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United States invoice requirements

There is no single federal VAT-style tax invoice that every US business must issue. At federal level, the IRS focuses on whether records substantiate income, expenses, deductions, and credits; invoices are one useful type of evidence. Sales and use taxes are generally administered by states and local jurisdictions, and taxability, rates, registration, exemptions, and invoice disclosures vary. Use this as a commercial invoice baseline, then add the tax details required where the sale is sourced and taxable.

Sources checked 2026-10-04

Invoice fields to review

Use this checklist to compare your draft with the local guidance. Applicability can depend on the parties, transaction, tax status, and document type.

  • For an ordinary commercial invoice, include the seller’s legal or trading name and contact details, a unique number, issue date, and customer name and billing or delivery details. The IRS does not prescribe this as a universal federal invoice template.
  • Describe each product or service, with quantity, unit price, discounts, subtotal, amount due, currency, payment terms, and instructions. Keep enough detail to connect the invoice to an order, contract, delivery, or completed work.
  • If state or local sales tax applies, show taxable items or amount, the relevant rate or tax amounts, and total collected as that jurisdiction requires. Local rules differ for separate tax display, exempt sales, marketplaces, and industries.
  • For an exempt or resale sale, retain the applicable certificate and mark the sale exempt in records when local rules require it. Determine taxability and collection responsibility before charging tax.

Tax notes

The United States has federal income, payroll, and excise taxes, but no national VAT or GST invoice system. Sales and use tax duties depend on state and local law; a seller may have collection duties based on physical or economic presence and the transaction.

Sales tax is not due on every invoice. Jurisdictions define taxable products and services, sourcing, exemptions, registration, and filing. An invoice may show no tax because the sale is exempt, outside the jurisdiction, or the seller has no collection duty.

Electronic invoicing

The IRS materials reviewed describe recordkeeping, not a generally applicable federal structured e-invoice network for commercial sales. Electronic records can substantiate federal taxes if they remain usable. Government procurement platforms, states, and private buyers may set separate submission or data-format conditions. A PDF is not automatically compliant with a required EDI, portal, or structured format.

Record retention

Keep invoices and evidence as long as needed to substantiate income, deductions, credits, and tax treatment. IRS guidance generally says three years for records supporting an income-tax return, with longer periods for defined cases such as some unreported income, bad-debt claims, property basis, and employment taxes. State tax, contract, insurer, or lender rules may require longer; there is no single nationwide term for every invoice.

Important cautions

  • Identify the seller’s nexus and each transaction’s sourcing and taxability under relevant state and local sales/use-tax rules before configuring a US invoice.
  • Confirm exemption documents and any jurisdiction-specific wording or receipt rules. A buyer’s contract may separately require purchase-order fields, portal entry, submission windows, or structured formats.

Official references

Rules change. Check the current source text and any updates before relying on a field or process.

  1. IRS: What kind of records should I keep?
  2. IRS: How long should I keep records?
  3. US Small Business Administration: Grow your business — state and local sales taxes

Reviewed against the references above on .

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