Template · Staffing agency documents
Staffing agency invoice template
In short
A staffing invoice template is the bill a staffing or recruiting agency sends a client for temporary workers' approved hours or for a permanent placement fee. It lists each worker, hours by rate type, bill rates, PO or cost center, totals and payment terms. This template covers both weekly temp billing and one-off placement fee invoices.
Invoice template
Invoice
Use part A for weekly temporary or contract staffing, or part B for a permanent placement fee. Delete the part you do not use. Attach or reference the approved timesheets for every line in part A.
Agency details
- Agency legal name
- Remit-to address
- Federal EIN / tax ID
- Billing contact name
- Billing email
- Billing phone
Invoice details
- Invoice number
- Invoice date
- Payment terms
- Net 15Net 30Net 45Net 60Due on receiptPer agreement dated [date]
- Due date
- Agreement reference (staffing agreement or terms of business, date)
- Client PO number
- Currency
Bill to
- Client legal name
- Accounts payable address
- Accounts payable email or portal
- Client contact / hiring manager
- Cost center or department code
Part A: temporary staffing, week ending [date] (one line per worker per rate type)
- Worker name and ID
- Job title and worksite
- Job order / assignment number
- Regular hours
- Regular bill rate
- Overtime hours (client-approved)
- Overtime bill rate
- Double-time hours and rate (if applicable)
- Shift differential hours and rate
- Holiday hours billed and rate (per agreement)
- Line total
- Timesheet approved by and date
Part A: other charges and credits
- Reimbursable expenses (itemize, receipts attached)
- Drug test, background check or onboarding charges (per agreement)
- Credits or adjustments (reference prior invoice number)
Part B: permanent placement fee
- Candidate name
- Position filled
- Hiring manager
- Offer accepted date
- Start date
- First-year remuneration used for fee (and what it includes)
- Fee percentage or flat fee
- Fee amount
- Retained search installment (if applicable)
- Not applicable1st installment (engagement)2nd installment (shortlist)Final installment (offer accepted)
- Less retainer installments already paid
- Guarantee period and condition
Totals
- Subtotal
- Sales tax (rate and amount, where applicable)
- Total due
- Amount previously paid
- Balance due
Payment instructions
- ACH: bank name, routing number, account number
- Check payable to and mailing address
- Please include invoice number with payment
- Late payment terms (per agreement)
- Questions about this invoice: contact and deadline to dispute
How to use this template
- Set up the agency, client and agreement reference once per client, including the PO number and accounts payable address or portal they require.
- For temp billing, pull approved hours from each worker's timesheet, split into regular, overtime and other rate types, and apply the bill rates from the staffing agreement or job order.
- For a placement fee, confirm first-year remuneration and the start date with the client in writing, then apply the fee percentage and deduct any retainer already paid.
- Add only the expenses and charges the agreement allows, with receipts.
- Check totals, tax treatment for the client's state, payment terms and due date before sending.
- Send through the channel the client requires, log the invoice number against the job order or placement, and diary a follow-up a few days before the due date.
Two invoices, two very different jobs
A temp agency invoice is a weekly, high-volume document. It might carry 60 workers at four rate types each, and it only gets paid if every line matches an approved timesheet and the client's PO. A placement fee invoice is a one-off, high-value bill, often $15,000 to $40,000, and it gets paid if the fee calculation is clearly tied to the signed terms. This template handles both, but in practice most agencies send them separately because they go to different approvers.
For temp billing, every line should trace back to an approved temp agency timesheet. For placement fees, reference the signed recruitment agency terms of business and state the guarantee so the client sees it on the same page as the fee.
What every staffing invoice needs
Clients reject invoices for small reasons and then take 30 days to tell you. The fields that prevent most rejections:
- PO number and cost center. Large employers' accounts payable systems often auto-reject invoices without a valid PO.
- Worker name, job order and week ending date on every line, so the client can match against their own records.
- Rate type split. Regular, overtime, double time and differentials on separate lines, with the rate shown.
- Agreement reference, so a disputed rate can be checked against what was signed.
- Clear payment instructions and dispute window, for example 'report disputes within 10 days of the invoice date'.
Vendor management systems change this. If a client runs a VMS, the client usually generates the invoice from approved time in their system, and your job is to make sure your records match theirs before the cycle closes.
Worked example: weekly temp invoice
A regional logistics client has three temps on site for the week ending Sunday. Bill rates come from the staffing agreement: $24.50 regular and $36.75 overtime for general warehouse, $29.40 regular for a forklift operator.
- James Carter, warehouse associate: 40 regular hours ($980.00) plus 4 overtime hours ($147.00) = $1,127.00
- Dana Price, warehouse associate: 32 regular hours = $784.00
- Luis Romero, forklift operator: 40 regular hours = $1,176.00
Subtotal $3,087.00. Staffing services are not subject to sales tax in most states, but some states do tax temporary help, so check the client's location. With net 30 terms and an invoice date of the 4th, the due date is the 4th of next month.
The bill rate already includes the pay rate, employer taxes, workers' compensation and margin. Do not add those as separate lines unless the agreement says so; clients read it as double billing.
Placement fee invoices
Invoice on the trigger in your terms, usually offer acceptance or start date. Show the fee base (for example $95,000 base salary), the percentage (20%), the fee ($19,000), and the guarantee (90 days, prorated refund or replacement). For retained search, show which installment this is and deduct earlier installments from the final bill. Confirm the salary with the client in writing before invoicing. If the final salary differs from the offer you heard about, the invoice is the wrong place to discover it.
Common mistakes
- Invoicing before the timesheet is approved, then issuing credit notes.
- Billing overtime the client did not approve, when the agreement says the agency absorbs it.
- Missing or expired PO numbers.
- Rates that do not match the latest rate card after an annual increase or minimum wage change.
- Combining several clients' cost centers on one invoice when the client wants them separate.
- No follow-up process, so 45-day-old invoices sit unnoticed. Days sales outstanding matters a lot to an agency that pays its temps weekly.
Billing at volume
Once an agency has more than a handful of clients, manual invoice building becomes the bottleneck between payroll and cash. The workable setup is one source of truth for job orders and rates, approved hours flowing in from timesheets, and invoices generated by client and billing cycle, then sent with a short staffing invoice email. Keep this template for clients outside your normal cycle and for placement fees. Tools that handle invoices and billing in one place help most when they read rates directly from the job order rather than a separate spreadsheet.
Frequently asked questions
What should a temp agency invoice include?
Agency and client details, invoice number and date, PO number, week ending date, each worker's name, job order, hours by rate type and bill rate, line totals, any allowed expenses, total due, payment terms and payment instructions.
How is a recruitment invoice template different from a temp invoice?
A recruitment invoice bills a one-time placement fee, usually a percentage of first-year salary, and states the guarantee. A temp invoice bills hours worked each week at agreed bill rates.
When should a placement fee invoice be sent?
On the trigger stated in your terms of business, most often when the candidate accepts the offer or on their start date. Confirm the final salary with the client first.
What payment terms do staffing agencies use?
Net 30 is the most common. Large enterprise clients often push for net 45 to 60, which strains cash flow because temps are paid weekly. Some agencies use factoring or offer a small discount for early payment.
Do staffing agencies charge sales tax?
In most states, no, but a minority of states tax some or all temporary staffing services. Check the rules for the state where the service is delivered.