Creating a proforma or fee notice in SamBooks

How to fill in the pre-fiscal document that comes before the real invoice: customer, lines, social security fund and withholding tax, payment terms — and why SamBooks sometimes calls it "proforma" and sometimes "fee notice".

What this is for

This document is a non-fiscal pre-invoice: SamBooks never sends it to the Exchange System (SDI) and never assigns it a fiscal number — stamp duty, withholding and the social security fund are already computed, but stay provisional until it becomes a real invoice. It is typically used to request payment (in advance or on account) before issuing the fiscal document: proforma → collection or conversion → TD06 invoice.

SamBooks uses two names for the same document, depending on the legal shape of the company issuing it: a company sees it as a "Proforma" (under the "Quotes & proformas" menu), a sole professional as a "Fee notice" (under "Quotes & fee notices"). This isn't something you choose — see "Why it's sometimes called proforma and sometimes fee notice" below.

This guide covers creating and filling in the document. To collect it or convert it into an invoice, see Collecting or converting a proforma into an invoice.

Before you start

• You need a role with write permissions — Gestore (manager) or Amministrativo; Visualizzatore (viewer) and Logistica can only view.
• The customer must already exist in your address book, or you can create it on the fly from the form.
• An active subscription is still required — a company with an expired or missing subscription is blocked on every page, not just this one; SDI credits are not needed, though, since this document is never transmitted.

Step by step

1. Open the section and start a new document

From the left menu, open the entry that groups quotes and proformas together — its label changes with your company: "Quotes & proformas" for a company, "Quotes & fee notices" for a sole professional. It opens with two tabs at the top of the page, Quotes and Proformas: the second one is what you want here. Top right, press "New proforma" (or "New fee notice"): a dedicated creation page opens, not a pop-up window.

2. Document date and subject

"Document date" is required, pre-filled with today's date. "Subject" is optional and also appears on the PDF: use it to briefly describe the service or supply (e.g. "March 2026 consulting").

3. Choose the customer

In the "Customer" section, field "Search existing customer": type the legal name or VAT number and pick it from the address book. If it doesn't exist yet, at the bottom of the results you'll find "Create customer", which opens the quick creation form and immediately selects it once saved. Once chosen, a box appears with its data (legal name, VAT/tax code, address, PEC, SDI code, subject type, split payment): editing it here also updates the address book. Address, PEC and SDI code are inherited by the invoice generated on conversion.

4. Add the lines

In the "Lines" section, each line starts with "Add line". The "Code" field is optional: you can search for a catalog item or service — the line auto-fills (description, VAT rate, price) — or type directly into "Description", a free line with no catalog link. You fill in "Quantity" (greater than zero) and "Unit price", then pick the "VAT code": plain-language categories (Taxable, Excluded / out of scope, Exempt, Reverse charge…) or "Advanced (rate + nature by hand)" — with a 0% rate, the VAT nature is required. Unlike the sales invoice, there's a single "Discount %" per line here, not three cascading discounts: consistent with the TD06 created on conversion, which inherits the same single discount. "Accrual period", collapsed by default, only matters if the line covers a period different from the document date. On the right of each line you see the "Amount", computed live.

5. Payment terms and due dates

"Payment terms" is a select (paid in full, in instalments…): unlike the quote, it is not required here — you can save without choosing one. Below it, "Payments and due dates" lets you add one or more instalments (payment method, date, amount, free-text IBAN): the plan you fill in here carries over to the invoice generated on conversion, but it only becomes a real due date once that invoice is actually transmitted to SDI — not at conversion itself, and not while it stays Draft or Ready. If you fill in instalments, they must add up to the document total — a warning "Instalments do not match the document total" blocks saving until fixed; the one exception is a social security fund already set (step 7), where only the backend performs the exact check on save.

