How to invoice as self-employed in Spain, step by step

How to make a self-employed invoice in Spain in 2026 at a glance

How to invoice as self employed in Spain (as an autónomo): every invoice needs a consecutive number, the date, your details and your client's (name, tax ID or NIF, address), a description of the work, the taxable base, and the VAT (IVA) rate and amount. If you are a professional and your client must withhold tax (a company, for example), add the IRPF withholding. Usually the total is base plus VAT minus withholding.

Below you will find the steps, a template you can copy, every detail explained, a real example in euros, the deadlines, and what changes with VeriFactu and e-invoicing. All rules are the ones in force in 2026.

Two terms come up a lot, so here they are first:

• AEAT: the Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria, Spain's tax agency, usually just called Hacienda.
• Output VAT (IVA repercutido): the VAT you charge your client on the invoice and then pay to Hacienda on Form 303 (modelo 303). Input VAT (IVA soportado) is the VAT you pay on your own purchases, which you can generally deduct.

How to make an invoice, step by step

Follow this checklist every time you invoice. Each step is explained in detail in the sections below:

1. Check your client's details: exact company name, NIF and address. With a new client, ask for them in writing before the first invoice.
2. Assign the next number in the right series. Never repeat or skip one.
3. Add the issue date and, if the work was done on a different date, the date of the transaction.
4. Describe each item with quantity and unit price before VAT.
5. Work out the taxable base by adding up the lines and applying any discounts.
6. Apply the VAT rate that matches your activity, or state the exemption.
7. Decide whether there is withholding: professional activity plus a client who withholds. Apply 7% or 15% on the base. If you apply 7% because you are starting out, send your client the notice signed by you together with the first invoice.
8. Work out the total (base + VAT − withholding) and check the rounding to two decimals (for example, VAT of €33.333 is invoiced as €33.33).
9. Send it to the client and keep a copy. To a company or a self-employed client, at the latest before the 16th of the month after the transaction.
10. Enter it in your VAT and IRPF record books (they can be kept as a single book if it meets the requirements of both), to prepare Form 303 and, if you have to file it, Form 130. A professional does not have to make advance payments on Form 130 if at least 70% of their activity income in the previous calendar year was subject to withholding; if you are just starting, the quarter of the payment itself is what counts (article 109 of the IRPF Regulation).

Self-employed invoice template to copy

This is the minimum structure of a self-employed invoice template, filled in with the figures from the example we work out further down. You can use it in 2026 while you set up your invoicing tool:

INVOICE NO. 2026-014
Issue date: 31/03/2026
Date of transaction: 20/03/2026

ISSUER                              CLIENT
Laura Gómez Ruiz                    Agencia Norte SL
NIF 12345678Z                       NIF B12345678
Calle Mayor 3, 28013 Madrid         Av. de Europa 10, 28108 Alcobendas

Item                                  Qty     Price      Amount
Visual identity (logo and guide)        1     1,200.00   1,200.00
Social media adaptation                 1       300.00     300.00

Taxable base                                             €1,500.00
VAT 21%                                                    €315.00
IRPF withholding 7%                                       -€105.00
TOTAL DUE                                                €1,710.00

Payment: bank transfer to ESxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx

All the details in the template are made up. The payment method and IBAN are not required, but they help you get paid sooner.

Can you make an invoice by hand?

Yes. Article 8.1 of the Invoicing Regulation allows invoices to be issued "by any means, on paper or in electronic format", as long as their authenticity, integrity and legibility are ensured. A handwritten invoice from an invoice book is valid if it has all the required details and consecutive numbering. VeriFactu regulates invoicing software: according to the AEAT's FAQ, it does not affect you if you make all your invoices by hand, without any computerised system.

Who has to issue invoices and when

If you are registered as self-employed, you must issue an invoice for the goods you sell and the services you provide. That is set out in article 2 of the Invoicing Regulation (Royal Decree 1619/2012), which develops the VAT Law. It does not matter whether the client is a company, another self-employed person or a private individual. There are exceptions in article 3 of the same regulation, such as some VAT-exempt transactions or certain sales by retailers under the equivalence surcharge (recargo de equivalencia, the special VAT scheme for small shops), and in some cases a simplified invoice is enough.

As for timing, article 11 of the same regulation sets two rules:

• General rule: the invoice is issued at the time of the transaction.
• If the client is a business or professional: you have until before the 16th of the month after the month in which the VAT became due (the point at which the tax arises, usually when you deliver the goods or finish the service).

Required details on an invoice

At the heart of any self-employed invoice template is article 6 of the Invoicing Regulation, which lists the details every full invoice must carry. If one is missing, your client may have trouble deducting the VAT.

