Options for using an invoice agreement for the supply of goods

Why do you need an invoice?

This is a document for making payments. In some cases, it is a preliminary agreement in which the seller specifies a list of goods or services with an agreed price and quantity for the buyer. An invoice for payment is issued after the conclusion of an agreement between the parties, as an addition to it, but sometimes this is a separate legally significant document.

Cases when it is required:

• there is no contract, then after payment he confirms the transaction;
• when the exposure is specified in the contract.

Issued in one copy in paper or electronic form.

Can an invoice be issued before the contract?

It is not an error to issue an invoice before the contract has been concluded. The main thing is that there is no discrepancy in dates - a document with a later date is indicated as the basis. If the invoice was issued earlier, then it should be mentioned in the agreement, stating that the agreement also applies to invoices issued before its conclusion. But in this case, a reconciliation report should be prepared, which states that the funds received are an advance payment under the concluded agreement.

Despite the fact that the law allows, under certain conditions, to pay a bill without an agreement, experts warn that it is easier to communicate with tax authorities when it is concluded. Especially when we are talking not about a one-time deal, but about ongoing cooperation. This can be done after payment of the invoice if the parties are committed to long-term work.

Invoice offer

An invoice, in simple terms, is a commercial proposal with which a potential client agrees and pays or refuses. It is advisable to formalize the refusal in writing. There is no unified form for an offer; when drawing up, a budget organization most often uses an independently developed form.

An invoice is an offer if it contains the following details:

• destination,
• essential terms of the agreement;
• the intention of the sender (offeror) to consider himself as having entered into a contract.

For it to have legal force, the recipient must and sufficiently pay (accept) it, as stated in Art. 438 Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

Let's look at what offers there are:

1. Irrevocable - concluded with everyone, not limited in terms of time.
2. Free - most often done for certain organizations that show interest in a product or service.
3. Firm - done individually for a specific organization, where the terms during which acceptance is possible are clearly stated.
4. Public - an offer that is made publicly.

How to avoid mistakes

In order to avoid mistakes when drawing up a document, both parties should pay attention to the following factors:

1. If the customer wishes to reissue the form to the usual standard form or make changes, then all contractual requirements automatically apply to the contractor. He also has the right to duplicate the contractual terms in a separate block of the compiled document.

2. 
   It is important to draw up the document succinctly and completely. You can supplement the rights and obligations of the parties, register court orders, and an act of acceptance of goods.

3. You cannot indicate in the document that payment is 40% before the provision of services and the entire remaining amount will be paid later. It is important to include a clear deadline in the contract, otherwise the length of the period will become ambiguous. Even the court, upon appeal, will not be able to correctly determine the duration of the conditions specified in the document.

Invoice agreement

This is an invoice for payment and an agreement in one document, it immediately states the necessary conditions of cooperation. It is often concluded when the supply is small. It’s easier and faster to create a register on one sheet of paper than to print a full-fledged agreement and waste time on approving it.

Article 441 of the Civil Code states that before concluding an agreement it is permissible to provide an offer.

Basic moments:

1. The form may be signed unilaterally. The main thing is to write down a clause that if the customer pays, the contract is considered concluded, and the customer agrees with all the specified conditions.
2. Done in two copies for each party. Both have the same legal force.

Mandatory details
You must specify:

• name and details of the compiling organization;
• name of the document (the name is obvious);
• his number;
• date of compilation;
• supplier,
• recipient,
• list of goods, works or services and cost;
• VAT (rate and amount) or information why it is not subject to VAT.

In what cases can deliveries be made without a contract?

Before drawing up a contract, it is imperative to study the law, paragraph 1 of Art. 432 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Considering that this document is a purchase and sale agreement, then without a descriptive description of the product or its nominal quantity, it is considered invalid. All papers indicating the amount imply the presence of products that must be described.

When providing documentation indicating the veracity of the transaction, you do not have to provide a civil contract; in court and customs control, this is regarded as a single transaction.

Is it possible to win a lawsuit without a contract?

As a result, unpleasant situations occur, for example, an acquaintance begins to claim that he did not borrow the money, there was no agreement on payment for the service provided, and the employer believes that the payment for the work performed should be half the amount the employee expected. What to do in such a situation? Is it possible to return money borrowed without concluding an agreement and how to receive a salary for work performed? Is it possible to win a lawsuit without a contract?

