42+ Printable Payment Receipt Templates

What Is a Payment Receipt?

In the business world, you come across various documents from an order form, voucher, cheque, and so much more. One of its common examples is the payment receipt. This receipt is the official document given to the customer, which serves as the proof of payment on specific goods or services. Also known as the receipt for payment, this document is made only when a customer has paid. The receipt will highlight if ever customers paid the full or partial amount of the stated sale invoice too. Nonetheless, payment receipts benefit both the buyers and the sellers to settle terms properly in sales.

Did you know that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recommends you to keep your receipts in at least three years?

Also, it is required that products and services valued at $75 or more should include a proof of transaction or receipt to customers.

Why Are Payment Receipts Important?

You issue a payment receipt to a client in case they need proof of payment for a product or service. Anyone can lie nowadays and without evidence in an invoice, it would be difficult on how to decide such matters. In fact, it is recommended to at least keep receipts for three years before throwing them in the trash. That way, you have enough time to use such documents as evidence. Nevertheless, it is important for any product or service valued at $75 or more to incorporate a receipt or proof of transaction to clients. That is, according to the Government of New South Wales. Besides concerning customers, sellers themselves also find the receipts essential, especially in partial payments. A seller can refer to a payment receipt to know how much is the remaining amount due of a customer who paid thru layaway.

Payment Receipt vs. Sales Receipt

Many people confuse a payment receipt with a sales receipt. So let us dissect what makes such receipts different in the first place. First things first, a payment receipt is given to a client with proof of payment. The receipt here merely highlights the amount of money received by a seller. Also, it acknowledges that the seller actually received payment. Meanwhile, the sales receipt is a simpler version of an invoice, meaning customer information and invoice numbers are unnecessary. Sales receipts are only provided when full payment has been done. Thus, it involves one payment or transaction only. Considering that sales receipts are simple, they are more structured compared to payment receipts.

The Parts of a Standard Payment Receipt

There is no official rule that specifies what a payment receipt’s information should contain. That is because anyone can personalize it and edit what detail to add is necessary or not. But generally, there the typical parts seen in a payment receipt contain the following:

Title: The title serves as the clear label of what type of document the form is. So when you indicate ‘Payment Receipt’ at the document’s title, anyone gets the gist or the receipt’s purpose. And just like any title, it should be visible enough for the public eye. Using bold capital letters is the key and it should be labeled right at the topmost part of the document.Seller’s Name and Brand: The brand logo, business, name, or seller’s name should also be included in the receipt. The payment receipt itself should identify whose business it belongs to anyway. And the logo, business name, and more would keep the branding and identification conspicuous right away.Invoice Number: To ensure that your payment receipt will not be mistaken as a sales receipt, it should contain the original invoice number. An invoice number refers to the unique identification number given by the business in issuing a receipt to a customer. And that is just the perfect tool to use for tracking payments and preventing fake receipts. Thus, copy the invoice number as your reference number for invoice tracking purposes.Date of Payment: Never forget to add the official date of when a payment has been made. To complete your payment schedule, write the month, day, and year of the transaction. Others add the time as well to be more specific. The date also makes it easy to track specific transactions when your basis is referring to the transaction date.Amount Received: It is easy to say that a payment receipt clarifies that a customer has paid in the process. But how much was the payment received in the first place? Be specific in the payment amount right in the amount received section. The key is to write the amount in numbers and in words for clarification. Also, this part should clarify if the payment is done partially or in full. And partial payments must have a follow-up to remind customers of their next payment.Remaining Amount Due: Partial payments would include the remaining amount due section. That way, customers are reminded easily of how much their remaining amount is. The same goes for when the due date is to settle such an amount. Setting deadlines is one of the crucial factors of partial payments because some customers might forget or refuse to pay their balance.

How to Create a Proper Payment Receipt

A payment receipt’s definition, purpose, and parts are easy to comprehend. But the challenge lies in ensuring you come up with an excellent payment receipt in the first place. Not to worry because we will guide you in creating a proper payment receipt shortly. How do you do that? Just follow these five basic steps:

Step 1: Specify the Payment’s Purpose

Yes, a payment receipt signifies that there is payment involved in the process. But what is the payment exactly for? Payments can be processed in a restaurant, hospital, real estate, rent, etc. Whatever the purpose is, it should be specified for clarity. That way, you would know how to tailor the payment receipt’s appropriate structure and content. Being very specific is crucial in receipts anyway like if payment is done in cash or not, or perhaps if the payment is still a partial down payment or in full. Note it down.

Step 2: Use a Sample Template

Without our sample payment receipt templates, you would have to undergo more steps to create the receipt. Thankfully, our templates are premade so you only focus on the finishing details. Choose from our sample templates above until you can edit and fill in the details of your preferred payment receipt template. At least you can decide the changes to apply instead of adjusting only to the document you received. And expect each template to be easy to use for your convenience.

Step 3: Insert the Parts of a Payment Receipt

If you can recall the parts of a standard payment receipt that were discussed earlier, then you would know that there are some elements to expect in such a receipt. From the title down to the amount due, be sure you have such parts in your payment receipt. The receipt might fail to work as an acknowledgment of payment if it lacks the important elements. Do not forget to arrange per element appropriately instead of just laying out the details pronto. How you present the whole information matters a lot.

Step 4: Customize the Format and Design

You have to be very sure of the design and the format of your receipt. Besides settling with our printable receipts, you can also go for soft copies in PDF or MS Word. It would be easy and convenient to send receipts as an online letter or email anyway rather than always printing them. You can even alter the document’s size, content, and so much more since the available templates are customizable. Feel free to explore its editable features until all your preferences will take into effect.

Step 5: Keep Extra Copies

It is pointless to only work hard in giving a single copy to a customer in a payment receipt. What about the seller’s copy? And what if the customer loses that receipt too? Ensure that proof will never be lacking by keeping extra copies ahead. Bear in mind that you might need to check back into previous receipts for tracking purposes someday. Or better yet, find a way to make the tracing experience easy in terms of tracking receipts. A tip is to incorporate mobile app scanners and physical scanners in the process. Most importantly, keep those copies secure so you will never lose them.

FAQs

When do I provide payment receipts?

You only give a payment receipt when a customer has actually paid for something, whether the transaction is in full payment or via layaway. Do not give payment receipts without a successful payment because that is already another type of receipt.

How do I give payment receipts?

Payment receipts can be given in printed form or via soft copy. Besides printed receipts, you can always go for emails in PDF or MS Word, perhaps. What matters most is that such documents are really given after a certain payment has been made.

What should be inside a basic receipt?

Any receipt often contains the transaction information with the company or seller’s name, contact details, date of transaction, the amount paid, the number of products and services, product descriptions, and the corresponding prices of such items.

Can I use an invoice as a receipt?

No, invoices and receipts are different; do not interchange them. The invoice generally requests for payment while the receipt marks as the proof of such payment. And that explains why clients receive invoices before actually paying for goods or services and that the receipts come after the payment.

Clearly, accounting documents like payment receipts are crucial in the business sector. Both the seller and the customer would appreciate it when there is proof of any full or partial payment instead of transacting without conspicuous evidence. Who knows? You might run into complaints and issues where a payment receipt could solve such cases for you in litigation. Thankfully, knowing how to form such receipts easily will let you be prepared, whether you are the seller or the client. Let our sample payment receipt templates guide you in doing so. Download now!