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Accounting and invoicing for chocolatiers

Pralines, bars, gift boxes and corporate gifts: a manufactory earns before Easter and Christmas, sells in the shop and supplies corporate customers with individual packaging. Saldiqo writes invoices for corporate gifts, issues deposits and records raw materials and packaging as expenses.

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What comes up for chocolatiers

Corporate gifts

Companies order gift boxes with a logo and a greeting card, often with a deposit and a fixed delivery date.

Seasonal peaks

Christmas and Easter carry the yearly turnover. In those weeks nothing should pile up.

Raw materials and packaging

Cocoa, butter, cream, boxes and ribbons are items with fluctuating prices.

How Saldiqo helps

  • Quote with a depositBoxes, personalisation and delivery as lines, deposit on order.
  • Recurring invoice for regularsSaldiqo creates regular deliveries on schedule.
  • Capture receiptsRecord raw materials and packaging with their due date.
  • Season in viewReport per period.

Typical invoice lines

Examples that often appear on invoices in this industry. You set the prices yourself.

  • Gift box with 16 pralines, printed, 120 pieces
  • Personalised greeting card, each
  • Delivery to several addresses
  • Christmas assortment for the office, package
  • Packaging and ribbons as per receipt
  • Deposit 40 % on order

Tax and invoicing in the UK

What applies to invoices in the UK, in short. As of October 2026.

VAT
Standard rate 20 %, reduced rate 5 % and zero rate 0 %. Saldiqo calculates each invoice line with the rate you pick.
VAT registration
You must register once your taxable turnover passes £90,000 over any 12 months, or you expect to pass it within the next 30 days. You can deregister below £88,000. Until you are registered, your invoices show no VAT, and Saldiqo adds up your 12-month turnover for you.
What goes on an invoice
If you are VAT registered: your VAT number, the tax point, unit prices and the VAT total in pounds. A limited company shows its registered name on every invoice, and its company number, registered office and part of the UK on letters, order forms and the website.
E-invoicing
There is no mandate today. From April 2029 e-invoicing is planned for all B2B and B2G sales that carry VAT, through Peppol. The exact date and standard are not yet in law, and the government’s roadmap follows with the Budget on 28 October 2026.
VAT returns
VAT returns go to HMRC through Making Tax Digital, usually quarterly, due one month and seven days after the period. Saldiqo shows sales and VAT per rate and exports CSV. It does not submit to HMRC, and for Making Tax Digital you need software recognised by HMRC.
Record keeping
Keep VAT records for 6 years.
Late payment
Statutory interest on late business payments is the Bank Rate (3.75 % in the second half of 2026) plus 8 points, so 11.75 %. On top comes fixed compensation of £40, £70 or £100, depending on the amount owed (under £1,000, from £1,000, from £10,000). Consumers have no statutory interest.
Getting paid
Your sort code and account number are on every invoice. Customers pay by Faster Payments or Bacs, and banks check the account name with Confirmation of Payee. There is no QR standard in the UK.

Frequently asked questions

How do I bill corporate gifts with a deposit?

With a quote, a deposit invoice on order and a final invoice after delivery.

Does Saldiqo replace the shop till?

No. Saldiqo is not a till system. Sales in the shop belong in a till that meets the rules of your country.

Do chocolatiers in the UK have to charge VAT?

Only once they are VAT registered. Registration is required when taxable turnover passes £90,000 over any 12 months, or is expected to within the next 30 days. Below that you may register voluntarily. If you are not registered, you must not show VAT on your invoices.

Do chocolatiers in the UK need e-invoicing?

Not today. A mandate for B2B and B2G sales with VAT is planned from April 2029, and the details were still open as of October 2026. You can keep sending PDF invoices for now.

How long should chocolatiers keep invoices?

Keep VAT records for 6 years. You can store receipts digitally in Saldiqo. The legal duty to keep records stays with you.

Try Saldiqo for free

Write invoices, match payments, collect receipts and send reminders: free and without a trial period.

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As of October 2026. General information, not legal or tax advice, without guarantee. For your case ask your tax adviser.