InvoiceFlow for Recruitment Agencies: Complete Billing Guide

The invoicing system built for recruitment agencies, executive search firms, staffing agencies, and independent recruiters

Recruitment agency billing covers retained search three-part milestone invoices, contingency placement with guarantee documentation, weekly contract staffing with markup, and enterprise PO fields. InvoiceFlow handles all of these from one Android app.

Retained Search Milestone Invoices

Retained search uses three separate invoices — one per milestone:

Invoice 1 — Engagement Fee: “Retained Search — Engagement Fee — [Company Name] — [Date]: Position: [Job Title] — [Department] Search scope: [Brief description of requirements] Fee basis: [%]% of first-year base salary (estimated: [%]% × $[Salary] = $[Total Fee]) Engagement fee (⅓, due at search commencement): $18,000.00 Search fee (⅓, due at finalist presentation): $18,000.00 (invoiced separately) Placement fee (⅓, due at start date): $18,000.00 (invoiced separately) Search reference: SR-[Year]-[Number] Guarantee: [N]-day replacement guarantee if candidate departs for non-performance Payment Terms: Net-15”

Invoice 2 — Finalist Presentation: “Retained Search — Finalist Presentation — [Company Name] — [Date]: Position: [Job Title] | Search Reference: SR-[Year]-[Number] Milestone: Finalist presentation — [N] qualified candidates Search fee (⅓ per retained agreement): $18,000.00 Previously invoiced: $18,000.00 (engagement fee, paid [Date]) Total invoiced: $36,000.00 of $54,000.00 Payment Terms: Net-15”

Invoice 3 — Placement: “Retained Search — Placement — [Company Name] — [Date]: Position: [Job Title] | Search Reference: SR-[Year]-[Number] Start date: [Date] Placement fee (⅓ per retained agreement): $18,000.00 Total invoiced: $54,000.00 of $54,000.00 — search complete Guarantee: [N]-day replacement guarantee in effect from start date Payment Terms: Net-15”

Contingency Placement Invoices

Invoice Flow app invoice editor of a recruiter — a 22% permanent placement fee with candidate start date, salary and a 90-day guarantee period in custom fields — The placement fee with start date, salary and the 90-day guarantee — documented the moment it happens.

Full fee on start date with guarantee calculation documented:

“Contingency Placement — [Company Name] — [Date]: Position: [Job Title] Start date: [Date] | First-year base salary: $95,000.00 Placement fee ([%]% contingency rate): $23,750.00 Guarantee: [N]-day prorated replacement guarantee Guarantee calculation: If candidate departs within [N] days, fee credit = (days remaining ÷ [N]) × $23,750.00 Payment Terms: Net-15”

The guarantee calculation on the invoice prevents disputes about how a partial refund is calculated if the guarantee is triggered.

Contract and Temp Staffing Invoices

Invoice Flow app documents of a recruitment agency — a permanent placement fee, a retained-search tranche, a weekly temp-staffing invoice and paid work — Permanent fees, retained tranches, weekly temp billing — every model on one screen.

Weekly billing with markup calculation visible:

“Contract Staffing — [Company Name] — Week of [Date]: Contractor: [Name] | Assignment: [Job Title] | Client site: [Location] Hours: [N] hours × $87.75/hour (bill rate) Bill rate calculation: Contractor rate $65.00 + agency markup $22.75 (35%) = $87.75/hour Total: $[Amount] Payment Terms: Net-7”

Document the markup calculation every week. Clients who can see the markup calculation don’t ask about it. Clients who can’t ask about it frequently.

Corporate Client Invoices with PO Fields

Invoice Flow app recurring invoices of a recruiter — a weekly temp-staffing invoice for warehouse associates by the hour — The temp desk bills itself weekly — hours in, invoice out, no manual recreation.

Enterprise clients with procurement departments:

“Executive Search — [Company Name] — [Date]: Position: [C-Suite/Senior Title] | Search Reference: SR-[Year]-CORP-[Number] [Engagement/Search/Placement] fee: $[Amount] PO Number: [PO Number] Cost Center: [Cost Center Code] Billing Contact: [Name, Talent Acquisition] Payment Terms: Net-30”

What InvoiceFlow Does for Recruitment Agencies

Retained search milestone invoices: three separate invoices with running total tracking
Contingency placement invoices: guarantee calculation documented on the invoice
Contract staffing weekly invoices: bill rate with markup calculation visible
Corporate PO fields: PO number, cost center, billing contact, net-30
Payment tracking: outstanding amounts by client, search, and placement

Getting Started

Build three retained search invoice templates (engagement, finalist, placement) with search reference fields
Create a contingency placement template with guarantee calculation formula
Set up a weekly contract staffing template with markup calculation documentation
Add corporate custom fields (PO number, cost center) for enterprise clients
Define your standard fee percentages and guarantee terms for each billing type

Download InvoiceFlow. Build the retained search three-invoice structure first. Set up the guarantee calculation on contingency invoices. Document the markup on contract staffing. The billing structure of a professional search firm is precise — InvoiceFlow supports the precision.

InvoiceFlow is a free invoicing app for Android, designed for independent professionals and small business owners.