The short answer: an invoice asks for payment and a receipt proves it was made. You send an invoice before you are paid, with a due date and how to pay; you give a receipt after, with the date, amount and method of payment. When a customer pays on the spot, one document marked “Paid” can do both jobs.
Side by side
| Invoice | Receipt | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Before payment, after the work or delivery | When payment is received |
| Purpose | Requests payment and sets the terms | Confirms the payment |
| Key details | Invoice number, due date, payment details | Date paid, amount paid, payment method |
| In your books | Money owed to you | Money received |
| Who needs it most | The customer’s accounts team | Anyone who paid and needs proof: cash buyers, people claiming expenses, tenants |
One sale, both documents
A gardener invoices a monthly visit, then confirms the payment. Names and figures are made up.
| Garden maintenance, September: 4 visits × £60 | £240.00 |
| Amount due by 15 October 2026 | £240.00 |
Pay by bank transfer to sort code 00-00-00, account 00000000, reference INV-2026-044.
| Received with thanks: bank transfer, reference INV-2026-044 | £240.00 |
| Balance outstanding | £0.00 |
Which one you need
- Selling to a business on credit: an invoice. In the UK, if you and your customer are both VAT registered, it has to be a VAT invoice (GOV.UK).
- Paid on the spot: a receipt, or the invoice marked paid. UK retailers can give a simplified VAT invoice for sales of £250 or less if the customer agrees (VAT Notice 700, 16.6). In Australia, a GST-registered seller must give a tax invoice within 28 days if asked, unless the sale is $82.50 or less including GST (ATO).
- Rent: tenants often need receipts as proof of payment. The rent receipt generator makes one.
Can an invoice be a receipt?
Yes. Add “Paid” with the date, the amount and how it was paid, keep the same invoice number, and send it back. If only part was paid, show the amount received and the balance still due. Paid in cash? The wording is in how to write an invoice for cash payment.
How long to keep them
- UK, self-employed: keep records of all sales and income, including sales invoices and receipts, for at least 5 years after the 31 January deadline for that tax year (GOV.UK).
- UK, VAT registered: keep business records for VAT purposes for at least 6 years (VAT Notice 700/21).
- US: the IRS lists invoices and receipt books among the documents that show gross receipts, and says to keep records until the period of limitations for the return runs out, generally 3 years (IRS Publication 583).
Sources checked 9 October 2026: GOV.UK, HMRC VAT Notice 700 and 700/21, ATO tax invoices (updated 18 September 2026), IRS Publication 583.