Introduction

In shops, pharmacies, hardware stores, workshops, transport companies and service businesses across Sri Lanka, the bill book is still part of everyday life. A salesperson writes an invoice, tears off the original for the customer and keeps a copy for the office. A delivery driver gets a delivery note signed, leaving one copy with the customer and bringing another back. A cashier issues a numbered receipt.

These books are often called “carbonised” or “carbon” bill books, because older versions used sheets of carbon paper between pages. Today, most are printed on carbonless paper, also known as NCR (No Carbon Required) paper, which creates copies without separate carbon sheets.

Even as more businesses move to software and e-invoicing, printed bill books remain essential for many businesses, particularly smaller ones, mobile sales teams, field services and locations without reliable computers or connectivity. This guide explains how carbonless books work, how to design them well, the printing options available and recent changes to tax invoice requirements in Sri Lanka.

How carbonless paper works

Carbonless paper uses chemical coatings to transfer writing from one sheet to the next:

• CB (Coated Back): the top sheet, with micro-capsules of colourless ink on the back.
• CFB (Coated Front and Back): middle sheets, which receive an image on the front and pass it on from the back.
• CF (Coated Front): the bottom sheet, which receives the image.

When you write or press on the top sheet, the micro-capsules break and react with the coating on the sheet below, creating a copy. A duplicate set uses CB and CF sheets; a triplicate set uses CB, CFB and CF; and quadruplicate sets add another CFB sheet.

Paper colours

Copies are often printed on different coloured papers, such as white, pink, yellow, blue or green, so it is easy to tell which copy goes where. For example:

• White: original for the customer.
• Pink: office copy.
• Yellow: book copy that stays in the book.

Types of business books and forms

Carbonless printing is used for many documents:

• Invoice or bill books: for sales.
• Tax invoice books: for VAT-registered businesses.
• Cash receipt books: for payments received.
• Delivery note books: for goods delivered.
• Purchase order books.
• Quotation books.
• Job cards and work orders: for workshops and service businesses.
• Petty cash and payment vouchers.
• Gate passes and goods received notes.
• Order books: for sales representatives.
• Prescription and medical forms.

Each type has its own layout and information needs.

Design versions for bill books

Like other stationery, bill books benefit from design versions. Common approaches include:

Standard layout

A clear, functional layout with the company header, numbered fields and a simple table. It suits most businesses and keeps printing costs low.

Branded layout

Brand colours, a stronger logo area and design elements that match letterheads and business cards. It reinforces the brand every time a customer receives a bill.

Detailed layout

Extra fields for product codes, batch numbers, discounts, tax breakdowns or delivery details. It suits wholesalers, distributors and businesses with complex transactions.

Bilingual layout

Headings in English and Sinhala or Tamil, so both staff and customers understand the document.

We typically provide two or three versions so the client can choose the layout that suits how their staff actually fill in the forms.

What to include on an invoice book

A typical invoice includes:

• Business name, logo, address, phone and email.
• Registration number, if required.
• Document title, such as “Invoice”, “Tax Invoice” or “Cash Bill”.
• A unique serial number.
• Date.
• Customer name, address and contact.
• Customer tax identification number, where required.
• A table for item descriptions, quantities, unit prices and amounts.
• Subtotal, discounts, taxes and total.
• Payment terms and method.
• Space for signatures.
• Terms and conditions, if needed.

Tax invoices in Sri Lanka

VAT-registered businesses in Sri Lanka must issue tax invoices that meet the Inland Revenue Department’s requirements. In 2026, the IRD introduced a revised tax invoice format through Gazette Extraordinary No. 2481/22 of 27 March 2026. According to published reports, its effective date was postponed from 1 July 2026 to 1 October 2026. Reported changes include the requirement for supplier and purchaser tax identification numbers to be nine-digit TINs, while telephone numbers became optional.

Separately, the IRD announced a national e-invoicing system for VAT-registered persons in May 2026 (Notice SEC/PN/VAT/2026-03), enabling invoice data to be transmitted from businesses’ systems to the IRD’s RAMIS system, with a phased rollout.

Because these requirements are changing, VAT-registered businesses should confirm the current tax invoice format with their accountant or the IRD before printing new tax invoice books. Printing large quantities of an outdated format can be costly.

Numbering

Serial numbering is essential for accounting control, audit trails and preventing fraud. Considerations include:

• Starting number: confirm the starting number to continue from previous books.
• Number position: usually top right, printed in red or black.
• Same number on all copies: each copy in a set carries the same number.
• Number range per book: for example, 50 or 100 sets per book.
• Records: keep a record of number ranges issued to each branch or salesperson.

