You send an invoice with payment terms of 27 days, but the cash doesn't actually arrive until day 46. That's a pretty significant gap, and it's the key finding from some new research by ezyCollect, part of the accounts receivable platform Sidetrade. By analysing over AU$164 billion in Australian B2B transactions from 1.1 million buyers, they discovered that, on average, businesses are only getting paid after 46 days - despite invoices being sent with terms of just 27 days.
The 19-day gap
That leaves businesses waiting 19 days beyond what was agreed. For a small business on a tight cash buffer, ezyCollect by Sidetrade says, those days are working capital it cannot use.
Customers in construction and building services, manufacturing, food and beverage, and wholesale and distribution already use the company's platform to manage collections, according to the company.
It's worth noting the figures come from ezyCollect by Sidetrade's own analysis of its own data set, so they reflect the invoices that pass through its systems and may differ from other measures of late payment.
Rising cost pressure
The company says the timing is difficult. Operating costs, wages and interest rates have all risen, making a healthy cash reserve harder to maintain.
Two rule changes add to it, according to ezyCollect by Sidetrade. Payday Super, in effect since 1 July 2026, requires employers to pay superannuation on payday. And from 1 October 2026, businesses can no longer surcharge eftpos, Mastercard and Visa payments, which changes how they manage transaction costs and pricing. Check the ATO and Reserve Bank of Australia websites for the details that apply to your business.
Check your process
Arjun Singh, Co-Founder and CEO of ezyCollect by Sidetrade, said growing businesses struggle to keep up with chasing invoices.
"As you grow, you cannot keep hiring experienced finance people just to keep pace with collections. The work grows faster than the team, and most of it goes on chasing accounts that were always going to pay, because you have no real way of knowing where to focus."
That points to a few practical questions for any owner. Do you know which customers usually pay late? Are you chasing everyone the same way, or focusing on the accounts most at risk? And how early do you follow up once an invoice is overdue?
Where time goes
The research does not say how much time small businesses spend on collections, and it does not say which approach works best. But the pattern Mr Singh describes is a familiar one. The more customers you have, the more time goes on chasing, and often on accounts that would have paid anyway.
One way to start is to look at your own records. Note how long your regular customers take to pay against your terms, and which ones are consistently late. That gives you a starting point for where to spend your time.
One caution: the figures come from a company that sells accounts receivable software, and the release does not show how the data was analysed or how the sample was chosen. Treat the numbers as a useful signal about late payment, not a definitive picture of Australian business.