How to invoice Pro Bono and Lower Cost Services for Clients
Question for anyone who does pro bono or fee reduced counseling services for clients...Should I invoice them for my standard rate and then create a credit for the amount that I am reducing my fee. For example if I charge $140 for my typical service but the client is only paying me $50 do I make a $90 adjustment and apply it to the invoice? Or do I just create an invoice for $50 and have it paid like they normally pay?
Same principle for the pro bono clients. Do I create a $0 invoice or do I need to show that I charged $140 and write off the balance.
I just want my books to be consistent and correct across the board with respect to all my clients. Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
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I provide a sliding scale fee structure to my client's who are in need of financial accommodations. Whichever rate applies to their income level is the rate I bill them for. I do not bill my standard rate w/ discount to meet the agreed upon rate. I don't believe there is a right or wrong way to do this but more so therapist/agency preference. I think for me it seems to be more work to add an additional line item (ie discount) instead of just assigning an agreed upon rate for that specific client.
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I'm not sure of best practices for this, but what I ended up doing was creating a service titled "Pro Bono" and made it a "cash rate" payment for "$0". My understanding is that since services provided cannot be considered charitable donations, it made more sense to me to not include it as a write off or donation.
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