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I'm a web developer living in the UK.

Last September I found one client in the UK that was looking for web developers for his websites. Since September he has been paying me monthly on the basis of tasks that I've done.

I'm registered as a self employed and I have an UTR number. Should I issue invoices for his payments? Should I charge him VAT or something else in the invoice? Or do I just send him a simple invoice with the date, description and pay?

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Firstly, you only charge VAT if you are registered for VAT. In which case you must submit an invoice with your VAT number on it as HMRC may audit either your or the client's VAT returns at any time and will want to see it. (Your UTR number is not a VAT number, it applies to your personal income tax)

Otherwise, it is not mandatory to submit an invoice. It depends upon whether your client wants one, mostly for their own accounting practices.
For example, one of my clients doesn't want invoices. We have a contract that states the payment terms and he just sticks to it.

If you are asked for an invoice, add the usual: date, payment requested and work done.

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  • Thank you, Can invoices be backdated?
    – Waleed Hassan
    Commented Jan 14, 2022 at 15:18
  • It's generally not okay to backdate an invoice if it can be avoided. Issuing an invoice before payment is what you want
    – Mwikala Kangwa
    Commented Mar 4, 2022 at 8:45
  • There is no need to backdate. You can mention the related working periods as evidence for the services, but you can invoice when you want. [The customer asking to backdate would be something different.]
    – user4521
    Commented Mar 22, 2022 at 11:40

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