Proforma invoice — PDF
Print-ready blank: one A4 page with six line rows.
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Proforma invoice — Word
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All three files were generated on from one shared layout definition, and they are regenerated together whenever the template is revised — so the PDF, the Word file and the spreadsheet never drift apart, and what is described below is what you get.
Proforma invoice sample (filled-in example)
The same template, filled in two ways. Both are illustrative examples: the businesses are fictional, the bank line is a placeholder, and the tax row is left empty because the right rate depends on your situation.
Proforma invoice format: what each field is for
Every format is built from the same field list, so switching formats never means re-learning the document. The numbers match the callouts on the preview and on both samples.
- Title and standing sub-line The heading PROFORMA INVOICE with the sub-line “Not a tax invoice — issued for quotation, prepayment or customs purposes.” It tells the reader at once that this is not the final invoice.
- Proforma no., Date issued, Valid until Your own reference number, the issue date and the date the offer expires. Valid until is what makes the proforma an offer with an end date rather than an open-ended price promise.
- From (seller) and To (buyer) Four lines each — room for a trading name, address, tax number and a contact.
- Delivery / Incoterms (optional) Two lines for shipment terms or timing, so they do not end up buried in the notes. For services, use it for the start date or delivery timing.
- Line-item table Four columns — Description, Qty, Unit price, Amount. Six blank rows in the PDF, seven in Word, ten in Excel.
- Subtotal, Tax (if applicable), TOTAL Tax sits on its own row and ships empty — we do not guess your rate. Leave it blank if no tax applies.
- Notes Two ruled lines under the table in the PDF and Word files for payment instructions, bank details, a deposit request or a reference number.
- Printed reminder Every copy carries the same footnote: “Replace with a commercial or tax invoice once the sale is final. The buyer cannot reclaim VAT from a proforma.”
One difference worth knowing: the Excel version keeps the header, both party blocks, the three document fields, the four-column table, the three totals lines and the closing reminder, but leaves out the Incoterms field and the ruled Notes lines — the sheet is organized around its live formulas. If you need those two fields, take the PDF or the Word file.
About the printed reminder: for the UK, HMRC’s VAT guide says pro-forma invoices “cannot be used as evidence to reclaim input tax, even if they show all the details required for a VAT invoice” (VAT Notice 700, section 17.3). Other countries set their own rules.
Export proforma invoice: the Delivery / Incoterms line
For goods that cross a border, write the delivery term the way the Incoterms® rules are used: the three-letter rule, the named place, and the edition — for example “FCA Porto, Incoterms® 2020”. The ICC publishes the rules as “a set of eleven three-letter trade terms” and describes Incoterms® 2020 as the most recent version, in force since 1 January 2020 (ICC, Incoterms® rules).
- HS code and country of origin: this blank has no separate columns for them, so put them in the item description (for example “… — origin: Portugal”).
- Use the PDF or the Word file: the Excel version has no Delivery / Incoterms field.
- Need dedicated customs fields? The Commercial Invoice Generator has fields for HS code, country of origin, Incoterms, packages, weight and reason for export.
- Sending samples, gifts or returns with no sale? See the no commercial value invoice guide.
Which format should you pick
- PDF — when you need it on paper or want the page to look identical everywhere. It is a flat page: you fill it in by hand or annotate it in a PDF reader.
- Word (DOCX) — when the wording matters more than the maths. Rename labels, add your logo and terms, keep a reusable copy. You calculate the totals yourself.
- Excel (XLSX) — when there is more than one line, or a tax rate involved. Type quantities and unit prices; the amounts, subtotal, tax and total recalculate on their own, and stay right when you change a price.
Not sure you want a file at all? Fill the proforma in online and download a finished PDF instead.
When to use a proforma invoice
A proforma invoice goes out before the sale is final. It states what you will supply, at what price, and on what terms, so the buyer can approve the purchase, arrange a transfer or a letter of credit, or pay a deposit against it. It looks like an invoice on purpose — but it is not the invoice for a supply that has already happened.
In the UK, HMRC describes the pro-forma invoice as the document “against which payment is invited” and says it “has no place in the books of account of the trader either issuing or receiving it” (HMRC manual VATREC9010). When the deal closes, you issue the real thing: a commercial or tax invoice.
That is also why the Valid until field is on the template rather than optional. A proforma is an offer, and an offer with no expiry date is an open-ended commitment to today’s price.
Read the full guide: What is a Proforma Invoice? → Meaning and spellings, services and export use, validity, and what the law says about offers.