Weekday mornings
Babara sends at 9:30 in your timezone, and one switch in Settings holds weekend reminders until Monday. Emails that arrive first thing get read first.
Guide · 4 minute read
When to send a payment reminder
Send the first payment reminder 3 days before the due date, then on the due date, 3 days late, 7 days late, 14 days late and a final notice at 21 days. Each one gets clearer, never ruder. Stop the moment they pay or reply, and send them on weekday mornings.
- 1. 3 days before due
Friendly heads-up
A friendly heads-up while there’s still time to schedule the payment. Most late invoices are forgotten, not refused.
Subject: Quick heads-up: invoice #1042 is due Friday
- 2. On the due date
Due today
A short note on the day it’s due, with the pay link or bank details right there.
Subject: Invoice #1042 is due today
- 3. 3 days late
Gentle nudge
Three days is enough for a weekend or a busy week to pass. Assume it slipped and make paying easy.
Subject: Did invoice #1042 slip through the cracks?
- 4. 7 days late
Clear follow-up
A week late, ask plainly whether anything is holding it up: an approval, a purchase order, the wrong inbox.
Subject: Following up on invoice #1042
- 5. 14 days late
Firm reminder
Two weeks late, ask for a date. Say when you’ll follow up next, and keep it polite.
Subject: Invoice #1042: can we sort this out this week?
- 6. 21 days late
Final notice
Three weeks late, set one clear deadline and say calmly what happens next (late fees, interest or a formal letter).
Subject: Final reminder for invoice #1042
This is the schedule Babara uses for every invoice, and you can change any step. Need the words too? Each step’s full email is in our payment reminder templates; how late it is decides the tone in the overdue invoice email guide.
Calendar or checklist
Put the six reminders in your calendar
Pick when the invoice is due. You get a calendar file with all six reminders on the right days, each with its subject line and email, or the same dates as a checklist.
First reminder 12 November, final notice 6 December.
Timing
Four rules for the timing
Stop when they answer
A reply, a promised date or a payment ends the sequence. Nothing makes a good client grumpier than a reminder after they paid.
Short terms, shorter gaps
On 7-day terms, skip the heads-up and start on the due date. On 60-day terms with a big company, send the heads-up a week early so it reaches accounts in time.
Two days apart at least
Never email the same client twice within 48 hours. If a reminder and a reply cross, wait for the next step.
Still unpaid after the final notice? Follow what to do with an unpaid invoice, work out the late payment interest you can add, or send a demand letter. In the UK, the Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act sets when interest starts.
Free tool · no sign-up
Write the first reminder now
Start with the heads-up, or pick any step. Copy it into any email, or let Babara send all six on schedule.
Your email appears here
Pick how late the invoice is and the tone you want. Babara writes a short, human reminder you can paste into any email.
Before you start
Good questions
When should I send the first payment reminder?
About 3 days before the due date. It catches invoices that were never scheduled for payment, while there is still time to pay on time.
How many payment reminders should I send?
Six is plenty: a heads-up, one on the due date, then at 3, 7, 14 and 21 days late. If the invoice is still unpaid after the final notice, move to a formal letter rather than more emails.
How long after the due date should I send a reminder?
Three days late is a good first follow-up. It allows for a weekend or a busy week, without letting the invoice slip into next month.
When can I charge interest on a late invoice in the UK?
Between businesses, statutory interest and fixed compensation can be claimed from the day after the agreed due date, or 30 days after the client received the invoice when no date was agreed (Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998).
Should I send reminders at the weekend?
Usually not. Weekday mornings get read and paid; weekend emails sit under Monday’s pile. In Babara, switch on “Don’t email clients at weekends” and those reminders wait until Monday.
Can I get this schedule as a calendar?
Yes. Pick your invoice’s due date on this page and download a calendar file (.ics) with all six reminders, or a checklist as Word or PDF.
Sources
Keep reading
Unpaid invoice: what to do, day 1 to day 60The steps in order, with the email, the interest and the demand letter for each.How to ask for payment politelyWhen to send each reminder, and word-for-word scripts.Polite ways to say “please pay”20 phrases for every stage, from heads-up to final reminder.Overdue invoice email5 templates from 1 to 45+ days late, plus subject lines that get opened.Final payment reminderWhat it must say, 3 templates, and what to do after.Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act (UK)Interest, the £40/£70/£100 compensation and when it applies, in plain English.Demand letter for payment (US)Free generator, 3 sample letters and small claims limits.Invoice software for freelancersAn honest roundup with prices, free plans and reminders, each fact dated.Quote and invoice software without the spreadsheetSave items once, quote from them, invoice in one click.Late payment interest calculatorUK, euro area, Germany, France and Netherlands rules.
Invoice and reminder templates for designers, photographers, developers, copywriters and content writers, videographers and video producers, contractors and consultants.
Consider the awkward part handled
Let Babara send all six for you
You start each invoice. Babara sends every reminder on time, stops when they pay or reply, and every evening you see tomorrow’s emails.
Start freeYour clients won’t know what hit them. (A very polite email.) Free for your first 3 invoices.