Import a client's bills
This article explains how to import a client’s bills into FreeAgent.
If you or your client doesn’t want to create each individual bill manually, you can bulk upload several at once for them as a .CSV file.
You should only import the client’s bills if they’re dated on or after their FreeAgent start date. If the client’s bills are dated before their FreeAgent start date, they should be imported as part of their opening balances instead, as opening trade creditor balances against the contacts.
Please note:
- FreeAgent’s bill importer is currently only available to accountants or bookkeepers who are Practice Partners.
- You need to format the .CSV file before you can upload it into FreeAgent.
- You can upload a maximum of 1,000 rows on a single import. If you have more than 1,000 to upload, you'll need to split them over multiple imports.
- If you enter a bill for the purchase of a capital asset, you'll need to either use the complete template or add a 'description' column to the simple template and enter a name for the asset. The bill will have straight line depreciation applied and an asset life of three years. To change this, you’ll need to edit the bill after it’s been imported.
Before you start
Before importing your client’s bills, it’s important to make sure the following details are in your client’s account:
- correct accounting dates (the client’s bills must be dated on or after their FreeAgent start date)
- VAT registration details (if the client is registered for VAT)
- CIS contractor details (if the client is a contractor)
- contacts for the client’s customers and suppliers
- projects (if any of the bills relate to a project)
- properties (if your client has an unincorporated landlord account)
Unsupported bills
The following types of bills are unable to be imported and need to be entered manually instead:
- Recurring bills
- Bills for EC goods or services
- Bills with reverse charge VAT
- Bills for the purchase of stock
- Bills for hire purchase agreements
- Bills that have secondary sales tax rates (non-UK account types only)
1. Switch to the client’s account
Log in to your Practice Dashboard and select ‘Switch to’ beside the relevant client to access their account.
2. Navigate to the Bills area
Navigate to the 'Bills' tab at the top of the screen.
3. Download and fill in the bills template
Select ‘Import bills’.
You'll be prompted to download one of our bill templates.
The simple template should cover most imports but if you have additional fields you would like to include, such as foreign currencies, projects and/or CIS deductions, you can either add the extra column names that you need to the simple template, or use the complete template as your starting point.
How to fill in our bills templates
The tables below shows you how to fill in the simple and complete templates.
Each bill must have at least one row but if you want to capture multiple line items in a single bill, these should follow directly under the first row for that bill. You won’t need to enter the total amount, as FreeAgent will calculate this based on the total value of each line and its VAT details (if applicable).
Please note:
- some fields such as project, property and category, must exactly match what they are named in FreeAgent
- when using the simple template, bills will be imported with the ‘Auto’ VAT rate applied to the category
- when including a value, enter amounts as plain numbers only, without currency symbols or commas (for example, 1250.00, not £1,250.00)
Simple template
| Column name | What to enter | Example | Required? |
| Bill details | |||
| contact | The name of the FreeAgent contact this bill is from. This will match to the organisation or first name and last name. It is not case sensitive and will pick the first match it finds. | Fez Consulting Ltd | Yes |
| reference | Reference number for the bill. | FC001 | Yes |
| dated_on |
The date of the bill. This must be in DD/MM/YYYY format, regardless of the date format in your FreeAgent account. |
25/06/2026 | Yes |
| property | The property which the bill relates to. It should exactly match the first line of the address in FreeAgent. Please note that this is for unincorporated landlord accounts only. | 11 Easy Breezy Lane | Yes for unincorporated landlord accounts only. |
| Line item details | |||
| Category |
Enter the name or nominal code of your accounting category. If the code begins with 0 or 00, make sure these are included. If you enter a capital asset purchase category, the bill will have straight line depreciation applied and an asset life of three years. To change this, you’ll need to edit the bill after it’s been imported. |
Materials | Yes |
| total_value | The total value of all items within this line. If you would like to enter VAT-exclusive amounts, please use the complete template details below. | 20.25 | Yes |
| quantity | The number of units you’re being billed for. This must be a positive number. | 5 | If left blank, the quantity will default to 1. |
