Why it matters
Most overdue invoices are not disputes. They are forgotten. A polite nudge on a schedule gets most of them paid without anyone making the awkward call.
Xero has basic reminders built in, and our free guide shows how to turn them on. This flow goes further: the tone steps up as the invoice ages, it knows about the job behind the invoice, and the ones still unpaid after 30 days land on your list with the history attached.
How it works
- An invoice in Xero goes past its due date.
- Reminders go at about 7, 14 and 30 days overdue, each one a little firmer, in your wording.
- After the last reminder, the invoice lands on your list with the job details and every message sent.
- The moment it is paid in Xero, the reminders stop.
Where AI is used, and where it isn’t
- AI: Optional. AI can draft a personal note for the invoices that reach your list, for you to edit before it goes.
- Plain rules: The schedule, the wording at each stage, which customers are skipped, and stopping the moment Xero shows it paid.
You approve anything a customer sees before the flow goes live, and the flow runs in your own accounts.
What changes day to day
You write the wording once and pick the days. From then on, the only overdue invoice you think about is the one still unpaid after the last reminder, and that one genuinely needs a call.
This is for you if
- You have a pile of “just following up” emails you keep meaning to send.
- Cash comes in whenever it comes in.
- Chasing feels awkward, so it slides down the list.
Worth knowing
- Reminders only work if invoices carry the right due date and email address. Fix that first.
- Keep the early reminders warm. A first nudge that reads like a debt collector costs you more than the wait.
- Leave regular accounts that pay on their own cycle off the schedule. You know which ones.
This is an illustrative example. It describes a flow we would build, not a client’s results. If you go ahead, we measure your own before and after.
Go deeper: Turn on automatic invoice reminders in Xero