Professional printers use numbering machines or digital numbering to ensure accuracy. We check numbering carefully and keep records for future orders.

Sizes

Common sizes include:

• A4: for detailed invoices and delivery notes.
• A5: the most popular size for bill books.
• DL or one-third A4: for receipts and vouchers.
• Custom sizes: for specific forms.

The size should match the amount of information and how forms are filed.

Binding and book formats

Glued pads

Sets are glued along one edge and can be torn off. Often used for forms in offices.

Books with covers

Sets bound into books with card covers. The most common format for bill books.

Wrap-around covers

A cover flap that can be placed under the copy you are writing on, preventing the image from transferring to sets below.

Perforation

Perforated lines allow originals and copies to be torn out neatly, while a book copy remains bound.

Loose sets

Unbound sets, for businesses that file them in folders or use them in printers.

Continuous and laser-compatible forms

Some businesses print invoices from computers onto pre-printed carbonless forms. Options include:

• Continuous forms: for dot matrix printers, which still exist in some offices.
• Laser-compatible carbonless sheets: for laser printers, though impact pressure is needed for copies, so these often work differently.

Printing method, form size and alignment must be tested with the actual printer.

Printing options

Carbonless forms are typically printed by offset printing, usually in one or two colours to control costs. Full-colour printing is possible for branded books. The process includes:

1. Design and proof approval.
2. Printing each copy on the correct colour of carbonless paper.
3. Numbering.
4. Collating sets in the correct order.
5. Perforating.
6. Binding into books or pads.
7. Quality checks.

Designing forms that are easy to fill in

A bill book is a working tool used many times a day, often quickly and sometimes in difficult conditions, such as on a delivery truck or a busy shop counter. Good form design makes the job easier and reduces errors:

• Logical order: arrange fields in the order staff actually complete them, such as date, customer, items, totals and signature.
• Enough space: handwriting needs more room than typed text. Allow generous line heights and column widths.
• Clear labels: short, clear field labels in the language staff use.
• Pre-printed information: print anything that does not change, such as terms, bank details or standard notes, to save writing time.
• Totals area: a clear area for subtotals, discounts, taxes and totals, with lines that guide calculations.
• Signature areas: for the customer, salesperson or driver, as required.
• Light printing: printed lines and labels in lighter colours help handwritten entries stand out on copies.

Before finalising a design, it helps to fill in a printed sample as staff would in real use. This often reveals fields that are too small or in the wrong order. Asking the staff who use the books every day for feedback is equally valuable, as they know which fields cause confusion and which are rarely used.

Multi-branch and sales team control

For businesses with several branches or sales representatives, bill books are also a control tool. Good practice includes:

• Allocating specific number ranges to each branch, vehicle or salesperson.
• Printing a branch code or name on each book.
• Recording which books are issued to whom, and when they are returned.
• Checking used books against accounts regularly.
• Securing unused books, as they can be misused if lost or stolen.

Clear design and accurate numbering support these controls and make audits easier.

Costs and how to save

The cost of bill books depends on:

• Size and number of copies per set.
• Number of colours printed.
• Quantity ordered.
• Numbering and perforation.
• Binding and cover type.

To control costs:

• Use one or two printing colours unless full colour adds real value.
• Standardise sizes and layouts across branches.
• Order in sensible batches to benefit from price breaks without wasting books if details change.
• Plan ahead to avoid urgent orders.

Quality checks

Before delivery, bill books should be checked for:

• Correct numbering, with no gaps or duplicates.
• Correct order of copies.
• Clear copy transfer.
• Accurate perforation.
• Secure binding.
• Correct quantities.

The ordering process

At Dsigngo Group, a bill book order usually follows these steps:

1. Information: you share your current bill book or form, company details, required copies and colours, size, quantity and starting number.
2. Design versions: we prepare two or three layout options, from standard to branded.
3. Content check: you check every field, label, term and number format with your accounts team.
4. Proof approval: you approve a final proof, including the numbering range.
5. Printing: each copy is printed on its carbonless paper colour.
6. Numbering, collating and perforating.
7. Binding: books, pads or loose sets with covers as required.
8. Quality check and delivery: numbering and quantities are checked before dispatch.
9. Records: we keep the design and numbering records for your next order.

