Free invoice generator for South African businesses
Short answer
Fill in your details and items, and the invoice adds up for you. Download it as a PDF, free. If you're registered for VAT, it becomes a tax invoice with 15% VAT and every detail section 20 of the VAT Act asks for. If you're not, it's an invoice without VAT: only VAT vendors may issue tax invoices.
Checked against the VAT Act on · by Timo van Deventer, Senior AI Product Specialist
Invoice
Only VAT vendors may issue tax invoices or charge VAT, so this invoice has no VAT on it.
Mahlangu Solar
Invoice
No. INV-0001
Date: 12 Oct 2026
Due: 11 Nov 2026
Ref:
Bill to
Thandi Nkosi
- Inverter, 5 kW × 1 R18 500.00
- Solar panels × 8 R19 200.00
- Installation × 1 R6 500.00
- Subtotal
- R44 200.00
- VAT 15%
- R0.00
- Total due
- R44 200.00
A pro forma invoice is not a tax invoice. Your client can't use it to claim VAT: that needs the tax invoice you issue once you've made the supply.
Notes
Banking details
Free, no email needed. Your invoice stays in this browser.
Paid? Make a receipt for it.
Keep track of your invoices in Excel
Enter your email and download a register of every invoice made on this device: number, date, client, amount, VAT, due date and whether it's paid, with totals and live formulas. Receipts from the receipt maker mark invoices as paid.
Get paid on WhatsApp through your own Paystack, Yoco or PayFast account. Kwalify never holds the money.
Join the waitlist
What a tax invoice must show
Section 20 of the VAT Act lists what goes on a tax invoice. Above R5 000, including VAT, you need a full tax invoice; at R5 000 or less, an abridged one will do. The generator checks which one you need and asks for those details.
| Detail | Full: over R5 000 | Abridged: R5 000 or less |
|---|---|---|
| The words "Tax invoice", "VAT invoice" or "Invoice" (s20(4)(a)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Your business name (s20(4)(b)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Your address (s20(4)(b)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Your VAT registration number (s20(4)(b)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Your client's name (s20(4)(c)) | ✓ | Can be left out |
| Your client's address (s20(4)(c)) | ✓ | Can be left out |
| Your client's VAT registration number, if they're registered for VAT (s20(4)(c)) | If your client is VAT-registered | Can be left out |
| An invoice number of its own, in a series (s20(4)(d)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| The date you issue it (s20(4)(d)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| A description of what you supplied, saying when goods are second-hand (s20(4)(e)) | ✓ | ✓ |
| The quantity or volume (s20(4)(f)) | ✓ | Can be left out |
| The amount before VAT, the VAT and the total, in rand (s20(4)(g)) | ✓ | ✓ |
- The R5 000 and R50 lines are on the total including VAT. (section 1, "consideration")
- A zero-rated supply always needs a full tax invoice. (section 20(5))
- At R50 or less, paid in money, you don't have to issue a tax invoice, but you must give your client a document SARS accepts. (section 20(6))
- Only a business registered for VAT (a VAT vendor) issues tax invoices, within 21 days of the supply. Issue one tax invoice for each supply. If it is lost, send a copy clearly marked "copy". (section 20(1))
- SARS can direct that some details may be left out, or that no tax invoice is needed, when that is impractical and other records are enough. That needs a direction from SARS. (section 20(7))
How to make an invoice
- Add your business details and logo, and who the invoice is for.
- Give it an invoice number, the date and when payment is due.
- List each item with its quantity and price. The totals add up as you type.
- If you're registered for VAT, switch on "I'm VAT-registered": 15% VAT is added and it becomes a tax invoice.
- Add your banking details, then download the PDF and send it to your client.
Prefer to fill it in yourself? Use the invoice template in Word, Excel or PDF.
Invoice, tax invoice or pro forma?
- Tax invoice: from a business registered for VAT, for a supply it has made. It shows 15% VAT and the details above. Your client needs the tax invoice to claim the VAT back as input tax.
- Invoice: from a business that isn't registered for VAT. It asks for payment and has no VAT on it: only VAT vendors may issue tax invoices or charge VAT.
- Pro forma invoice: sent before the sale, so your client knows what they will pay. A pro forma invoice is not a tax invoice. Your client can't use it to claim VAT: that needs the tax invoice you issue once you've made the supply.
Turn a quote into an invoice
Made the quote with the quote maker on this device? When you open the invoice generator, it offers to turn that quote into an invoice in one click: your business, the client, the items and VAT carry over, and the quote number becomes the reference. The invoice keeps its own number.
Invoice questions
What is the difference between an invoice and a tax invoice?
A tax invoice is the invoice a VAT-registered business issues for a taxable supply, with the details section 20 of the VAT Act lists. Your client needs it to claim the VAT back (section 16(2)(a)). A business that isn't registered for VAT issues an ordinary invoice, without VAT.
Can I issue a tax invoice if I am not VAT-registered?
No. The Act gives the duty to issue a tax invoice to a supplier "being a registered vendor" (section 20(1)), and defines a tax invoice as a document issued under that section (section 1). If you're not registered, leave the switch off: the invoice is titled "Invoice" and has no VAT.
When can I use an abridged tax invoice?
When the total, including VAT, is R5 000 or less (section 20(5)). It can leave out your client's name, address and VAT number and the quantities. Above R5 000 you need a full tax invoice, and zero-rated supplies always need a full one.
What is a pro forma invoice?
A bill you send before the sale, so your client knows what they will pay, for example to arrange payment or an import. A pro forma invoice is not a tax invoice. Your client can't use it to claim VAT: that needs the tax invoice you issue once you've made the supply. Choose "Pro forma invoice" above to make one; it has its own number series, so it doesn't use up an invoice number.
How should I number my invoices?
Give every tax invoice a number of its own in a series (section 20(4)(d)), such as INV-0001, INV-0002. You can use your own prefix, like ACME-2026-001. After each download, the generator suggests the next number on this device.
Do I need a tax invoice for small amounts?
Not at R50 or less paid in money: you don't have to issue a tax invoice, but you must give your client a document SARS accepts (section 20(6)). Between R50 and R5 000, an abridged tax invoice will do.
This is general information, not tax advice.
Related tools
- Receipt maker A receipt for a payment you received, as a PDF.
- Quote maker Make a quotation with VAT and download it as a PDF.
- VAT calculator Add or remove VAT, or add up several amounts at once.
- Invoice template South Africa: Word, Excel and PDF | Kwalify A free South African invoice template in Word, Excel and PDF, with what a tax invoice must show under the VAT Act. Or fill it in online.
- Tax Invoice in South Africa: What It Must Include What a South African tax invoice is, when you need a full or abridged one, what it must show, and how to make one. Includes a worked example in rand.