Shopify Invoices: How to Create, Send and Record Them in Canada

Table of contents

1. What counts as a "Shopify invoice"
2. Comparison: every way to produce a Shopify invoice
3. Method 1: Order Printer invoices
4. Method 2: Send an invoice from a draft order
5. Order confirmation emails versus a true invoice
6. Packing slips
7. B2B payment terms and plans
8. What a Canadian invoice for an online order should show
9. Tax-inclusive pricing, refunds and partial refunds
10. Bookkeeping: reconciling orders, payouts and fees
11. How BankDeMark Command fits
12. Shopify invoicing checklist
13. 30/60/90-day plan
14. FAQ
15. Related resources

What counts as a "Shopify invoice"

"Shopify invoice" can mean three different documents:

• A copy of a sale that already happened. The customer paid at checkout and wants an invoice for their records. This is a printable or PDF document generated from the order.
• A request for payment. You agreed a sale by phone or email and need something the customer can pay. In Shopify this is a draft order invoice.
• A wholesale invoice with terms. A business customer orders now and pays later. In Shopify this is handled by B2B payment terms.

Each need has a different native tool. Shopify's own bill to you for apps and subscriptions is a separate thing and out of scope here.

Comparison: every way to produce a Shopify invoice

The short version: Order Printer for copies, draft orders for collecting payment, B2B terms for wholesale credit. Everything else is either a notification, a fulfillment document or a bookkeeping record.

Method 1: Order Printer invoices

Shopify's Order Printer app lets you "print and customize invoices, packing slips, pick lists, and other documents" according to the Shopify Help Center. It is the closest native match to "give me an invoice for this order".

How to print an invoice for one order

From the printing documents guide:

1. In the Shopify admin, go to Orders and click the order.
2. Click More actions, then Print with Order Printer.
3. In the Document section, select the invoice template.
4. Click Print documents.
5. To get a PDF to email, choose your browser's "Save as PDF" option in the print dialog. Shopify notes that your browser's print function is used, so saving as PDF happens there.

How to print invoices in bulk

1. Go to Orders and use the checkboxes to select orders.
2. Open the menu of extra actions and click Print with Order Printer.
3. Select the documents and click Print documents.

Shopify says you can print up to 50 orders at a time with Order Printer.

How to edit the invoice template

Templates use HTML, CSS and Liquid variables, per the template customization guide:

1. Go to Apps > Order Printer, then click Templates.
2. Click the template you want to change.
3. Edit the code. Liquid variables pull in order data; HTML controls the layout.
4. Click Preview to check the result, then Save.

Because templates accept custom HTML, fixed text such as your legal business name, your GST/HST registration number and your payment terms can be typed straight into the template so it appears on every invoice. Shopify's Liquid variables and filters reference lists the order fields you can pull in.

Limits to know

• Order Printer does not email the invoice. You send the PDF yourself.
• It reflects the order as it is now. If you print after a refund, check how the template shows refunded amounts (see refunds), and keep a copy of anything you send.

Method 2: Send an invoice from a draft order

When you need to get paid, not just document a sale, use a draft order. Shopify's sending invoices for draft orders page describes the flow.

Step by step (desktop)

1. In the Shopify admin, go to Orders > Drafts.
2. Open an existing draft order or click Create order, then add products, the customer and any discounts.
3. In the Payments section, click Send invoice.
4. Enter your invoice message.
5. Optional: set the product pricing lock, allow discount codes, or ignore checkout validation rules.
6. Click Review invoice, check it, then click Send invoice.

What happens next

The customer receives an email with a checkout link. Shopify says the customer can use the link "to enter billing information, select a shipping method, and submit payment". When they pay, "the draft order becomes an order in the Orders page and is automatically marked as Paid."

Pitfalls Shopify flags

• Add contact details first. If the draft has no email or phone number, the order confirmation won't be sent, and you can't send it later.
• Don't mark it paid early. Marking a draft as paid before the money arrives can stop the invoice link from working.
• Stock blocks checkout. If an item is out of stock, the customer can't complete the sale until you restock and reserve it.
• Drafts expire. Draft orders created on or after 1 April 2025 are deleted after one year of inactivity; any edit resets the timer.
• Currency and terms. If payment terms are set and the draft is in a currency other than your store currency, you generally can't send an invoice; you can only charge a card or mark it as paid.

A draft order invoice is a payment request with a checkout. If your customer also needs a formal invoice with your GST/HST number on it, print one from Order Printer once the order is paid.

Order confirmation emails versus a true invoice

Every online order triggers an automatic confirmation. Shopify's order confirmation numbers page says the email "is sent to your customer with the order number and a link to the order." You can edit customer notifications, including branding and Liquid variables, under the notifications settings.