Courts quite often encounter these types of disputes. Practice shows that it is possible to win a lawsuit without a contract. In order to win a lawsuit against an employer, it is necessary to prove that an actual employment relationship took place. An employment contract will be considered concluded from the moment when the employee began to perform his job duties with the knowledge or on behalf of the employer. In the absence of conditions regarding remuneration, an employee has the right to count on the average salary for a certain region for similar work. Remuneration in the amount of average earnings is also applicable to the situation with the provision of services. To return the amount lent, you will need to do work to prove in court the very fact of the transfer of money.

Depending on the specific situation, the method of returning the money will be different, but, in any case, the absence of a concluded agreement does not mean the absence of an established relationship, which means that the violated right can be restored by going to court.

INTERESTING : more tips on conducting the process, as well as rules on how to behave in a court case, follow the link on our website

Statement of claim for debt collection without an agreement

Preparing a statement of claim to collect a debt in itself is subject to certain difficulties, and going to court in the absence of an agreement confirming the very fact of the occurrence of obligations between the parties seems to be a difficult task. In practice, a statement of claim for debt collection without an agreement takes place and achieving a positive result is still possible.

Debt collection by going to court is a rather lengthy process. Civil proceedings consist of the acceptance of a claim, a preliminary hearing, the trial itself, the announcement of a decision, but, above all, a well-prepared statement of claim influences the positive outcome of the case. When preparing a statement of claim, special attention should be paid to the evidence base. Information that can be recognized by the court as appropriate evidence in cases of debt collection without an agreement will be all documents confirming the actual occurrence of relations between the parties. The list of such documents is extensive, including a receipt for receipt of money, bank statements about the transfer of funds, confirmation of large purchases by the debtor after the transfer of funds, issued invoices, invoices, waybills, specifications, payment orders, business correspondence, records of telephone conversations and others.

The statement of claim is sent to the court at the place of residence (location of the legal entity) of the defendant. Depending on the amount of the claim, the case is under the jurisdiction of a magistrate or district court of general jurisdiction (if the participants in the process are not representatives of business activities). Property disputes with a claim amount not exceeding 50,000 rubles are considered by the World Court, and over fifty thousand - by the district court.

The statement of claim can be divided into the following components:

• introductory _ The header of the document indicates to which court the application was sent, court details, cost of the claim, amount of state duty;
• motivational _ The main part of the claim describes the events that led to the appeal to the court, reveals the evidence base, and makes references to the rules of law;
• pleading . The requirements that are necessary to restore the violated right are indicated. In addition to collecting the amount of the principal debt, it is allowed to indicate demands for the collection of a penalty, reimbursement of the amount of state duty, payment for legal representation and other requirements;
• application and signature of the applicant . Describes the list of documents attached to the statement of claim - written evidence, payment order for payment of state duty, calculation of the amount of claims, agreements on payment of legal services and other documents. After the list of applications, the surname and initials of the applicant (his representative) are indicated and a signature is placed. The signature of the claimant completes the drawing up of the statement of claim.

USEFUL : For more tips on filing a claim, watch the video on YouTube

Pre-trial claim without a contract

If the party to the dispute is an individual, then filing a claim before going to court is not mandatory. If relations without concluding an agreement concern a business entity, then, in accordance with Part 5 of Art. 4 of the Arbitration Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, the pre-trial procedure for resolving a conflict is mandatory; without compliance with it, the court will leave the statement of claim without progress. In any case, to successfully resolve the dispute, it is better not to neglect to forward the claim to the other party. Preparing and submitting a claim, unlike a lawsuit, is a less expensive action for the parties, and may well resolve the dispute that has arisen.

The pre-trial claim is sent by the claimant or his representative to the address of the debtor’s place of residence or the location of the legal entity.

The content of the claim consists of the following main points:

• name of the debtor . Indicate the surname with initials, name of the organization, legal address, TIN, contact information;
• the essence of the requirements . The moment of occurrence of non-contractual relations between the parties, the period of their validity, in connection with which an unfulfilled obligation of the debtor arose;
• the amount of the unfulfilled obligation . It describes exactly what obligation needs to be fulfilled; in case of monetary debt, a detailed calculation of the debt is provided. It is also permissible to calculate the penalty, for example, for the period of using someone else’s money;
• deadline for execution . The final part of the claim indicates the allotted time limit for the claim to be fulfilled (usually within one month), bank account details for transferring the debt, the signature of the claimant, the date of drawing up the pre-trial claim.

The claim is served either by hand, using two copies so that the debtor puts the appropriate mark of receipt on the second copy, or sent by registered mail with return receipt requested by mail or using another courier delivery service. The response to the claim can later be used as additional evidence of the obligation that has arisen.

USEFUL : watch the VIDEO on the rules for filing a claim and write your question in the comments to get free legal advice