Electronic invoices are not only legal sales documents but also reflect the professionalism of a business to its customers. An erroneous invoice can lead to many undesirable consequences such as loss of reputation, the need for invoice adjustments later, and even disputes with tax authorities.

In reality, many retail shops and businesses often face the problem of issuing invoices hastily, leading to errors in customer information, incorrect amounts, or missing required elements. These mistakes not only waste time correcting them but also negatively impact the customer's shopping experience.

To help you avoid these risks, this article provides a detailed checklist of things to thoroughly examine before sending electronic invoices to customers. Each verification step is important and needs to be performed carefully to ensure the invoice is accurate, valid, and professional.

Why is it important to carefully check invoices before sending them?

Checking invoices is not simply about avoiding administrative errors. It's a crucial factor that directly impacts your reputation and business operations. An accurate invoice helps customers feel secure and confident in your business practices.

Legally, erroneous electronic invoices can force businesses to go through complex adjustment or cancellation procedures as stipulated by the tax authorities. In some serious cases, invalid invoices may result in administrative penalties or the inability to claim tax deductions.

From an operational perspective, having to correct invoices after they've been issued disrupts workflows, wasting time and effort for both you and the customer. Furthermore, if the customer has already used the invoice for tax purposes, the adjustment process becomes even more complicated.

Detailed checklist for verifying electronic invoices.

1. Verify the seller's information.

The first and most important step is to ensure that the seller's information appears complete and accurate on the invoice. This includes ensuring that the business or individual's name exactly matches their business registration and the electronic invoice issuance notification.

• The seller's tax identification number must be printed clearly and accurately.

• The business address must be complete, including house number, street name, ward/commune, district/county, and province/city.

• Contact phone numbers and email addresses should also be checked to ensure customers can contact you when needed.

• Bank account information, if included on the invoice, should also be verified to avoid confusion when customers make bank transfers.

2. Verify buyer information

Buyer information is the most prone to errors because it is often manually entered from customer-provided data. - The buyer's name or company name must be written accurately as it appears on legal documents, avoiding abbreviations or missing diacritical marks.

• The buyer's tax identification number must be accurate and verified on the General Department of Taxation's portal to ensure its validity.

• The buyer's address must also be fully recorded, which is especially important for businesses. In some cases, the address on the invoice differs from the actual delivery address, and this needs to be clarified to avoid confusion later.

• The buyer's phone number and email address should be double-checked to ensure contact is possible when sending invoices or resolving any issues. Incorrect contact information may result in invoices not reaching the customer in a timely manner.

3. Check the contents of goods and services.

Information related to the goods and services you need to check includes: - The name of the goods or services on the invoice must be clearly, fully, and accurately described and consistent with the actual transaction. Avoid using vague phrases like "goods" or "services" without specific details, as this can make it difficult to compare with contracts or other documents.

• The unit of measurement must be clearly stated, such as piece, box, kilogram, liter, hour, or month, depending on the type of goods or services. Incorrect units of measurement can lead to misunderstandings about the actual weight or quantity purchased.

• The quantity of goods and services must exactly match the order and delivery note. This is a common mistake when the person preparing the invoice enters the wrong quantity or fails to update the quantity after changes are made by the customer.

• The unit price and total amount need to be carefully checked. The unit price must match the quotation or prior agreement with the customer. The total amount must be calculated accurately using the formula of quantity multiplied by unit price, and attention should be paid to rounding if necessary.

See also: GTG CRM's solution for automatic invoice generation with standardized templates

4. Check the tax rate and the amount of tax.

The applicable tax rates must comply with current legal regulations for each type of goods and services. Currently, common tax rates are 0%, 5%, 8%, and 10%, depending on the industry. The tax rates for certain goods that are exempt from or not subject to value-added tax also need to be correctly determined.

Value-added tax (VAT) must be calculated accurately based on the tax base and tax rate. You need to double-check the calculation formula to ensure there are no errors, especially when the invoice has multiple lines of goods with different tax rates.

The final payment amount must equal the total cost of goods plus value-added tax. This is the most important figure that customers are concerned about and serves as the basis for payment, so it needs to be checked particularly carefully.

5. Check the invoice symbol and number.

The invoice symbol must match the symbol accepted by the tax authorities when notifying the issuance. Each type of invoice has its own symbol, and you need to ensure you are using the correct type of invoice for the corresponding transaction.

Invoice numbers must be in consecutive order and must not be duplicated. Electronic invoicing software systems usually automatically increment the numbers, but you should still check to ensure there are no technical issues causing duplicate numbers or unusual numbering.

The invoice date must correspond to the date the tax liability arises, usually the date of goods delivery or service completion. Incorrectly recording the date can affect the tax filing period for both the seller and the buyer.

6. Verify the digital signature and authentication code.

A legally valid electronic invoice must have the digital signature of the seller. You need to ensure that the digital signature is still valid and has not expired. If the digital signature has expired, the invoice will not be accepted by the tax authorities.

The authentication code from the tax authority or the electronic invoice service provider must appear on the invoice. This confirms that the invoice has been sent and accepted by the system, ensuring its legality and transcription.

The QR code or invoice lookup link also needs to be checked for functionality. Customers can scan the QR code or access the link to verify the authenticity of the invoice on the tax authority's portal.

7. Check the format and appearance of the invoice.

The invoice template must conform to the issuance notice approved by the tax authorities. Unauthorized changes to the invoice template may render the invoice invalid according to legal regulations.

The required information must be displayed fully and clearly on the invoice. According to regulations, the invoice must include all the following elements: invoice type name, form number symbol, invoice symbol, invoice number, seller information, buyer information, transaction details, digital signature, and authentication code.

The font and font size should be checked to ensure readability. Some invoices printed or sent as PDFs have font that is too small or unclear, which can make it difficult for customers to use.

8. Check before sending to the customer.

After checking all of the above, you should review the entire invoice again from the customer's perspective. Ask yourself if, as the recipient of this invoice, there is any information that raises questions or needs clarification.

If the invoice will be sent via email, double-check the recipient's email address and ensure the attachment is in a standard format such as PDF or XML. The email subject line and body should also be professional and clear.

If invoices are printed for customers, check the print quality, ensuring all information is clear and not blurry or smudged. Invoices should be neatly folded or placed in a suitable envelope to project a professional image.

Conclude

Thoroughly checking electronic invoices before sending them to customers not only helps you avoid unfortunate errors but also demonstrates professionalism and credibility in business. Every minute you spend checking is an investment in building trust with customers and avoiding legal troubles later.

To simplify the invoicing and management process, GTG CRM provides a standard electronic invoicing feature with all required fields, automatically filling in customer information from the CRM. This system helps you minimize errors in invoicing, save time, and ensure legal compliance.

With GTG CRM, you can rest assured that every invoice sent is accurate, professional, and fully compliant with tax authority requirements. Let technology assist you in invoice management so you can focus on business development.