Please Confirm Receipt: Meaning, Examples and How to Reply
What 'please confirm receipt' means, when to use it, how to reply, and copy-ready examples for invoices, payments and documents you send or receive by email.
Last updated: 28 October 2026
"Please confirm receipt" means "please tell me you got this." The sender wants a short reply saying the email, invoice, payment or document arrived. It doesn't ask you to agree, approve or pay. It only asks you to acknowledge that it reached you.
If you run a small business, you'll see it in both directions. You add it when you email an invoice to a client, and suppliers add it when they send you a contract or a payment request. This guide covers what the phrase means, when to use it, how to reply, and copy-ready examples.
What "please confirm receipt" means
In this phrase, "receipt" means the act of receiving something, not the paper receipt you get at a till. So "please confirm receipt of the attached invoice" reads as "please confirm you have received the attached invoice."
| Phrase | What the sender wants |
|---|---|
| Please confirm receipt | A short reply saying it arrived |
| Please confirm receipt of this email | Confirmation that this message reached you |
| Please confirm receipt of payment | Confirmation that the money has landed in your account |
| Please confirm upon receipt | A reply as soon as it arrives |
| Kindly confirm receipt | The same request, a little softer and more formal |
| Please acknowledge receipt | The same request, slightly more formal again |
What it does not mean
Confirming receipt is not agreement. Saying "received, thanks" to a contract doesn't mean you accept its terms, and confirming an invoice arrived doesn't mean you've approved it for payment. If you want to make that clear, say so in your reply: "Received, thank you. I'll review it and come back to you by Friday."
Is it correct to say "please confirm receipt"?
Yes. It is standard, polite business English. You'll also see "please confirm the receipt of", and both forms are used, but the version without "the" is the more common one today. "Kindly confirm receipt" is fine too. It's just more formal.
When to ask for confirmation
Ask when it matters that something arrived and silence would cost you time or money:
- Invoices you send to clients. If an invoice lands in spam, the client may not see it and payment can be delayed.
- Payments you make to suppliers. A quick "please confirm receipt of payment" makes a later duplicate reminder less likely.
- Signed documents and contracts. You want a record that the other side has the final version.
- Anything with a deadline. Notices, quotes with an expiry date, or documents your accountant needs.
Skip it for routine replies, quick questions and internal chat. Asking for confirmation on every email makes the request lose its weight.
Other ways to say "please confirm receipt"
| Formality | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Very formal | We would be grateful if you could acknowledge receipt of this letter. |
| Formal | Please acknowledge receipt of the attached documents. |
| Standard | Please confirm receipt of this invoice. |
| Polite and soft | Could you let me know this arrived safely? |
| Casual | Can you drop me a quick line when you get this? |
Copy-ready examples
Sending an invoice to a client
Hi Sam, please find attached invoice 1042 for September, due on 30 October. Please confirm receipt, and let me know if anything needs changing. Thanks, Alex
Confirming a payment you've made
Hi Priya, we paid invoice INV-2207 (£480.00) by bank transfer today. Please confirm receipt of payment when it arrives. Best, Alex
Sending signed documents
Hello Jordan, attached is the signed agreement. Please confirm receipt so we both have a record of the final version. Kind regards, Alex
A gentle follow-up when there's no reply
Hi Sam, just checking that invoice 1042 reached you, as I haven't seen a reply. Happy to resend if it's easier. Thanks, Alex
Asking a supplier for a missing invoice
Hi team, I can see the charge for October on my card but no invoice in my inbox. Could you send it over or tell me where to download it? Thanks, Alex
How to reply to "please confirm receipt"
Keep it short. One line is enough, and add a next step if there is one.
| Situation | Reply |
|---|---|
| Simple acknowledgment | Received, thank you. |
| Invoice from a supplier | Thanks, invoice received. It's scheduled for payment on the due date. |
| Payment from a client | Confirming receipt of your payment of £480.00. Thank you. |
| Documents to review | Received, thanks. I'll review and reply by Thursday. |
| Something is missing | Thanks, the email arrived but the attachment didn't come through. Could you resend it? |
Confirming receipt on Slack, Teams or read receipts
On chat tools, a reaction or a quick "got it" does the same job. Email read receipts are less reliable: many people decline them and some email apps ignore them. For anything that matters, a written reply is still the clearest record.
Stop asking suppliers whether they sent the invoice
A lot of "did you get it?" email in a small business is really about invoices: the client checking you got their payment, and you checking a supplier actually sent the invoice. At monthly bookkeeping time, the slow part is usually finding every supplier invoice across your inbox and the portals you log into.
Booksmate finds invoices and receipts in your Gmail, Outlook or IMAP inbox and on 500+ supplier websites and portals. It pulls out the supplier, invoice number, dates, tax and total, and exports to Xero, QuickBooks, sevDesk, DATEV, Lexware Office or Google Drive. You can download supplier invoices automatically instead of emailing suppliers to ask for them, or see how to extract invoice data automatically.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it proper to say "please confirm receipt"?
Yes. It is polite, standard business English, and it's used for invoices, payments, contracts and other documents. "Please confirm receipt of" and "please confirm the receipt of" are both used, but the shorter form is more common.
What is another way to say "confirm receipt"?
You can say "please acknowledge receipt", "please let me know this arrived", "could you confirm you received this?" or, more casually, "drop me a line when you get this". They all ask for the same thing.
Can you say "kindly confirm receipt"?
Yes. "Kindly confirm receipt" means the same as "please confirm receipt". It sounds a little more formal.
What does "please confirm upon receipt" mean?
It asks you to reply as soon as the item arrives, rather than when you get round to it. A one-line "Received, thank you" is the right answer.
How do you reply to "please confirm receipt"?
Reply in one line, for example "Received, thank you." If there is a next step, add it, such as "I'll review it and come back to you by Friday" or "It's scheduled for payment on the due date."
Does confirming receipt mean I agree or approve?
No. Confirming receipt only says the email or document arrived. It doesn't mean you accept a contract or approve an invoice for payment. If that matters, say you'll review it and reply separately.
Should every invoice email ask for confirmation?
Not necessarily. It's most useful for new clients, large amounts and invoices with a close due date. For regular clients who always pay on time, a clear due date and invoice number usually does the job.