It is useful, but it is not labelled as an invoice and only carries your GST/HST number if you add it to the template. You can add your registration number and business details to the confirmation template. Keep Order Printer for customers who ask for a formal invoice, because a business buyer's bookkeeper will usually look for a document titled "Invoice".

Packing slips

A packing slip is a fulfillment document, not a billing document. Shopify's packing slips guide describes it as listing the package's items with shipping and billing addresses, SKU numbers and quantities.

• Print one: open the order and print the packing slip from the order details page.
• Print many: select orders in the orders list and print in bulk.
• Customize: packing slips use Liquid code, which "lets you control the layout, styling, and data that appears on your packing slips."

Keep packing slips and invoices separate. If you edit the slip template, check what it shows before using it for gift orders, where the recipient may not be the buyer; the invoice goes to the buyer.

B2B payment terms and plans

For wholesale customers who pay after ordering, Shopify B2B adds payment terms. According to Shopify's B2B plan features page, B2B is available on the Basic, Grow, Advanced and Shopify Plus plans, and "Shopify B2B isn't available on the Starter or Retail plans." Net payment terms are included on all four plans that have B2B.

Available terms

From Shopify's payment terms page:

How collection works

• Set terms in Customers > Companies on the company or location, or on a draft order.
• Buyers can pay any time before the due date by signing in, opening the order and clicking Pay now. After the due date the order shows as Overdue.
• Shopify does not capture payment automatically when terms expire. You capture it yourself, for example by charging a saved card in the admin.
• Plus-only features: deposit requirements, partial payments and payment requests per fulfillment are available only on Shopify Plus, per the plan features page.

For bookkeeping, a net-terms order is a sale you have made but not yet been paid for. Track it as a receivable until the payment lands.

What a Canadian invoice for an online order should show

We cover the full rules in GST/HST invoice requirements in Canada. The short version, from the CRA's guide RC4022:

• Under $100: your business or trading name, the invoice date, and the total paid or payable.
• $100 to $499.99: add the total GST/HST charged (or a statement that the price includes it at the applicable rate) and your GST/HST registration number.
• $500 or more: add the buyer's name, a brief description of the goods, and the payment terms.

Build the $500+ fields into your Order Printer template once so every invoice meets the strictest tier. The rate depends on the province the goods ship to; the linked guide has the rate table.

Canada note on records: the CRA says businesses generally must keep required records and supporting documents for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to, kept in Canada unless the CRA gives permission otherwise (CRA: how long to keep records). Shopify's admin is not a substitute for your own archive; export or record your sales somewhere you control.

Tax-inclusive pricing, refunds and partial refunds

Tax-inclusive pricing

By default, Shopify shows prices without tax and adds tax at checkout. To include tax in prices, go to Settings > Taxes and duties and select Include sales tax in product price and shipping rate (Shopify Help Center). Shopify then backs the tax out of the price using:

Tax = (Tax Rate × Price) / (1 + Tax Rate)

Shopify's example: a $100 price at 10% tax splits into $9.09 tax and $90.91 product. Shopify adds that "Setting up your prices to include taxes doesn't affect your tax reporting."

What this means for the invoice record: the customer paid one number, but your books need the split. An invoice for a tax-inclusive sale of $100 or more should either show the GST/HST amount or state that the price includes GST/HST at the applicable rate, per RC4022. Revenue in your books is the product portion, not the full amount, because the tax portion belongs to the government.

Refunds and partial refunds

Refunds happen on the original order. Per Shopify's refunding orders guide:

1. Go to Orders, open the order and click Refund.
2. Enter the quantities to refund and, optionally, restocking, shipping or duty details.
3. Choose the refund method and amount in the Summary section, then click Refund.

Things that affect your records:

• You can issue several partial refunds up to the original total. After one, the order status changes to Partially refunded.
• The Send a notification to the customer option is selected by default; deselect it if you don't want the refund email sent.

The invoice record after a refund

The original sale did happen, so the cleanest record keeps the original invoice unchanged and records the refund as a separate adjustment dated when it happened. In Canada, when you refund or credit the GST/HST on returned goods, the CRA's GST/HST in special cases page explains:

• You can adjust, refund or credit the GST/HST you first charged, and deduct it in working out your net tax.
• If you keep part of the price as a restocking charge, you refund only the matching share of the GST/HST.
• A credit note must indicate it is a credit note and show your business name and business number, the customer's name, the date issued, and the tax adjusted (or a statement that the total includes it, with the rate).
• You have four years from the end of the reporting period in which you reduced the price to make the adjustment.

If a business customer needs a formal credit note, issue one separately with the fields above.

