Designing an Invoice Builder for Freelance Work in Japan

Sollective is a vetted freelancer matching platform in Japan, connecting highly skilled freelancers with companies looking to expand their business operations. In addition to matching, Sollective aims to support the future of freelance work in Japan through community events and made-for-freelance workflow tools.

The Problem

Freelancers often face challenges managing invoices due to their lack of financial expertise or familiarity with legal requirements. Existing tools in the market are typically tailored to back-office staff and finance professionals, making them inaccessible or too complex for novice users.

Our team set out to build an invoice builder that addresses these key considerations:

1. Ease of Use and Education:
   The tool needed to simplify invoice creation for freelancers unfamiliar with accounting practices. It also had to educate users about legal obligations, particularly the nuances of Japanese tax law.
2. Legal Compliance:
   Japanese tax regulations introduced specific requirements, such as the Qualified Invoice System, which mandated detailed tax breakdowns. Additionally, laws like the tax withholding system required certain freelancers to account for tax payment based on their work type.

These challenges demanded a solution that was both accessible and compliant with Japan’s legal standards.

The Solution

Taking an opinionated design approach

We chose to focus on the primary audience: freelancers in Japan with limited financial knowledge. Rather than attempting to cater to all market segments, we designed a streamlined and guided user experience.

Comparative Insights: Freee

We analyzed market leaders like freee, whose products cater to back-office professionals. While robust, their interfaces were overwhelming for first-time users, a point frequently mentioned during user interviews. Freelancers found it difficult to understand legal documentation requirements due to cluttered layouts and excessive menu options.

Our goal was the opposite: create a simple, guided, and intuitive experience.

Pre-Creation Flow for Japanese Users

How might we ensure that our users are well-informed and aware of all the information they are required to include according to the new tax law?

To address the complexity of invoice requirements, we implemented a pre-creation flow. This guided users through key steps to collect essential information, such as:

• Scope of work.
• Registration status with the Qualified Invoice System.
• Client details and payment dates.

Leveraging existing user data from Sollective’s platform, we reduced cognitive load by pre-selecting options where possible, ensuring clarity without sacrificing functionality.

Streamlining Administrative Tasks

During interviews, freelancers shared that they often relied on spreadsheets (Excel, Google Sheets) for invoice creation. Their reasons included:

• Familiarity with spreadsheet interfaces.
• Confidence in established workflows.
• Lack of awareness of more advanced tools.

We aligned the tool’s design with these expectations while introducing improvements:

1. Clear workflows to reduce errors.
2. Pre-filled fields to minimize manual input.
3. Guided steps to simplify complex tasks.

Designing the Interface

Balancing User and Recipient Needs

The tool had to serve two distinct audiences:

1. Freelancers creating invoices.
2. Accountants/back-office staff receiving them.

To achieve this, we implemented:

• Separate contexts for editing and viewing/exporting.
  • Editing modes focused on intuitive input methods.
  • Export views ensured compliance and professionalism.
• Familiar design elements aligned with tools freelancers already used.

Conclusion

Freelancers praised the tool for its simplicity and clarity, noting it was more approachable than traditional accounting software. The design struck a balance between educational value and functional ease, empowering users to spend less time on administrative tasks and more on meaningful work.

Through iterative testing and refinement, the invoice builder became a practical, legally compliant, and user-friendly solution tailored to the unique needs of freelancers in Japan.