invoice-generation-automation

What this skill does

# Invoice Generation Automation

## Overview

Automated invoice generation turns every completed order into a professional, branded PDF invoice without manual effort. For B2B ecommerce, invoices are legal documents required for the customer's procurement and accounting workflows. In many countries — particularly within the EU — specific invoice formats are legally mandated with sequential numbering, VAT numbers, and mandatory fields. All major platforms support invoice automation through apps and plugins, often requiring zero custom code.

## When to Use This Skill

- When customers request invoices after purchase and you are generating them manually
- When building B2B ecommerce where invoices are required before or after payment
- When you need to comply with EU VAT invoice requirements
- When integrating with accounting software (QuickBooks, Xero) that requires invoice records
- When subscription billing needs to generate invoices for each billing cycle
- When you need branded, professional PDFs rather than a payment processor's default invoice styling

## Core Instructions

### Step 1: Determine your platform and choose the right invoice tool

| Platform | Recommended Tool | Notes |
|----------|-----------------|-------|
| **Shopify** | **Order Printer Pro** or **Sufio** (Shopify App Store) | Shopify has no native invoice PDF; Order Printer Pro is the most widely used free option; Sufio adds EU VAT compliance, accounting sync, and automated sending |
| **WooCommerce** | **WooCommerce PDF Invoices & Packing Slips** (free) or **WooCommerce Germanized** (EU compliance) | The free plugin handles standard invoice PDFs; Germanized adds legally compliant German/EU invoice formats |
| **BigCommerce** | **Order Confirmation PDF** (built-in) + **Sufio** or **Invoice Ninja** via API | BigCommerce sends a default order confirmation; Sufio adds branded PDFs with full EU VAT support |
| **Stripe-based stores** | **Stripe Invoicing** (built-in) | Stripe generates, sends, and tracks payment of invoices automatically; ideal for B2B and subscription billing |
| **Custom / Headless** | **Stripe Invoicing API** or **Docspring** / **PDFMonkey** for custom PDF generation | Stripe Invoicing handles the full lifecycle including dunning; PDF APIs handle custom designs |

### Step 2: Set up automated invoice generation

---

#### Shopify

**Option A: Order Printer Pro (free, basic)**

1. Install **Order Printer Pro** from the Shopify App Store
2. Go to **Apps → Order Printer Pro → Templates** and customize the invoice HTML template with your logo, colors, and footer text
3. Under **Settings**, configure auto-printing triggers — when an order is fulfilled, the app can automatically email the invoice PDF to the customer
4. For EU VAT invoices: the app supports adding VAT numbers and compliant formatting; enable this under **Settings → Tax settings**

**Option B: Sufio (recommended for B2B and EU VAT compliance)**

1. Install **Sufio** from the Shopify App Store (paid, ~$19/month starting)
2. Go to **Sufio → Settings → Document templates** and upload your logo; customize fonts, colors, and layout
3. Under **Sufio → Settings → Automation**, configure when invoices are created and sent:
   - Trigger: **Order paid** or **Order fulfilled**
   - Action: Generate PDF and email to customer automatically
4. For EU VAT: go to **Sufio → Settings → Tax settings** and enable VAT invoice mode — Sufio adds the required fields (sequential number, seller/buyer VAT numbers, tax breakdown per line)
5. Connect to accounting: go to **Sufio → Integrations** and connect QuickBooks Online or Xero — invoices sync automatically

#### WooCommerce

**Option A: WooCommerce PDF Invoices & Packing Slips (free)**

1. Install **WooCommerce PDF Invoices & Packing Slips** from WordPress.org (by WP Overnight — the most popular option with 500,000+ installs)
2. Go to **WooCommerce → PDF Invoices → Documents → Invoice** and configure:
   - Enable invoices for: new orders, processing, completed
   - Upload your company logo
   - Set invoice number format (e.g., year prefix: 2026-0001)
   - Add company details (name, address, VAT number)
3. Under **General**, enable **Attach to order confirmation email** — invoices will be emailed automatically on order status change
4. For sequential numbering (required for EU VAT): go to **Invoice → Number** and enable the sequential counter

**Option B: WooCommerce Germanized (EU VAT legal compliance)**

1. Install **WooCommerce Germanized** — this plugin adds full German/EU legal compliance including legally required invoice elements
2. Configure your seller VAT number under **WooCommerce → Germanized → General → VAT ID**
3. Invoice settings are under **WooCommerce → Germanized → Invoices** — configure numbering, format, and automation triggers

**Sync to accounting:**
1. Install **WooCommerce QuickBooks Online** or **WooCommerce Xero** from the WooCommerce Marketplace
2. Orders and invoices sync automatically to your accounting system

#### BigCommerce

1. BigCommerce sends an order confirmation email by default — this serves as a basic invoice for B2C
2. For branded PDF invoices: install **Sufio** from the BigCommerce App Marketplace (same setup as Shopify above)
3. For custom invoice templates: go to **Marketing → Email Templates → Order Confirmation** and customize the default email template
4. For B2B invoice management: install **Apruve** or **Balance** from the App Marketplace — these handle net-terms invoicing with automated payment collection

---

#### Custom / Headless

**Option A: Stripe Invoicing (recommended for B2B)**

Stripe Invoicing handles the complete lifecycle — creation, PDF generation, customer emailing, payment tracking, and dunning for unpaid invoices:

```javascript
// Create and send an invoice via Stripe Invoicing
const invoice = await stripe.invoices.create({
  customer: stripeCustomerId,
  collection_method: 'send_invoice',
  days_until_due: 30,
  metadata: { order_id: orderId },
  custom_fields: [
    { name: 'PO Number', value: poNumber },
    { name: 'Your VAT Number', value: buyerVatNumber },
  ],
  footer: 'Thank you for your business.',
});

// Add line items
for (const item of order.lineItems) {
  await stripe.invoiceItems.create({
    customer: stripeCustomerId,
    invoice: invoice.id,
    amount: Math.round(item.total * 100), // cents
    currency: 'usd',
    description: item.description,
    tax_rates: [stripeTaxRateId], // if using Stripe Tax
  });
}

// Finalize and send — Stripe generates PDF and emails it automatically
await stripe.invoices.finalizeInvoice(invoice.id);
await stripe.invoices.sendInvoice(invoice.id);
```

The customer receives a Stripe-hosted invoice page where they can pay by card, bank transfer, or other methods. Stripe handles dunning (unpaid invoice reminders) automatically via **Billing → Settings → Invoice reminders**.

**Option B: PDF generation service (for custom branding)**

If you need full design control over the PDF, use **PDFMonkey** or **Docspring**:

```javascript
// Generate a branded PDF using PDFMonkey
const response = await fetch('https://api.pdfmonkey.io/api/v1/documents', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Bearer ${process.env.PDFMONKEY_API_KEY}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json',
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    document: {
      document_template_id: process.env.INVOICE_TEMPLATE_ID,
      status: 'pending',
      payload: {
        invoice_number: invoiceNumber,
        issue_date: new Date().toISOString().split('T')[0],
        due_date: dueDateString,
        seller: { name: 'Your Company', address: sellerAddress, vat_number: sellerVat },
        buyer: { name: customer.company_name, address: billingAddress, vat_number: buyerVat },
        line_items: lineItems,
        subtotal: order.subtotal,
        tax_amount: order.taxAmount,
        total: order.total,
      },
    },
  }),
});
const { document } = await response.json();
// Poll for document.status === '