Bookkeeping: reconciling orders, payouts and fees

Orders and bank deposits never match one-to-one. A single payout bundles many orders, minus fees and refunds, sometimes with reserves or adjustments. Reconciliation is the job of proving that sales minus deductions equals what reached your bank.

Where the numbers live (Shopify Payments)

• Payouts: go to Finance > Payouts. Each payout shows its status, amount, destination account, bank reference number when available, and "a breakdown of charges, refunds, adjustments, fees, reserves, and retried payouts" (Shopify Help Center).
• Per-payout export: open a payout and click the export icon, then Export payout transactions. The CSV has a fee column and a net column, and includes only that payout's transactions, which makes it the natural tool for matching one bank deposit. Shopify emails the file to you.
• Activity report: under Finance > Documents, the Shopify Payments activity report shows gross, fees and net by activity type, with starting and ending balances (Shopify Help Center). Shopify cautions that it has a three-day data delay, excludes third-party processors and Shopify billing fees, and "isn't a statement of revenue for accounting purposes."

A reconciliation method that works

1. Start from the bank. List each Shopify deposit in the period.
2. Match each deposit to a payout using the amount and bank reference number.
3. Export that payout's transactions and total the gross, fees and net. The net total should equal the deposit.
4. Record three things, not one: gross sales (with GST/HST split out), refunds, and processing fees as an expense. Recording only the net deposit understates both revenue and costs.
5. Handle other gateways separately. Third-party processors settle on their own schedules and are not in the Shopify Payments reports.
6. Watch timing. Sales are recorded when they happen; deposits when they land, which may be the next month.
7. Check your margin. Fees and refunds come off profit; the profit margin calculator shows the effect. Leave GST/HST collected out of revenue.

How BankDeMark Command fits

BankDeMark Command is bookkeeping software. It can turn paid Shopify orders into invoice records for your books. To be precise about what it does and does not do:

• Only Command does this. BankDeMark Invoice does not import Shopify orders.
• The store connects through Zylx Studio. There is no BankDeMark Shopify app.
• How it works: once you link Zylx Studio and allow it to read Shopify orders, Command lists your recent orders and creates an issued, paid invoice record for each one you choose, one at a time or all new paid orders at once.
• Nothing is sent to your customer. These are records for your books, not customer-facing invoices.
• Some orders are skipped: orders with tax-inclusive pricing, tips, duties, gift cards, refunds, cancellations, and test orders.
• The Free plan allows 1 store.

If your customer needs an invoice sent to them, use Shopify's own tools: Order Printer for a copy of a paid order, or a draft order invoice to collect payment. Command keeps the record of each sale alongside your other income and expenses.

Shopify invoicing checklist

• Decide which need you are meeting: a copy of a paid order, a payment request, or wholesale terms
• Open Order Printer and review the invoice template
• Add your legal business name, address and GST/HST registration number to the template
• Add the buyer's name, item descriptions and payment terms so every invoice meets the $500+ tier
• Label the document "Invoice" and confirm it shows a unique number and date
• Test-print an order and save it as a PDF
• Check the order confirmation template and decide what extra details it should carry
• Confirm customer contact details are on every draft order before you send an invoice
• If you sell wholesale, confirm your plan includes B2B and set terms per company location
• Decide whether prices include tax, and make sure invoices show the tax or a tax-included statement
• Set a process for refunds: original invoice kept, refund recorded separately, credit note when needed
• Reconcile each Shopify deposit to its payout export, recording gross sales, refunds and fees
• Store invoices and payout exports somewhere you control, for at least six years

30/60/90-day plan

Days 1–30: set up the documents

• Add your business details, GST/HST number and payment terms to the Order Printer invoice template.
• Test-print three recent orders, including one shipped to another province, and check tax lines and totals.
• Add your business name and registration number to the order confirmation notification.
• Decide who sends invoices, from which tool, and where copies are saved.

Days 31–60: tidy payments and tax

• Move phone and custom orders to draft order invoices so payment and order stay linked.
• If you sell wholesale on an eligible plan, set up companies and payment terms, and check overdue orders weekly.
• Confirm your tax-inclusive or tax-exclusive setting matches how invoices present tax.
• On the next refund, check your books show the original sale and the refund separately.

Days 61–90: close the loop in the books

• Reconcile the last month of Shopify deposits payout by payout.
• Record processing fees as an expense rather than netting them off sales.
• Set a monthly reconciliation reminder and archive each month's payout exports and credit notes.

Related resources

• GST/HST invoice requirements in Canada: the full CRA field list and rate table
• Profit margin calculator: see margin after fees and refunds
• BankDeMark Command: bookkeeping with Shopify order records
• Zylx Studio: how the Shopify connection works
• Shopify SEO strategy for small stores: growing the traffic behind those orders

This content is educational only and is not personalized financial, investment, tax, legal, or credit advice.