Email Accounts Payable for an Unpaid Invoice

Many late invoices are not a refusal to pay—they never reached the person who releases money. When reminders to the project contact stall, send one clean email to accounts payable (or the owner) with every detail they need to pay in one step.

Free template: AP / finance CC

Keep your project contact on CC so nobody is blindsided. Replace every [bracket].

Hi [AP / Finance Name or Accounts Payable],

I am following up on invoice [Invoice #] for [Amount] ([Project / Deliverable]), issued [Invoice Date], due [Due Date]. I have not received payment yet.

Could you confirm whether this is in your queue and the expected payment date? If you need a different PO, vendor form, or billing email, tell me and I will fix it the same day.

Pay here: [Payment Link]
Invoice PDF attached. [Project Contact Name] is copied for visibility.

Thank you,
[Your Name]
[Your Business]
[Phone]

Subject lines with invoice # and amount get opened by AP. One ask (status + date) beats a story about how long you have waited.

How to find the right inbox

• Check the contract, purchase order, or onboarding packet for ap@, invoices@, or a portal URL.
• Ask once, plainly: “Who should invoices go to on your side?”
• Company website footer, LinkedIn (finance / controller), or the main phone receptionist often know the AP address.
• For small companies with no AP, email the owner with the same facts—still keep the project contact on CC.

When to escalate from the project contact

1. After 1–2 polite reminders to the person who hired you with no payment date.
2. When they say “I’ll handle it” repeatedly but nothing hits your account.
3. When the invoice is past due and you suspect it never left their inbox or chat thread.

What not to do

• Do not accuse the project contact of stealing or lying—frame it as routing.
• Do not blast the whole company; one AP path plus CC is enough.
• Do not skip attaching the PDF and payment link; AP will not dig through Slack.

Free mini-pack: 3 more follow-up templates (HTML + PDF), no signup.

Related guides

• Client not responding to invoice
• What to say when a client ghosts after an invoice
• Email when a client ignores your invoice
• Friendly payment reminder after the due date
• Past-due invoice payment reminder
• How to follow up on an unpaid invoice

Practical communication guidance only, not legal advice. Payment terms, late fees, and collection options depend on your contract and jurisdiction.