The last two rows correspond to letters j) and m) of article 6.1. IRPF withholding is not on that list, so it is not a requirement for the invoice. Even so, if your client is required to withhold, it is a good idea to show it so the net amount they will pay you is clear. We cover it further down.

Number and series: how to number your invoices

Numbering must be consecutive within each series: 2026-001, 2026-002, 2026-003. You cannot skip numbers or reuse them. You can use several series if there is a reason (for example, one per premises or type of activity), and article 6 itself requires a specific series for corrective invoices. Starting a new series each year, with the year in front, is a practical way to stay organised.

Your details and your client's

Put your full name exactly as it appears on your NIF, not just a trade name. For the client you need their full name or company name, their address and, when it is a company or a self-employed person established in Spain, their NIF. If the client is in another European Union country, include their EU VAT number when it applies given their status and the type of transaction.

Description and taxable base

Describe the work so it is clear what you are charging for: "Logo design and brand guide" is better than "Various services". If there are several lines, give each its quantity and unit price before VAT. Discounts not already included in the unit price are shown separately. The taxable base is the sum of all that, before taxes.

How to work out VAT and IRPF withholding

On a professional services invoice like the one in the example, the order is taxable base, plus VAT, minus withholding where it applies.

Which VAT rate to apply

Under Law 37/1992 on VAT, these are the three usual rates in 2026:

There are also transactions with special rules and VAT-exempt activities (for example, certain healthcare services or officially recognised education). In that case the invoice carries no VAT, but it does carry the exemption statement.

If you sell goods to a retailer under the equivalence surcharge for them to resell, you must charge that surcharge on top of VAT. Those sales go on separate invoices, showing the surcharge rate and amount (article 16.4 of the Invoicing Regulation). It does not apply to services or to goods the client does not sell on (articles 156 and 157 of the VAT Law).

You can invoice in another currency, but the VAT amount must also be shown in euros, under article 12.1 of the Invoicing Regulation.

When withholding applies and how much

Withholding is an advance on your income tax (IRPF) that your client deducts from your invoice and pays to Hacienda on your behalf. The most common case for a self-employed worker is when two conditions are met:

1. Your activity is professional (for example, designers, lawyers, consultants, programmers, architects).
2. The client is required to withhold. Under article 76 of the IRPF Regulation, that covers companies and organisations (including residents' associations, comunidades de propietarios) and self-employed people when they pay you as part of their business. A private individual does not withhold.

The rate is set by article 95 of the same regulation:

• 15%: the general rate for professional activities.
• 7%: if you start a professional activity, during the year you start and the following two, as long as you carried out no professional activity in the year before starting. You must tell your client in writing, and they keep that signed notice.

Business activities (retail, many trades, hospitality) generally have no withholding on invoices, although there are exceptions: for example, some activities under the module system (estimación objetiva) carry 1% under article 95.6 of the IRPF Regulation. The same article covers other cases at 7% besides starting out. If you want to see how that withholding fits with your annual income tax return (la Renta) and your quarterly payments, we explain it in IRPF for the self-employed: 7% and 15% withholding.

Self-employed invoice example with numbers

Laura is a graphic designer in Madrid. She registered in 2025 and in 2024, the year before starting, she carried out no professional activity, so her 7% period covers 2025 (the year she started), 2026 and 2027 (article 95.1 of the IRPF Regulation). She has told her client in writing. In March 2026 she creates a visual identity for Agencia Norte SL for €1,200 and a social media adaptation for €300.

Step 1. Taxable base. Add up the lines before taxes: 1,200 + 300 = €1,500.00.

Step 2. VAT. Her service is at the general rate of 21%: 1,500 × 0.21 = €315.00.

Step 3. IRPF withholding. She is a professional and the client is a company, so there is withholding. It is worked out on the base, not on the total including VAT: 1,500 × 0.07 = €105.00.

Step 4. Total to collect. 1,500 + 315 − 105 = €1,710.00.

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Here is the same base worked out in three different situations:

What happens next with each amount:

• The €315 of VAT is not Laura's: she declares it on her Form 303 for the first quarter, deducting the input VAT on her expenses.
• The €105 of withholding is paid to Hacienda by Agencia Norte on its Form 111. For Laura it is a payment on account that will be credited in her income tax return.
• The €1,500 base is her activity income for IRPF.

Deadlines, record keeping and penalties

As well as issuing invoices on time, you must keep the invoices you issue and receive. Article 19 of the Invoicing Regulation refers to the period in the General Tax Law, whose article 66 sets the limitation period at four years. That period starts when the deadline to file the return that includes the invoice ends, and there is no single date after which you can throw invoices away:

• The limitation period is interrupted, for example, if Hacienda opens an inspection, and then it starts again.
• Invoices for capital goods are kept during their VAT adjustment period and the following four years, under article 165.One of the VAT Law.
• If you keep accounts under the Commercial Code (Código de Comercio), its article 30 requires six years from the last entry.

