Customer Billing Details Checklist: Before You Start the Job

Get the buying entity right first

The person booking the job and the business paying for it may have different names. Ask: "Which entity should appear as the customer on our invoice?" Compare the reply with the accepted quote and purchase order. Keep the site name as a separate field.

This matters even with government buyers. WA's Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage publishes invoicing details for four entities and tells suppliers to use their purchase order to identify the right one. That is a useful example of why a familiar organisation name is not enough. See the department's supplier instructions.

If the order and quote name different entities, ask the customer to resolve the discrepancy before creating the account. Don't pick whichever name your software already knows. A disputed change of contracting party needs advice, not a quick contact-card edit.

Separate invoice identity from processing preferences

Keep the customer's invoice-routing details separate from your tax-invoice template. Accounts payable can confirm where a bill goes and which order it belongs to; your registered BAS or tax agent can check the document's GST requirements. Use the ATO tax-invoice guidance for that separate check.

This setup form doesn't cover special invoicing arrangements or every required tax-invoice field. Have your invoice template checked separately using the tax invoice requirements guide and your registered BAS agent. Collect the customer's processing instructions alongside that template, rather than treating every field below as compulsory tax information.

Fill in one record that both teams can use

The example below belongs to a fictional supplier preparing its first $2,200 delivery. Names and references are illustrative. The actual billing address and verified contact details belong in the private customer record, not a public worksheet.

Assumptions: Fictional customer records and references. Customer-specific processes are examples, not universal requirements.

Field	Confirmed example	Why it is recorded
Customer entity	Banksia Workspace Pty Ltd (fictional)	Use the buyer named in the order, not its employee.
Trading/site label	Banksia North office	A delivery label; does not replace the buyer.
Buyer identity on invoice	Banksia Workspace Pty Ltd	Buyer identity used for this $2,200 example; no invented ABN.
Invoice recipient	Accounts payable; Alex is the query contact	Recipient confirmed by the customer.
Billing address	Head office billing address in customer record	Distinct from the North office delivery address.
Purchase order	PO-417; total $2,200	Order copy saved with accepted quote Q-88.
Submission channel	Customer supplier portal; one invoice per upload	Customer preference, not a universal tax rule.
Required attachment	Signed delivery docket referencing PO-417	Job owner supplies this before billing.
Payment details	Due date calculated from accepted Q-88 terms	Accounts payable contact is not asked to invent new terms.
Confirmation	Alex, accounts payable; email saved 11 September 2026	Checked against order by owner; record version 1.

Original ASBG fictional example. Use the assumptions above when replacing these figures with your own.

Copy those field names into a spreadsheet, your customer record or a one-page form. Add a link to the accepted quote, the person in your business who owns the account, and a "waiting for" field. If the purchase order hasn't arrived, write "pending: customer contact to provide by [date]", not "not applicable".

Ask whether invoices go by email, a procurement portal or Peppol eInvoicing. Don't submit through several channels just in case; confirm the customer's preferred route and how you'll receive acknowledgement.

Send a short confirmation before committing the job

You can adapt this message:

Before we start [job reference], please confirm the billing details below: buying entity [name], order reference [number], invoice recipient [team/contact], billing address [address] and submission channel [method]. We have [accepted quote/version] as the agreed scope and payment terms. What delivery or acceptance evidence should accompany the invoice, and who supplies it? Please identify anything that needs correcting before we set up the job.

Send it to the established customer contact and involve their accounts-payable team where appropriate. Save their reply with the job. If the reply is "accounts will sort it out", ask who in accounts needs which document.

The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman recommends checking invoice details against the order and delivery receipt and clarifying uncertainties before sending. Preparing that match before work starts gives you time to fix gaps. ASBFEO efficient invoicing guide.

Keep later changes traceable

When the customer changes a reference or submission channel, retain the old record and add the new value, effective date, requester's name and evidence. Note which jobs are affected. Don't overwrite the account and assume the change applies to invoices already sent.

For example, version 2 might say: "New orders from 14 September use the central portal; PO-417 remains on the original route." Your invoice preparer can then follow a specific instruction instead of reconstructing an email thread.

Keep access limited to staff who need the details. This is an administrative record, so don't add identity documents, personal financial information or a customer's passwords just to make it look thorough.

Finish with a billing handover

Before the job closes, the person doing the work should give the invoice preparer the job reference, approved amount and required completion evidence. Check that someone preparing the invoice can find where to send it without making another call.

Account setup is also separate from deciding whether to offer credit. A correct entity name and a helpful accounts contact don't prove the customer will pay. If a correctly submitted invoice later becomes overdue, use the unpaid invoice guide. For the wider routine, visit cash flow and getting paid.

Next, check unpaid exposure before accepting another order.

Key takeaways

• Confirm the buying entity, invoice recipient, order reference and submission route before work starts.
• Keep tax-invoice requirements separate from the customer's processing preferences.
• Save a dated confirmation and retain the history when details change.
• Give the invoice preparer completion evidence as part of the job handover.

Where to get help

• ATO: tax invoices for the requirements your tax-invoice template must meet.
• ASBFEO: efficient invoicing for invoice-to-order checks.
• Your customer's accounts-payable team for its actual submission requirements; a registered BAS agent for the GST document questions.