Client hasn't paid? How to chase a late invoice and charge a late fee

1. Three days before the due date: a friendly note that the invoice is due soon, with the invoice attached again.
2. On the due date: a short reminder with the amount and payment details.
3. Seven days late: a firmer email asking for a payment date, and naming the late fee if your terms include one.
4. Fourteen to thirty days late: a formal notice stating the amount owed including any fee or interest, and a final date.
5. After that: pause any ongoing work and consider a formal demand, a collection service or a small-claims process, depending on the amount and your country.

A late fee is a fixed amount or percentage added once the invoice is overdue; interest accrues daily on the unpaid balance. Either is easiest to enforce when it was written into your terms before the work started. Some countries also give businesses a statutory right to interest on late commercial payments — for example, UK law allows interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate on business-to-business debts.

Daily interest is simple to work out: amount × annual rate ÷ 365 × days late. On a 2,000 invoice at 12% a year, 30 days late adds about 19.73. The Invoice Late Fee Calculator does this for you and writes the payment notice.

Rules on late fees vary by country and contract. Check what applies to you before charging interest you did not agree in advance.

• Always include the invoice number, amount, original due date and how to pay.
• Ask for a specific payment date rather than asking whether they will pay.
• Stay factual. Emotion gives the client something to respond to other than the invoice.
• Copy in the accounts department once you know who they are.

• Take a deposit before starting work.
• Bill in milestones on longer projects.
• Put payment terms, late fees and the right to pause work in every quote.
• Hold final files until the final invoice is paid.
• Ask new clients who handles invoices before you start.