Proposals & Invoices ยท Article 5.2
The deposit invoice (DEP-) โ Anzahlungsrechnung, facture d'acompte
The deposit invoice is the legal artefact that records VAT liability on an advance payment. Under EU VAT Directive Art. 65, the deposit becomes chargeable the moment the client pays โ the deposit invoice is what the law requires you issue.
The deposit invoice is the most-misunderstood document in EU freelance invoicing. Its purpose isn't to "ask for money" โ that's just the payment-request side effect. Its legal purpose is to record a VAT chargeable event under Art. 65 of the EU VAT Directive: when an advance payment is made, the supplier owes VAT on it immediately. The invoice is the artefact tax authorities expect to see in your books.
Step by step
Trigger is automatic.
The DEP fires the instant the client signs. No manual step.
Verify in Documents dropdown.
Within ~5 seconds of signing, the DEP appears under "Deposit Invoice" with download link.
Confirm the email went out.
The post-signature email to the client includes the DEP attached, plus the SEPA QR + (if Stripe enabled) a "Pay โฌX now" button.
Mark as paid when funds arrive.
Stripe webhook fires automatically (~2 sec post-charge). For SEPA, click
Mark deposit as paid manuallyonce you see the inbound transfer in your bank app.Receipt fires automatically.
A REC- document is generated and emailed to both parties on the deposit-paid event.
Why this works this way
EU VAT Directive Art. 65 (advance payment chargeable event):
> "Where a payment is to be made on account before the goods or services are supplied, VAT shall become chargeable on receipt of the payment and on the amount received."
So if a client pays a โฌ500 deposit on a โฌ2,000 project, you owe VAT on โฌ500 now, even though the project hasn't been delivered. The deposit invoice records this. National implementations:
- Germany: ยง14 UStG defines the Anzahlungsrechnung; ยง13 UStG sets the chargeable timing. - Netherlands: BTW Art. 35a (issuing rules), Art. 13 (chargeability). - France: CGI Art. 271-II (deductibility based on the facture d'acompte). - Spain: Ley 37/1992 Art. 75 (chargeability on advance). - Italy: DPR 633/1972 Art. 6 (fattura di acconto).
What's on a Clozo DEP- (verified against `apps/pdf/service.py:render_deposit_invoice_pdf`):
1. Document number (DEP-2026-0042) and issue date.
2. Your business identity: name, address, VAT number (or regime note).
3. Client's billing details: name, address, VAT number if B2B.
4. Description: localised "Deposit invoice for proposal PRO-2026-0042 โ [proposal title]".
5. Amount net + VAT amount + amount gross (in the currency locked at proposal-send time).
6. The applicable VAT rate and rule (e.g., "21% (domestic)", or "0% (reverse charge โ VAT to be accounted for by the recipient)").
7. Payment terms: deposit due date, IBAN, BIC, beneficiary name, structured reference PRO-2026-0042-DEP, and the EPC QR code.
8. Reference to the parent proposal: "This deposit invoice settles 25% of Proposal PRO-2026-0042 dated 2026-04-15".
9. Required Art. 226 fields (sequential number, issue date, supplier and customer identities, VAT identification number, description, taxable amount, rate, VAT amount).
Localised header text (apps/pdf/service.py Jinja2 templates):
- EN: "Deposit invoice" - DE: "Anzahlungsrechnung" - NL: "Voorschotfactuur" - FR: "Facture d'acompte" - ES: "Factura de anticipo" - PL: "Faktura zaliczkowa"
Reverse-charge case (B2B intra-EU): if the client is in another EU member state with a valid VAT number (validated via VIES), the DEP is issued at 0% VAT with the legal note: "Reverse charge โ VAT to be accounted for by the recipient (EU VAT Directive Art. 196)" โ translated per locale. The client self-assesses VAT in their own country. You report the supply on your EC Sales List (Zusammenfassende Meldung in DE, ICP-opgaaf in NL, DES in FR).
Troubleshooting
Keep reading
Proposals & Invoices
The final invoice (INV-) โ Schlussrechnung, facture de solde
The final invoice closes the project. It states the full work value, then explicitly references the deposit invoice and **deducts both the deposit amount and the deposit VAT**, so you don't pay tax twice. This deduction is mandated by ยง14 UStG and parallel rules across the EU.
Lifecycle
Status: Deposit paid โ work can start
The deposit landed (Stripe webhook or manual confirmation). Clozo flips the status, queues the deposit receipt PDF, and starts a behind-the-scenes job to pre-render the final invoice. You can begin the work.
Refunds & Notifications
EU invoice compliance โ Art. 226 mandatory fields, sequence numbering, retention
Every invoice Clozo issues complies with EU VAT Directive Art. 226: 14 mandatory fields, sequential numbering with no gaps, immutability after issue, and 10-year retention.
Proposals & Invoices
Invoice numbering โ sequential per year per type, atomic, no gaps
Every invoice gets a sequential number from an atomic counter scoped per freelancer per year per document type. No gaps allowed under EU VAT Directive Art. 226(2); enforced by a row-level database lock so concurrent operations cannot collide.
Proposals & Invoices
Marking a payment as paid manually โ for SEPA, cash, wire, anything outside Stripe
When a payment lands outside the auto-detected channels (SEPA bank transfer, cash, foreign wire), use `Mark as paid manually` to record it. Clozo creates the receipt, fires confirmation emails, and preserves the audit trail.