Invoice finance for printing and packaging companies
Printers and packaging makers buy paper, board and ink before a job runs, and are paid only when the customer pays on its credit terms, after delivery. Invoice finance helps once the job is delivered and invoiced: a lender pays you most of the invoice straight away, and the rest when the customer pays. It will not fund stock you have printed and are holding for a customer to call off later. That only counts once you invoice it.
What lenders will and won't fund in print
| Situation | Usually fundable? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Job delivered, with a signed delivery note, then invoiced | Yes | The customer has the goods and owes the money |
| Stock printed and held in your warehouse for call-off | No, until invoiced | It is stock, not a debt. Some lenders offer asset-based lending against stock. |
| Invoice the customer has queried for colour, quantity or damage | Not while it is disputed | The customer may pay less, or nothing, until it is settled |
| Invoice to a retailer that deducts charges from what it pays | Yes, but less is advanced | The lender may hold more back to cover the deductions |
| Deposit invoice before the job runs | Usually not | Nothing has been delivered |
Customer sign-off of proofs, and proof of delivery for every drop, makes disputes rarer and easier to settle. Lenders look at how often you issue credit notes for reprints. A high rate can lower how much they will advance.
A worked example
You deliver a packaging run and invoice £30,000 on 60-day terms. These are example figures, not a quote. The discount charge is 6.5% a year: the Bank of England base rate (3.75%) plus 2.75%, the margin UK broker ABC Finance uses in its own cost example.
| Paid to you when you invoice (85%) | £25,500 |
| Discount charge: 6.5% a year on £25,500 for 60 days | £272 |
| Service charge: 1% of the invoice | £300 |
| Paid to you when the customer pays (£4,500 less charges) | £3,928 |
| Cost of getting £25,500 sixty days early | £572 |
Compare that cost with what the cash lets you do, such as buying board in bulk or taking on a bigger run. Try your own figures in the calculator.
Check how fast big customers really pay
Invoice finance charges run for as long as an invoice is unpaid, so a customer who pays late costs you more. Large businesses must publish how many days they take on average to pay suppliers, at least twice a year. You can look them up on the government's payment practices service (GOV.UK) before you agree terms.
Factoring, discounting or asset-based lending?
| Option | What it lends against | Who chases payment | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Factoring | Invoices | The lender | Smaller printers without a credit controller |
| Invoice discounting | Invoices | You | Firms that already chase payments well |
| Asset-based lending | Invoices, plus stock and machinery | Usually you | Larger firms holding call-off stock or with valuable presses |
Factoring costs more than discounting, because the lender does the chasing (ABC Finance). For costs in general, see what invoice finance costs.
Lenders' published terms
| Lender | Published minimum turnover | Paid up front | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bibby Financial Services | None published | Up to 85% | bibbyfinancialservices.com |
| Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance | £100k | Up to 90% | lloydsbank.com |
| Close Brothers Invoice Finance | £750k (discounting) | Up to 90% | closeinvoice.co.uk |
| Time Finance | None published | Up to 90% | timefinance.com |
| Novuna Business Finance | None published | Up to 90% | novuna.co.uk |
Figures as published on each lender's own website, checked 14 October 2026. None of these lenders publishes its fees.
More lenders are in the provider directory. If you also make other goods, see invoice finance for manufacturing businesses.
What to have ready
- A list of unpaid invoices by customer and age (an aged debtor report)
- Your latest filed accounts and recent management accounts
- Signed delivery notes and proof sign-offs for recent jobs
- Details of any loan, overdraft or asset finance with a charge over your invoices or stock
Questions
Can invoice finance pay for a new press?
No. Invoice finance lends against unpaid invoices. To spread the cost of a press or finishing kit, look at asset finance, or at asset-based lending, which can lend against machinery as well as invoices.
Most of my work goes to two customers. Can I still use it?
Usually, but lenders often cap how much they will lend against any one customer, so you may be able to draw less than your invoices suggest. Ask each lender what its limit would be for your biggest customers.
Do my customers have to know?
With factoring they will, because they pay the lender. With confidential invoice discounting they usually won't, but lenders ask for a minimum turnover first. ABC Finance puts the usual minimum at £250,000 to £500,000.
Can I fund invoices to a customer abroad?
Only with a lender that funds export invoices, or if the debt is insured. Ask before you apply.
Founder & Managing Director, Muswell Rose, founder and PSC of Best Business Loans Ltd
Adam is the founder and managing director of Muswell Rose and a founder of Best Business Loans Ltd, the company behind Market Invoice. He spent over three years as managing director of Penny, a UK invoice finance business, and his career runs through insurance, mortgages, commercial finance and fintech lending. He writes the Market Invoice library.
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