Accounting and invoicing for courier services
Express runs, regular rounds for pharmacies and practices, special trips and collective invoices: couriers drive many single jobs for a few regular clients. Saldiqo writes collective invoices per client and month, records vehicle, fuel and insurance and shows which rounds pay off.
What comes up for courier services
Many small trips, one invoice
A client has 80 trips a month. They want one invoice with a statement.
Fixed rounds
Pharmacies, labs and practices are served daily at fixed prices.
Vehicle and insurance
Fuel, maintenance, tolls and insurance decide the margin.
How Saldiqo helps
- Collective invoice per monthTrips as lines.
- Fixed rounds as a recurring invoiceMonthly flat fee on schedule.
- Cost centre per roundIncome and costs per round.
- Record vehiclesReceipts for fuel and maintenance.
Typical invoice lines
Examples that often appear on invoices in this industry. You set the prices yourself.
- Express run within town, as per job slip
- Pharmacy round, November, 22 days
- Special trip at the weekend
- Waiting time, hours
- Tolls re-invoiced as per receipt
- Credit note: trip billed twice
Tax and invoicing in Malta
What applies to invoices in Malta, in short. As of October 2026.
- VAT
- Rates 18 %, 12 %, 7 % and 5 %. Malta has no zero rate in law. Exports, EU supplies, food and medicines are exempt with credit, which lets you reclaim input VAT. Exempt without credit does not.
- Article 11 small undertakings
- With up to €35,000 of domestic turnover a year you can be exempt under Article 11. The status ends on the day the limit is passed, and you still register with the VAT department. Saldiqo adds the exemption note and leaves VAT off.
- Tax invoice or fiscal receipt
- A tax invoice is issued only when the customer gives you a VAT number. Otherwise a fiscal receipt from an approved system is required. Saldiqo writes invoices. It is not a fiscal receipt system, and a Saldiqo PDF does not replace a fiscal receipt.
- Invoice timing
- Issue the invoice by the 15th of the following month, or when payment arrives if that comes first. Simplified invoices are allowed up to €100.
- E-invoicing
- There is no mandate. Public bodies accept e-invoices through Peppol (EN 16931). The tax authority plans e-invoicing and real-time reporting but has set no dates, and EU rules apply from 1 July 2030.
- VAT returns
- Returns are due by the 15th day of the second month after the period, with 7 extra days when you file and pay electronically. Article 11 businesses file a yearly declaration by 15 February. Saldiqo does not file returns.
- Record keeping
- VAT records for 6 years, income tax records for 9 years and company records for 10 years. Plan for 10 years.
- Late payment
- Interest on late business payments is 10.40 %, plus €40 compensation between businesses.
- Languages
- Use Saldiqo in English or Maltese and send invoices in either language.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write a collective invoice?
You create a job with all trips as lines and create the monthly invoice from it.
Can I bill fixed rounds automatically?
Yes. A recurring invoice creates the invoice on a fixed date.
Do courier services in Malta have to charge VAT?
If you are registered under Article 10, yes. Small undertakings under Article 11 with domestic turnover of up to €35,000 a year are exempt from charging VAT, but the status ends on the day the limit is passed.
Do courier services in Malta need a fiscal receipt?
Sales to consumers need a fiscal receipt from an approved fiscal receipt system, and Article 11 businesses use one for all sales. Saldiqo is not such a system. It covers tax invoices to customers who give you their VAT number.
How long should courier services keep invoices?
VAT records for 6 years, income tax records for 9 years and company records for 10 years, so plan for 10 years. You can store receipts digitally in Saldiqo. The legal duty to keep records stays with you.
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As of October 2026. General information, not legal or tax advice, without guarantee. For your case ask your tax adviser.