6. Withholding tax, if the service is subject to it

The collapsible "Withholding tax" section opens when you click it: "{Fee notice/Proforma}: withholding applies to lines marked "subject to withholding"." Choose the "Withholding type" (individuals, legal entities, INPS, ENASARCO…): "Rate" and "Payment reason" appear, and every line shows a "Subject to withholding" checkbox — tick it only where withholding applies (exclude expense reimbursements). SamBooks computes the amount on save; mechanism, types and reasons are explained in Applying withholding tax, social security fund and stamp duty on an invoice — identical here.

7. Social security fund, if you belong to a professional fund

Below, the "Social security fund" section: "Fund type", "Rate %", "Contribution" (or let SamBooks compute it), "Taxable" and "Fund VAT %" — and, if the contribution carries no VAT, "VAT nature" in its place (the two are mutually exclusive). Here too, the mechanism — why the contribution enters the VAT taxable base, how to choose the fund type and rate — is the same as on the invoice: see the withholding guide linked above for the detail.

8. Notes and saving

"Notes" is a free-text field. At the bottom of the page a summary shows "Taxable", "VAT" and "Estimated total" — plus "Withholding" and "Net to pay" if you've enabled withholding — with the VAT breakdown by rate. It's an estimate because stamp duty, withholding and the fund contribution are recomputed by SamBooks on save: the final total is in the document's detail page. Press "Create proforma" (or "Create fee notice"): once done, the confirmation takes you to the detail page.

The virtual stamp duty: always automatic, never a field to fill in

Just like on the sales invoice, there is no field to type in the stamp duty, neither on the proforma nor on the fee notice: SamBooks always computes it by summing the taxable amount of every zero-rate line — not just exempt ones, also non-taxable (exports included), excluded and special-scheme lines — except reverse charge (nature N6.x), which is taxable with VAT charged to the customer. Above €77.47 the €2.00 virtual stamp duty is added automatically to the totals, visible on the "Details" tab after saving; below that threshold, nothing appears. Stamp duty stays a calculation, never a value you set by hand.

Why it's sometimes called proforma and sometimes fee notice

SamBooks chooses the wording by looking at your tax profile, not an option you switch on: you're recognized as a sole professional if you have a professional social security fund set (forensic, chartered accountants, Inarcassa…) or you're enrolled in INPS Gestione separata. With either signal, the document becomes a "Fee notice" on screen and on the downloaded PDF, file starting with "Fee_notice_"; without either, it always stays "Proforma", file "Proforma_…". The side menu follows the same logic: "Quotes & fee notices" for a sole professional, "Quotes & proformas" for a company (and for the flat-rate scheme, regardless of the fund). If the tax profile isn't complete yet in Settings, SamBooks plays it safe and always shows "Proforma".

Ask Sam

You can get the same result in chat: "create a proforma for €1,200 plus VAT for customer Bianchi", or, for a sole professional, "make a fee notice for customer Rossi with 20% RT01 withholding tax and 4% social security fund". Sam applies the same rules as the form, including lines marked as subject to withholding: the document is created identical to one made by hand, always a draft, never sent automatically.

Actions on the document: edit, send, PDF, cancel

On the document's detail page (and as row-action icons in the list) you find a bar that changes with the status:

• Draft: "Edit" (same form as creation, with the notice "Editing is allowed only in draft. Totals are recomputed on save."; editing still fully replaces lines, payment, fund and withholding, even though that's not written anywhere in the UI), "Mark as sent" and "Cancel".
• Sent: "Record collection" and "Generate invoice" (see the next guide) plus "Cancel".
• Converted: only "Open linked invoice" and, if applicable, "Cancel collection".
• Cancelled: none of the above actions remain available — only the "Cancelled" status badge flags it. "Send by email" and "Download PDF" stay active regardless, even on a cancelled document.

