What a Professional Invoice Looks Like
A worked South African tax invoice, field by field, with the reasoning behind each part of the layout.
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Quoting, invoicing, VAT and getting paid, for people running the business rather than the accountants advising them. Anything we publish about SARS or the VAT Act is checked against the source and carries the date it was verified.
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Zero-Rated and Exempt Supplies Explained
Zero-rated supplies are taxed at 0%. Exempt supplies are outside VAT entirely. The difference decides whether you can claim input tax.
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How Long to Keep Invoices and Records
SARS generally requires business records to be kept for five years. What counts as a record, what form it can take, and where small businesses come unstuck.
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Input VAT: What You Can and Cannot Claim
Input tax is the VAT you paid on business costs and can claim back. What disqualifies a claim, and the categories SARS specifically denies.
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Quotation Terms and Conditions
Six clauses worth putting on every quotation, and why the exclusions do more work than the inclusions.
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Quotation Follow-Up: What to Send
A quote that has gone quiet is usually not a no. What to send, when to send it, and the one thing that gives you a reason to make contact.
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Estimate vs Quotation: The Difference
An estimate is an informed guess. A quotation is a fixed price. Sending the wrong one is how a job ends in an argument.
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How to Price a Job: Markup vs Margin
Markup and margin are different numbers, and confusing them is why profitable-looking jobs lose money. The arithmetic, with worked examples.
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Deposits: How Much to Ask For
A deposit means you are not financing your client. Common structures for South African service businesses, and how to word them so they get paid.
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