Use receipt photographs for private cost evidence and job photos for work evidence. Check every suggested receipt detail, link the item to the right job, and deliberately choose any job photo that should appear on a customer PDF.
Receipt photo or job photo?
A receipt photograph records a business purchase. A job photo records the work, site or result. Keeping the two types separate prevents a supplier receipt from appearing in customer paperwork by mistake.
- Receipts stay private. They do not appear on customer PDFs.
- Job photos start private. They only appear on a customer PDF when you select them.
- Photo allowances vary by plan, so the app shows the allowance that applies to your account.
Check receipt suggestions
SayInvoice can suggest the supplier, purchase date, category, total and VAT from a receipt photograph. It is a helpful starting point, not an accounting decision. Check the image against every suggested value and correct anything uncertain before confirming it.
Link each cost to the right place
Link materials or other job-specific costs to the matching customer job. Use a general business cost when the purchase belongs to the business rather than one customer. This makes the record easier to understand later without forcing every purchase into a job.
Use the three simple states
- Needs sorting: the item still needs details or a decision.
- Uploading: the photograph is still syncing securely.
- Completed: the item has the information you confirmed.
Deal with Needs sorting little and often, instead of leaving every receipt until month-end.
Choose customer photos deliberately
A clear before-and-after photo can support the work described on a quote or invoice. Select only useful job photos, check that they show nothing private, then preview the PDF before choosing how to share it. Unselected photos stay out of the customer document. You complete the final send in the app you choose; SayInvoice does not confirm that the customer received, opened or read it.
Fix a photo that could not sync
Open History → Photos & Costs → Uploading, open the affected item and choose Retry sync. Keep the app open on a reliable connection and stay signed in until any device-only photos finish uploading.
Prepare evidence for your accountant
The current accountant pack is invoice-only. After you review attention items, it can include a workbook with VAT, expected CIS, deposit, payment, confirmed-cost and attention checks, plus matching invoice PDFs and confirmed receipt photographs. Expected CIS figures use the rate and labour/material values you confirm; SayInvoice does not verify subcontractors or decide whether CIS applies. Check the current official GOV.UK CIS deduction guidance and verify the figures before use. The pack does not submit VAT or CIS returns, make MTD submissions, file with HMRC, create structured e-invoices, or replace professional tax advice.