Common mistakes

• Printing large quantities of an outdated tax invoice format.
• Forgetting to confirm the starting number, leading to gaps or duplicates.
• Fields too small for handwriting.
• Copy colours that are confusing or not explained.
• Weak binding that falls apart in daily use.
• No wrap-around cover, causing writing to transfer to sets below.
• Misspelled company details printed on thousands of forms.
• Ordering too late and running out of books during the busiest sales period, such as the weeks before the New Year.

Storage and copy life

Carbonless copies can fade over time, especially if exposed to heat, sunlight or certain chemicals. For records that must be kept for years, such as tax documents, store copies in a cool, dark, dry place. Many businesses also scan copies for digital records.

Bill books by industry

Different industries need different forms:

• Retail shops and supermarkets: cash bills and receipts, often small A5 or DL books in duplicate.
• Wholesalers and distributors: triplicate invoices and delivery notes with product codes and credit terms.
• Hardware and building materials: invoices with item tables, delivery addresses and vehicle numbers.
• Workshops and garages: job cards with vehicle details, work done, parts used and customer signatures.
• Transport and logistics: delivery notes, consignment notes and gate passes, often in quadruplicate.
• Healthcare: receipts and medical forms with patient details, handled with care for privacy.
• Schools and associations: fee receipt books and membership receipts.
• Hotels and restaurants: bills, kitchen order tickets and room service forms.

Designing for the specific workflow of each industry makes forms faster to use and reduces errors. It also helps staff training, because new employees quickly understand forms that follow the way the business actually works. When a business uses several types of forms, giving them a shared design style, with the same header, colours and numbering position, makes them easy to recognise and file, while different titles and copy colours keep each form type distinct.

Privacy and security

Bill books often contain personal information, such as customer names, phone numbers and addresses. Sri Lanka’s Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, as amended in 2025, has key provisions taking effect from 1 January 2027. Businesses should collect only the information they need, store completed books securely and dispose of old records safely, for example by shredding.

From paper to digital

Many businesses are moving to accounting software, point-of-sale systems and e-invoicing. However, printed books remain useful for:

• Small businesses without accounting software.
• Mobile sales teams and field technicians.
• Backup when systems fail or power is unavailable.
• Businesses whose customers expect a handwritten bill.

Some businesses use both: computer invoices at the office and printed books for field sales, with entries later recorded in the system. Raiden (Pvt) Ltd’s IT services can help businesses move to digital invoicing when they are ready.

Illustrative example

The following example is illustrative and does not describe a real client.

A Sri Lankan building materials distributor uses generic bill books bought from a bookshop, with the company name stamped on each page. Numbering is inconsistent between branches, and the accounts team struggles to reconcile sales.

Dsigngo Group designs branded triplicate invoice books in A5, with white, pink and yellow copies, the company logo and details, and fields for product codes and delivery addresses. Each branch receives books with its own number range, recorded in a register. A separate set of delivery note books is designed in the same style. The accounts team can now trace every invoice and delivery, and customers receive professional, branded documents.

How Dsigngo Group can help

Dsigngo Group designs and prints carbonless business forms:

• Invoice, tax invoice and cash bill books.
• Receipt, voucher and delivery note books.
• Job cards, purchase orders and quotation books.
• Duplicate, triplicate and quadruplicate sets.
• Serial numbering with records for reorders.
• Bilingual and trilingual layouts.
• Books, pads and loose sets.

Frequently asked questions

What does “carbonised” bill book mean?

It usually refers to bill books that create copies, today typically printed on carbonless (NCR) paper rather than using carbon sheets.

How many copies can carbonless sets have?

Commonly two, three or four copies. More copies require firmer writing pressure.

Can you continue our existing number sequence?

Yes. Share your last number and we will continue the sequence.

Do you print tax invoice books?

Yes. We design tax invoice books based on the current IRD requirements, which you should confirm with your accountant.

What is the minimum order?

It depends on the format and printing method.

Conclusion

Carbonless bill books remain practical tools for many businesses, providing instant copies, accountability and professional documents. With clear design versions, accurate numbering, the right paper colours, suitable binding and attention to current tax invoice requirements, they support smooth operations and accurate accounting.

Dsigngo Group designs and prints carbonless bill books and business forms for businesses across Sri Lanka.

Need new bill books or forms? Talk to Dsigngo Group.

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Sources

• Inland Revenue Department of Sri Lanka, revised tax invoice format (Gazette Extraordinary No. 2481/22 of 27 March 2026), as reported by Comarch and taxadvisor.lk.
• Inland Revenue Department, Notice SEC/PN/VAT/2026-03 on the national e-invoicing system (4 May 2026), as reported by KPMG Sri Lanka and Bloomberg Tax.