If you do not comply, article 201 of the same law sets these base penalties, which can then be graded up or reduced:

Full, simplified and corrective invoices

Not all invoices are the same. These are the three you will use as a self-employed worker:

• Full: the one we have covered, with every detail from article 6. It is the usual way to invoice a company or a self-employed client who wants to deduct the VAT.
• Simplified: what used to be called a ticket. Article 4 of the Invoicing Regulation generally allows it up to €400 including VAT, and up to €3,000 in some sectors such as retail or hospitality. There are exceptions, such as corrective invoices or cases the AEAT authorises (AEAT: types of invoice). If the client is a company or self-employed and asks for it, it must include their NIF, their address and the VAT amount shown separately (article 7.2). With those details, a simplified invoice can support the VAT deduction, as long as the other legal requirements for deducting it are also met (VAT Law, articles 92 to 97). We explain it in simplified invoice: limits and when to use it.
• Corrective (rectificativa): the one that corrects an invoice already issued. It has its own series and identifies the original invoice. You will find the details and an example in corrective invoice: when to issue one.

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What changes with VeriFactu and e-invoicing

Two rules are going to change how you invoice, but neither is mandatory yet for a self-employed worker in October 2026. Whether you use a Word template, write invoices by hand or use software, everything above still applies today.

VeriFactu. Royal Decree 1007/2023 requires invoicing software to meet certain requirements so that records cannot be altered and, in VERI*FACTU mode, are sent to the AEAT. Its start has been postponed twice. The latest postponement, by Royal Decree-law 15/2025, set these dates:

It applies to anyone who uses a computerised invoicing system, with exclusions: for example, anyone who already keeps their books through the Immediate Supply of Information system (SII), under article 3 of the regulation. The equivalence surcharge does not exclude you on its own: a retailer under that scheme who has to issue invoices and uses invoicing software is also in scope. A system in scope can run in VERI*FACTU mode (sending records automatically to the AEAT) or without sending, storing the records with their safeguards. Using Word or Excel only as a template may fall outside it, according to the AEAT's FAQ. The AEAT offers a free VERI*FACTU invoicing app for people who issue few invoices. We cover it in depth in VeriFactu for the self-employed.

Mandatory e-invoicing between companies and self-employed workers. It is required by Law 18/2022 (the "Crea y Crece" law) and developed by Royal Decree 238/2026. The deadlines started running with Order HAC/1028/2026, in force since 6 October 2026:

• Twelve months later (6 October 2027) for anyone whose turnover, calculated under article 121 of the VAT Law, exceeded €8 million in the previous calendar year (fourth final provision of RD 238/2026).
• Twenty-four months later (6 October 2028) for all other businesses and professionals, which is where almost every self-employed worker falls.

Until those dates, emailing the invoice as a PDF is still valid, as long as the client accepts it and its authenticity, integrity and legibility are ensured (articles 8 to 10 of the Invoicing Regulation). You will find the full calendar in mandatory e-invoicing: deadlines.

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Common mistakes when making a self-employed invoice

• Skipping or reusing numbers when cancelling an invoice. Do not delete or overwrite an issued invoice: if it has a mistake that needs correcting, issue a corrective invoice; if it records a transaction that never happened, it is cancelled, and an invoicing system keeps a trace of that with a cancellation record (AEAT: invoicing procedures).
• Working out withholding on the total including VAT. It always goes on the taxable base.
• Applying the start-up 7% without having told your client, or still applying it for that reason after the third year.
• Adding withholding for a private individual. Private individuals do not withhold, so the invoice does not carry it.
• Leaving out the client's NIF or address, which stops them from deducting the VAT.
• Issuing a simplified invoice without the client's details when a company asks for them to deduct the VAT.
• Invoicing late: if the client is a company or professional, the limit is before the 16th of the following month; if it is a private individual, at the time of the transaction.
• Not keeping a copy of the invoices you issue for the whole limitation period.

How Melso helps

Melso is your AI tax agent, with human professionals behind it. It prepares each invoice for you and issues it when you approve that version in the app (invoicing with Melso), and it organises your income and expenses for the tax calendar. Melso and its professionals prepare and review the returns included for your activity and tax profile, with the scope confirmed before you sign up, such as Form 303; you approve each draft in the app and the professional files the approved version. Check the plans and select Get started or Message us on WhatsApp.

This article is for information only and does not replace professional advice for your case. Last reviewed: 12 October 2026.