Introduction
There's a lot of information out there on how to invoice as a freelancer. It's easy to find articles and books that explain how to set up your invoicing software and send invoices in the format most commonly used by freelancers. But what if you're not just working with clients in one country? What happens when you have clients from all over the world?
In this article, I'll go over some strategies for global invoicing as a freelancer so you can get paid faster and more reliably without losing money due to currency conversion errors or incurring additional fees for wire transfers.
Learn to invoice outside your country of residence.
You can invoice outside your country of residence.
There are a number of different ways to do this, and it depends on the type of work you're doing. If you're working on a project that is going to be paid in US dollars, then learn how to invoice in US dollars so you don't have any issues when it comes time for payment (and don't forget about exchange rates!). However, if your client has requested an invoice in their local currency--like British pounds or euros--then it's important that you understand how these currencies work and what their value is relative to other currencies like USD/GBP/EURO etc.. This way when someone pays your invoice there won't be any surprises!
Create a system that makes global invoicing easier.
Now that your finances are organized, it's time to consider how you will invoice your clients. If you're using a web-based invoicing system and payment processing service like FreshBooks, then this step is probably already taken care of for you. In fact, many freelancers use these tools because they make it easy to track payments and manage multiple currencies--two things that can be very difficult when working internationally.
However, if your business still relies on paper invoices or if you don't want to invest in software but still want a system for tracking invoices and payments (and who wouldn't?), then here are some ideas:
Create a spreadsheet where all of your clients' contact information is stored along with their contracts/agreements so that all relevant data is available at once when creating an invoice. This will save time during the creation process since there won't have to be any searching around while creating an invoice; everything will already be there!
Set up separate folders for each client based on what payment method each uses (e.g., PayPal vs Stripe). This way all related documents can easily be found without having too much clutter everywhere else in one big folder!
Go paperless whenever possible.
If you're a freelancer, there's a good chance that at least some of your clients are located outside of the country in which you live. That means that sending physical copies of invoices can get expensive and time-consuming--especially if those documents need to be translated into other languages.
Instead, consider using cloud-based software like Freshbooks or QuickBooks Online (QBO) to handle both accounting and invoicing for your international clients. These programs allow users to send PDFs instead of paper copies through email or faxes; they also provide tools for tracking expenses and taxes across multiple currencies. They also have built-in features for managing time sheets so that freelancers can bill their clients more accurately based on actual hours worked rather than estimates provided by the client at the outset of a project
Make sure you have a way to track payments in case something goes wrong.
If you're not using a payment gateway, payment processor and accounting software, then I recommend using one of the following options:
A cloud-based invoicing system like Freshbooks or Gusto. These can be used on their own or in combination with other tools (like Xero for accounting).
A freelance invoicing tool like Chargify or Bonsai Billing. These work by syncing with your bank account so that when someone pays their invoice online it automatically gets deposited into your bank account. They also allow you to set up recurring payments if needed!
Invoice multiple currencies and handle conversion rates correctly.
You may be thinking that this is a lot of work, but it's really not. There are plenty of free currency converters online that will do all the hard work for you. Just plug in the current exchange rate and they'll spit out an invoice with all the right numbers on it (including tax), ready to send off via email or PDF file attachment.
If you're invoicing multiple currencies and want to ensure accuracy at all times, keep track of each rate separately so that when someone pays their bill through Paypal or Stripe Connect (for example), they don't inadvertently pay too much money because their bank automatically converted from another currency into USD before sending over funds from their account--and vice versa if someone sends payment from abroad using a different bank account than yours!
Communicate effectively with your clients so they understand how it works.
One of the most important things to do when you're freelancing and invoicing globally is to make sure your clients understand how it works. They may need to pay in a different currency, or they might have to pay different fees than they are used to. It's up to you as the freelancer to explain these differences so that both parties are on the same page.
Freelancers can adopt a global invoicing strategy that simplifies their business by making it more efficient and reliable, but it takes planning ahead to create this system
In order to make the most of your global invoicing strategy, you'll need to plan ahead. There are a few ways that you can do this:
Set up a system for tracking all of your expenses. This will help ensure that you don't lose any money on taxes or fees and it'll also make it easier for clients who want an itemized invoice from you in the future.
Create templates for invoices so that they're consistent across all clients and projects. You can even go paperless by creating PDFs of these templates that easily allow clients to sign off on them digitally!
Conclusion
Global invoicing is not a perfect solution, but it can be very beneficial for freelancers. It's worth the effort to learn how to invoice outside your country of residence because it will make life easier and more reliable for you as a business owner. The most important thing is that you create a system that works for your needs, whether it's paperless or digital only--or both!
