days overdue | A polite follow-up, then a phone call |
| 14 days overdue | A firm email with a date to pay by |
| 30 days overdue | A final notice before a letter of demand |
Attach the invoice every time, and make paying one step: bank details and a payment link in every email.
Five emails to copy
Swap in your client, invoice number, amount and dates.
1. A few days before it's due
Subject: Invoice INV-0027 due on 24 September
Hi Sam,
A quick heads-up that invoice INV-0027 for $1,210.00 is due on 24 September. I've attached it again, and the payment details are at the bottom.
Thanks,
Mara
2. On the due date
Subject: Invoice INV-0027 is due today
Hi Sam,
Just a reminder that invoice INV-0027 for $1,210.00 is due today. You can pay by bank transfer to BSB 000-000, account 12345678, using INV-0027 as the reference, or with the Pay Online link on the invoice.
Thanks,
Mara
3. Seven days overdue
Subject: Invoice INV-0027 is now 7 days overdue
Hi Sam,
I haven't received payment for invoice INV-0027, $1,210.00, due on 24 September. Could you let me know when I can expect it? If it's already on its way, thank you, and please ignore this.
Thanks,
Mara
4. Fourteen days overdue
Subject: Overdue: invoice INV-0027, $1,210.00
Hi Sam,
Invoice INV-0027 for $1,210.00 is now two weeks overdue. Please pay it by 15 October, or reply to let me know what's holding it up. If paying the full amount now is difficult, I'm happy to agree a payment plan.
Regards,
Mara
5. Final notice, 30 days overdue
Subject: Final notice: invoice INV-0027
Hi Sam,
Invoice INV-0027 for $1,210.00 was due on 24 September and is now 30 days overdue. It remains unpaid despite my earlier reminders. Please pay the full amount by 31 October. If I haven't received payment or heard from you by then, I'll send a formal letter of demand and take further steps to recover the debt.
Regards,
Mara Ng, Mara Ng Design
What gets invoices paid
- Call before the firm emails. Two minutes on the phone often finds the real problem: a wrong email address, a lost invoice, or a manager who hasn't signed it off.
- Ask for the accounts team. The person you worked with may not be the person who pays.
- Keep a record of every reminder: date, method and what was said. You'll need it if it escalates.
- Pause the work for a client with an overdue invoice, if your terms allow it.
When they still don't pay
- A letter of demand. A formal letter naming the debt and the invoice, a final date to pay (often 7 or 14 days), and what you'll do next. You can write it yourself.
- The Small Business Ombudsman, if your client is a business. ASBFEO's dispute support can suggest next steps and point you to low-cost mediation. Some states have their own small business commissioner too.
- A small-claims court or tribunal. Every state and territory has a small-claims process for debts, built for people without lawyers, with modest fees. In New South Wales it's the Local Court's Small Claims Division, for debts up to $20,000; in Victoria, the Magistrates' Court, or VCAT for many disputes with household customers.
- A debt collector, for a fee or a share of what they recover.
- Writing it off. If you counted the invoice as income, a debt you can't recover can be claimed as a bad-debt deduction. And if you paid GST on it on a non-cash basis, you can claim that GST back once the debt is written off or 12 months overdue.
Next time
Most late payments are prevented before the work starts: shorter payment terms with a date, a deposit on big jobs, a payment link on every invoice, and an invoice sent the day the work is done.