Guide
How to chase overdue invoices (with three email templates)
Getting paid shouldn't depend on you remembering. With a fixed reminder schedule and three ready-made emails, chasing payment stops being awkward.
The problem: chasing money feels awkward, so it slips
An invoice falls due, no transfer arrives, and you say nothing so as not to seem pushy. Two weeks pass, then a month, and when you finally write the client has forgotten all about it. For a small business, a few unpaid invoices can be the difference between a calm month-end and a stressful one.
Most late payments aren't bad faith: the invoice got lost, a detail is missing, it's waiting for sign-off or nobody remembered. A timely reminder solves nearly all of them, and a fixed process takes the awkwardness out because it's no longer personal: it's just what happens with every invoice.
How it works with Tessa
- 1
Connect Holded
Tessa sees your company's pending and overdue invoices (integration in beta).
- 2
Write the routine
For example: “Every Monday at 9, remind clients with overdue invoices”. No coding.
- 3
Review the emails
Tessa prepares each reminder with the invoice number, amount and date, and waits for your approval.
- 4
Match the payment
With your bank connected (beta), it spots the transfer that matches each invoice and suggests marking it paid.
What you get
- None slips throughEvery overdue invoice gets its reminder on the right day.
- No writing from scratchEmails go out with each invoice's correct details.
- You set the toneNothing is sent to a client without your approval.
- The company viewThe weekly pulse tells you how much is overdue without opening Holded.
Before it's due: prevent late payment
The best chase is the one you never need. Cut delays from the invoice itself:
- Make the due date and bank details obvious on the invoice and in the email you send it with.
- Check who it should go to: many companies only pay what reaches their accounts inbox.
- If the client needs a PO number or supplier code, include it; without it the invoice stalls.
- For large invoices, send a friendly heads-up a few days before the due date.
The reminder schedule
Set the schedule once and apply it to every invoice, so you don't improvise or depend on the client. A sensible pattern:
- Days 1–3 after the due date: friendly reminder.
- Days 10–15: second reminder, asking for a payment date.
- Day 30: firm notice, with a clear deadline and next step.
- After that: a phone call and, if there's no solution, discuss formal recovery with your adviser.
Template 1: friendly reminder
For the first few days. Assume it's an oversight and make paying easy:
- Subject: Invoice F2026-031 · due 30/09
- “Hi Laura, just a quick note: invoice F2026-031 for €1,210 was due on 30 September and we haven't seen the payment yet. It may well have crossed with this email; I've attached it again with our bank details. If it's already on its way, please ignore this. Thanks!”
Template 2: second reminder
If there's no reply. More direct, asking for a specific date:
- Subject: Second reminder · Invoice F2026-031
- “Hi Laura, following up on invoice F2026-031 for €1,210, due on 30 September. Could you confirm when you expect to pay it? If there's any issue with the invoice (details, amount, PO), let me know and we'll fix it today. Best regards,”
Template 3: firm notice
After a month. Polite, but with a deadline and a clear consequence:
- Subject: Outstanding payment · Invoice F2026-031 · final reminder
- “Hi Laura, invoice F2026-031 for €1,210 is now a month overdue and we haven't heard back on our previous reminders. Please arrange payment by 15 November. If that isn't possible, call me and we'll find a solution, such as paying in instalments. After that date we'll have to pause ongoing work. Best regards,”
Tips for getting paid without losing the client
Separate the person from the problem: the email is about an invoice, not anyone's honesty. Keep everything in the same thread so the history is at hand, quote number, amount and date every time, and offer a way out (instalments, a corrected detail) before hardening your tone. In Spain, Law 3/2004 on late payment sets maximum payment terms between businesses and allows late-payment interest; if it gets that far, check with your adviser before mentioning it. Other countries have their own rules.
How Tessa automates it
With Holded connected, Tessa knows which invoices are overdue and since when. You write a routine in your own words (“every Monday at 9, remind clients with overdue invoices”) and Tessa prepares each email with the invoice's real details, in the right tone for the stage. Emails to clients wait for your approval before going out.
If you also connect your bank (read-only via PSD2, in beta), Tessa matches transfers to invoices and suggests marking the matching one as paid. And each week the company pulse shows how much is outstanding, in company figures, never per person.
What Tessa reads for each person stays private, your data is stored in the EU and nothing goes out without your approval.
Frequently asked questions
When should I chase an overdue invoice?
As soon as possible: a friendly reminder one to three days after the due date fixes most oversights. Waiting weeks just makes the client forget.
How do I chase payment without sounding rude?
Assume it's an oversight, quote the invoice details, attach it again and offer help if something's wrong. Save the firm tone for when there's no reply.
What are the maximum payment terms between businesses in Spain?
Law 3/2004 generally sets 30 days, extendable by agreement to a maximum of 60. There are nuances, so confirm with your adviser.
Does Tessa send reminders automatically?
Tessa prepares them, but emails to clients wait for your approval unless an admin chooses otherwise in the control panel.
Does it work without Holded?
To detect overdue invoices automatically Tessa needs Holded (integration in beta). Without it, you can use these templates and ask Tessa to remind you to follow up.
Keep reading
- IntegrationsBetaHolded with AI: get paid sooner and draft quotes without opening the ERPConnect Holded and Tessa watches overdue invoices, prepares quotes for your approval and matches bank transfers to invoices. Built for Spanish SMEs.
- FeaturesAutomations you write the way you'd say themWrite “every Monday, remind clients with overdue invoices” and Tessa does it every week, with your approval for anything leaving the company.
- IntegrationsBetaYour bank, connected: balances, transactions and reconciliation without spreadsheetsTessa reads balances and transactions read-only and matches them to your Holded invoices: “this transfer looks like F-031”. She can never move money.
- GuidesBank reconciliation for small businesses: what it is and how to do itWhat bank reconciliation is, how often to do it and how to match bank transactions to invoices step by step, plus the tricky cases and how to handle them.
- GuidesHow to automate repetitive tasks without knowing how to codeHow to spot which tasks to automate, write them as “when X happens, do Y” rules and get started without code and without losing control of what gets sent.
What does your team look like?
Same AI for both. Where you start is what changes.
Startups
5 to 30 people
Grow without losing the thread
Tasks from email and Slack, follow-ups, sales and investors, without everything landing on the founders.
Companies
30 to 250 people
What gets decided gets done
Minutes and tasks from every meeting, commitments that get followed up and a pulse per team, without watching anyone.
Connect Holded and let Tessa prepare your payment reminders. Start free.
Start freeFree plan for teams of up to 3 people. Anything that leaves the company waits for your approval.