Complete template
| Column name | What to enter | Example | Required? |
| Bill details | |||
| contact | The name of the FreeAgent contact this invoice is for. This will match to the organisation or first name and last name. It is not case sensitive and will pick the first match it finds | Fez Consulting Ltd | Yes |
| reference | Reference number for the bill. | FC001 | Yes |
| property | The property which the bill relates to. It should exactly match the first line of the address in FreeAgent. Please note that this is for unincorporated landlord accounts only. | 11 Easy Breezy Lane | Yes for unincorporated landlord accounts only. |
| dated_on |
The date of the bill. This must be in DD/MM/YYYY format, regardless of the date format in your FreeAgent account. |
25/06/2026 | Yes |
| due_on | The date the bill is due to be paid. This must be in DD/MM/YYYY format, regardless of the date format in your FreeAgent account. | 25/06/2026 | If not provided, we’ll use 30 days after the bill date entered in dated_on field as the due date. |
| currency | The 3-character ISO code for the currency the bill is in. | GBP | If not provided, we will use your FreeAgent account's native currency. |
| comments | Space for additional information. | Bill for work completed in June. | No |
| Line item details | |||
| Category |
Enter the name or nominal code of your accounting category. If the code begins with 0 or 00, make sure these are included. This will be used to determine the VAT unless you’ve entered a manual_sales_tax_amount, sales_tax_rate or the sales_tax_status is ‘Exempt’ or ‘Out of scope’. For CIS bills, you must enter either the nominal code or the name, of the following CIS categories:
For example, ‘096’ or ‘CIS Accommodation and Meals’. |
Materials | Yes |
| description | Information about the line item. | Materials for work completed | No, unless for a capital asset purchase. |
| total_value | The total VAT-inclusive value of all items within this line. Please note that the value of a bill refund must be entered with a minus sign in front of it. | 25 | Yes, or use total value_ex_tax. |
| total_value_ex_tax | The total VAT-exclusive value of all items within this line. Please note that the value of a bill refund must be entered with a minus sign in front of it. | 20 | Yes, or use total_value. |
| manual_sales_tax_amount | Enter a manual VAT amount. This must be a positive number. | 10.00 | Only if you want to enter the VAT as an amount rather than a rate. |
| sales_tax_rate | Enter the rate of VAT for the line item. For example, ‘20’ or ‘0’. | 20 | If left blank and no sales_tax_status is specified, the rate will be determined by the category. |
| sales_tax_status | Leave blank unless the line item is exempt or out of scope of VAT, in which case enter ‘Exempt’ or ‘Out_of_scope’. | EXEMPT | If left blank and no sales_tax_rate is specified, the status will be determined by the category. This field will override anything entered in the sales_tax_rate field. |
| unit |
The units you are being billed for. You can leave blank if you want 'no unit' or choose between:
|
Hours | If left blank, ‘no unit’ will be selected for the item type on the bill. |
| quantity | The number of units you’re being billed for. This must be a positive number. | 5 | If left blank, the quantity will default to 1. |
| project |
The name of the project this bill is to be allocated to. This must match exactly with the project's name in FreeAgent. If the bill is for the purchase of a capital asset, it won’t be possible to link it to a project. |
Business Strategy | If left blank, no project will be assigned to the bill. |
CIS bill example
To import a CIS bill, you need to make sure a CIS category(s) is selected as demonstrated below. Please note that you'll need to set up CIS and add the CIS subcontractor contact before importing the bill.
| contact | reference | dated_on | category | total_value |
| Fez Consulting Ltd | FC001 | 30/06/2026 | CIS Labour | 300 |
| Fez Consulting Ltd | FC001 | 30/06/2026 | CIS Materials | 100 |
| Fez Consulting Ltd | FC001 | 30/06/2026 | CIS Accommodation and Meals | 50 |
This will import a bill that has three line items.
4. Import your client’s bills
Once you've finished entering the billing data, save the template as a .CSV file.
Select the CSV file you want to import and then select ‘Upload’.
5. Review the imported bills
Once the upload is complete, review your newly added bills.
If you realise you've made an error, you can edit a bill or filter the bills by ‘Last import’ and undo the import.
You can delete bills that are in unpaid if there’s no account lock in place. If there’s a payment attached to a bill, you’ll need to remove the transaction explaining the bill as paid from your account before you can edit or delete it. If the bill was paid via Payit, please follow these steps instead before you can edit or delete it.