How to invoice an international client from the US

A client abroad changes three things about getting paid: the currency, the fees between you, and the tax wording on the invoice. The rest of the pay-on-time guide still applies. Fees below were read from each provider's US pricing pages on October 18, 2026; the fee comparison covers domestic payments.

USD or the client's currency?

Fees on a €3,000 invoice, four ways

What to put on the invoice

• Your legal name or business name, address and US tax ID if the client asks for one (EIN, or SSN only if you must).
• The client's legal company name, address and, for EU businesses, their VAT number.
• A unique, sequential invoice number and the issue date (see invoice numbering).
• A clear description of the services and the period they cover.
• The currency, shown with every amount ("EUR 3,000.00", not "3,000").
• Payment method and details: IBAN or local account details, or a pay link.
• Who pays transfer fees, for example "Sender pays all bank charges (OUR)" for wires.
• For EU business clients: the reverse-charge note below.

Reverse charge for EU business clients

When you, a business outside the EU, sell services to a VAT-registered business in the EU, the general rule is that the customer accounts for the VAT (the "reverse charge"), so you don't charge EU VAT. The EU VAT Directive (article 226) asks for the mention "Reverse charge" on such invoices. Your client's accounts team will usually tell you exactly what they need; add their VAT number and this line:

Reverse charge: VAT to be accounted for by the recipient (Article 196, Council Directive 2006/112/EC).
Customer VAT number: [DE123456789]
Supplier is established outside the EU.

Selling to individuals in the EU, or digital services sold automatically, follows different rules. Ask an accountant who handles cross-border VAT before you bill consumers abroad.

Tax forms clients abroad may ask for

Form W-9 is how a US payer gets your taxpayer ID for its own reporting; a client abroad usually has no IRS filing for you, though some ask for a W-9 to confirm you're a US person. Form W-8BEN is for foreign individuals, so as a US citizen or resident you don't sign one. If a foreign client asks for a W-8BEN, send a W-9 instead and explain. Your foreign income still goes on your US return. Our W-9 guide covers how to fill it in.

Steps

1. Agree the currency, the payment method and who pays fees in the contract.
2. Open local account details in the client's currency (Wise and similar accounts offer EUR, GBP and others), or decide to bill in USD.
3. Ask the client for their legal name, address and VAT number before the first invoice.
4. Issue the invoice with the currency on every amount and, for EU businesses, the reverse-charge line.
5. When paid, convert to USD when the rate suits you, and record the USD amount you received for your books.

In SoloWOS

SoloWOS Invoicing issues invoices in US dollars or Mexican pesos (set in Settings > General), so for a client abroad you'd bill in USD there; for EUR or GBP invoices, use your bank's or Wise's own invoicing. Add a Wise or PayPal link as the payment link and it shows as a pay button, and put the reverse-charge text and the client's VAT number in the invoice Notes. With Stripe connected, a client abroad can still pay by card in USD.