"Mark as sent" moves a Draft to Sent without sending anything: use it when you've communicated the document to the customer another way (phone, in person). "Send by email", always available next to it, opens a two-column window — on the left the recipient's address (to fill in yourself: it does not come pre-filled from the address book here, unlike the quote) and an optional message, on the right a live preview of the email; the document's PDF is attached automatically. Sending the email is also the act of sending: if the document was a Draft, it moves to Sent the moment the email goes out, exactly like "Mark as sent". "Download PDF", always present, produces the file — header, lines, VAT breakdown, totals — with a filename matching the wording: "Fee_notice_…" or "Proforma_…" depending on your profile.

Once the document moves to Sent, the edit form is no longer reachable: trying to open it shows the "{Fee notice/Proforma} not editable" screen, pointing back to the detail page.

There's no physical deletion: instead of a trash icon you always find "Cancel", available in Draft and in Sent (no longer after collection or conversion — see the next guide). Confirm through a dedicated window: the document moves to Cancelled, its lines remain visible as history but with no effect — no number is freed up, because the progressive number (unlike the invoice, only assigned on issue) is already assigned at creation.

If something isn't working

• I can't find a field to set the stamp duty by hand: that's correct, it doesn't exist — SamBooks always computes it, both here and on the invoice.
• "Instalments do not match the document total": the sum of the due dates filled in under "Payments and due dates" doesn't match the document total; fix the amounts or remove incomplete instalments.
• I chose a withholding type but the amount stays zero: check that you ticked "Subject to withholding" on at least one line.
• The document is called "Proforma" but I'm a sole professional: check in Settings → Tax profile that you have a professional social security fund or INPS Gestione separata set — that's the signal SamBooks uses to recognize you as a professional.
• I can no longer find "Edit" on the document: it has already moved to Sent (or beyond); from there you can only cancel it, not correct it anymore.
• I can't cancel the document: it has already been collected or converted into an invoice — see Collecting or converting a proforma into an invoice.

Frequently asked questions

How do I make a proforma for a customer? From "Quotes & proformas" (or "Quotes & fee notices"), Proformas tab → "New proforma": customer, lines, optionally withholding/fund/payment, then "Create proforma". It's created as a Draft.

How do I make a fee notice as a sole professional? It's the same document: if your tax profile has a professional social security fund or INPS Gestione separata set, SamBooks calls it "Fee notice" on its own on screen and on the downloaded PDF.

What's the difference between a proforma and a fee notice? None from a technical standpoint: it's the same document and the same data model. Only the name SamBooks gives it changes, based on your tax profile.

Can I add withholding tax on the proforma? Yes, in the collapsible "Withholding tax" section: choose type, rate and payment reason, then mark the lines it applies to. The mechanism is identical to the invoice's.

How do I add the social security fund on the fee notice? In the "Social security fund" section: fund type, rate, contribution (or let SamBooks compute it) and taxable amount.

Can I set multiple payment due dates on the proforma? Yes, add as many instalments as you want under "Payments and due dates": they must add up to the document total, though.

How do I email the proforma to the customer? From the detail page, press "Send by email": a window opens with the recipient's address (fill it in yourself, it isn't pre-filled) and an optional message, with a live preview of the email next to it. Sending attaches the PDF and, if the document was still a Draft, also marks it as Sent.

Can I cancel a proforma that's already been sent? Yes, as long as it hasn't been collected or converted into an invoice: "Cancel" stays available both in Draft and Sent.

Is the proforma a valid fiscal document? No: it's never sent to the SDI and has no fiscal value. It only becomes fiscal once you convert it into a TD06 invoice.

How do I edit a proforma before issuing it? Only while it's a Draft: "Edit" on the detail page opens the same form as creation; editing fully replaces the existing data.

Related features

• Collecting or converting a proforma into an invoice — the next step: sending, collecting and converting into a TD06 invoice.
• Applying withholding tax, social security fund and stamp duty on an invoice — the fiscal mechanism for withholding, the fund and stamp duty, identical on this document.
• Creating a sales invoice — the fiscal document the proforma turns into.
• Creating and sending a quote to a customer — the other non-fiscal document of the sales cycle, for offering a price before the sale.