How to Make a Professional Receipt (and Produce It in a Few Clicks)

A receipt proves that a payment was made. For your client, it is often the document that lets them get reimbursed by their insurance or claim back sales taxes. It only works if it contains the right information: an incomplete receipt is often refused.

Here is what a professional receipt should contain, and how AssisTime produces it automatically from your invoices.

What a receipt should contain

The basics

• your business name (or your name) and contact information;
• the payment date and, if relevant, the date of service;
• the client's name;
• a description of the service or goods sold;
• the amount paid and the payment method;
• a receipt or invoice number, so it can be traced.

For insurance reimbursement

For massage therapy, osteopathy, kinesiology, psychotherapy and similar services, insurers in Canada generally ask for:

• your name and professional title;
• your membership number and the name of your professional order or association;
• the name and address of the client who received the treatment (never leave the name blank: the receipt would be refused);
• the date of treatment and the type of care;
• the amount paid;
• your signature, unless it is a digital receipt with a unique number.

Check first: requirements vary from one order or association to another, and some associations also provide their own numbered receipts to their members. Confirm with yours what information it requires.

If you charge sales taxes (GST/HST and QST in Canada)

Your business clients need your receipts to claim their input tax credits. The information required depends on the amount of the sale:

These thresholds have applied since April 20, 2021 (they were $30 and $150 before), for both the GST/HST and the QST. Outside Canada, check the rules of your own tax authority.

Receipt or invoice?

An invoice asks for payment; a receipt confirms it was made. An invoice marked "Paid" can serve as proof of payment, but for insurance claims, a receipt with the information above is the safer choice.

Produce your receipts automatically with AssisTime

In AssisTime, you never fill out a receipt by hand: it is produced from the invoice, with your contact information, title, membership number, association details, signature, the reason for the consultation, the amount and, if you are registered, the taxes with your registration numbers. Here is how to set it up.

1 - Your association's information

Open the main menu (at the top of the page), then go to Profile, Profile and business. Look for the Order / Association / Corporation / Group / Other section:

• Check Check to use professional fee receipts;
• enter your association's name, its contact information and, if needed, its logo;
• enter your title and your member number;
• add your signature: upload an image, or sign directly on the screen with your mouse or finger.

Just below, the Detailed receipt option lets you show a breakdown of the services on your receipts (see below). Then click Save at the bottom of the page.

2 - The reason for the consultation

Once receipts are enabled, a Professional fee receipt section is added at the bottom of your invoices. Enter the reason for the consultation there so that a receipt is created:

3 - The receipt

Once the invoice is completed, a Receipt button appears next to the Invoice button:

Click it and your receipt opens as a PDF, with your contact information, your title, your member number, the reason for the consultation, the amount and your association's information:

You can save it, print it or email it to your client.

The detailed receipt

The detailed receipt also lists each service (description, quantity, unit price and applicable taxes). To use it, check the Detailed receipt option in your profile, as shown above:

It's that simple! AssisTime saves you time by producing clear, professional receipts.

Want to produce your receipts this way? Try AssisTime free for one month, with no commitment.

Sources: Canada Revenue Agency, Excise and GST/HST News No. 118 (documentary requirements); Revenu Québec, Preparing invoices.