A vendor form template is the standard document a business sends a new supplier to collect everything needed to set them up: company details, contacts, tax ID, bank details, insurance and compliance documents. One completed form gives finance a verified vendor record before the first payment.
It is a ready-made questionnaire that a new supplier completes before you buy from them or pay them. The supplier fills in who they are, how to reach them, what they sell, how they are taxed and insured, and where to send payment, then signs to confirm the details are correct.
Procurement or accounts payable sends it once a purchase is approved, and the answers become the vendor's record in your accounting or ERP system. Many teams call the same document a new vendor form, a vendor setup form or a supplier information form.
Without it, vendor details arrive by email in pieces, bank details go unchecked and tax forms are missing at year-end. A single form makes every supplier provide the same information in the same order.
Legal name, trading name (DBA), registered address, website and years in business.
Name, role, phone and email for orders, plus a separate contact for remittances.
What the vendor supplies, the spend category and standard pricing or rate card.
Tax ID, a signed W-9 or local equivalent, and any permits or registrations the work needs.
Proof of liability cover and two or three customer references.
Payment method, bank details, agreed terms and a signed declaration that the details are accurate.
Ready to use in Word, Excel, Google Sheets and PDF. Fill it in, save it, reuse it.
An employee asks to use a new supplier. Confirm the purchase is approved and no existing vendor already covers it.
Send the vendor form with a deadline. The vendor returns it with the W-9, insurance certificate and bank letter.
Check the tax ID against the legal name, confirm bank details by phone and run any risk checks.
Finance or procurement signs off the record. Higher-risk vendors also need security or legal approval.
Create the vendor in your accounting system and tell the requester the PO can be raised.
The simplest new vendor form has six fields: Legal name, Address, Contact email, Tax ID, Bank details, Signature. Add insurance and compliance once you buy services on site or handle data.
Send this form only after the purchase is approved, so you are not setting up vendors nobody will use. Mark required fields clearly, because an incomplete form is the most common reason vendor setup stalls. The example column uses a fictional supplier.
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Legal business name | Exactly as on tax registration | Harbour Facilities LLC |
| Trading name (DBA) | If different from the legal name | Harbour Cleaning |
| Registered address | Street, city, postcode, country | [Address] |
| Website | Main company site | [Website] |
| Entity type and years in business | LLC, corporation, sole trader; year founded | LLC, 2014 |
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Contact name and role | Who handles your account | [Name], Account manager |
| Phone and email | Direct line and work email | [Phone], [Email] |
| Remittance contact | Who receives payment notices | accounts@[domain] |
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Description | What you will supply to us | Office cleaning, three sites |
| Category | Chosen from our spend category list | Facilities services |
| Pricing | Rate card or quote reference | Quote Q-2291 |
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Tax ID | EIN or TIN for US vendors; VAT number elsewhere | [Tax ID] |
| Tax form | Signed W-9 (US) or W-8BEN-E (non-US) | W-9 attached |
| Permits and licences | Any licence the work requires | None required |
| Diversity or small business status | Optional, if you track it | Small business |
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| General liability insurance | Insurer, policy number, expiry; attach certificate | Certificate attached, expires 31 Mar 2027 |
| Other cover | Professional or cyber cover if relevant | Not applicable |
| References | Two customers, with contact details | [Reference 1], [Reference 2] |
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Payment method | ACH, wire or cheque | ACH |
| Bank details | Bank name, account name and number; attach bank letter | [Bank details] |
| Payment terms | As agreed with procurement | Net 30 |
| Declaration and signature | Authorised signatory confirms details are true | [Name], [Title], [Date] |
Illustrative vendor. Never accept bank details by email alone.
Use it on a supplier page or send it when a new vendor approaches you. Keep it under a dozen fields: the full setup form comes later, only if you decide to buy.
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Company name and website | Legal name and main site | Kestrel Data Inc, [Website] |
| Country of registration | Where the company is incorporated | United States |
| Main contact | Name, role, email | [Name], Sales director, [Email] |
| Categories offered | Pick from your category list | Data services, analytics software |
| Regions served | Where they can deliver | North America, UK |
| Company size | Employees and annual revenue band | 50-200 employees |
| Certifications | Relevant quality or security certificates | ISO 27001 |
| Consent | Agrees to be contacted about opportunities | Yes |
Illustrative entries for a fictional supplier.
Use the application when approval is competitive or regulated, such as preferred supplier panels or facilities contractors working on site. Score the answers with the same criteria every time, so approvals are consistent.
| Question | Why you ask | Evidence to request |
|---|---|---|
| How many years have you supplied this service? | Experience and stability | Client list or case studies |
| Who are three current customers of similar size? | Proof of delivery at your scale | Reference contacts |
| What is your capacity for a new account this year? | Ability to take on the work | Staffing or capacity statement |
| Can you share recent financial statements? | Risk of the vendor failing mid-contract | Last year's accounts |
| Do you have health and safety and data protection policies? | Compliance with your own policies | Policy documents |
| Will you agree to our supplier code of conduct? | Ethical and labour standards | Signed acknowledgement |
Ask only what you will actually review.
Write the process down so requesters know what to expect and finance knows who checks what. Risk tiering in step 3 decides how deep the checks go. Read more on the supplier onboarding process and best practices.
| Step | Owner | Output | Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Approved request | Requester | Purchase request with budget sign-off | Day 0 |
| 2. Send vendor form | Procurement | Form and document list sent to vendor | Day 1 |
| 3. Risk tiering | Procurement | Low, medium or high tier set | Day 1 |
| 4. Verify details | AP | Tax ID matched, bank details confirmed by phone | Day 2-3 |
| 5. Extra reviews | Security, legal | Security review and contract for medium and high tiers | Day 3-10 |
| 6. Activate | Vendor master team | Vendor record created, requester told | Day 3-10 |
Target days are illustrative and depend on the vendor's response time.
Vendor and supplier onboarding checklists are the same list under different names, so this one serves both. The download adds an owner and date column for each line.
One record per vendor, stored next to the completed form. If an auditor asks why a vendor was added, the answer should be in this table. The example uses the fictional vendor from Part 1.
| Field | What to record | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Requested by | Name, team and date | D. Moreno, Workplace, 3 Sep 2026 |
| Business reason | Why this vendor, and why not an existing one | Two new sites, current cleaner lacks capacity |
| Estimated annual spend | From the approved request | 36,000 |
| Risk tier | Low, medium or high, with reason | Medium: on-site staff |
| Reviews completed | Security, legal, insurance | Insurance checked, contract signed |
| Approved by | Name and date | Finance controller, 9 Sep 2026 |
| Vendor ID | ID in accounting or ERP system | V-01877 |
Illustrative record.
Spendflo supplier onboarding collects vendor details and documents in one flow, with approvals built in.
See supplier onboardingUS tax form where a vendor gives its legal name and taxpayer ID, used for year-end reporting.
The form non-US entities give US payers to state their foreign status.
The vendor's US taxpayer number; elsewhere the equivalent is often a VAT or company number.
A one-page proof of cover from the vendor's insurer, showing limits and expiry date.
A letter or statement on bank letterhead that confirms the account name and number.
| Tier | Typical vendor | Checks beyond the form |
|---|---|---|
| Low | Office supplies, one-off purchases | Tax ID and bank call-back only |
| Medium | On-site services, moderate spend | Insurance certificate, references, signed contract |
| High | Software holding company data, large spend | Security review, DPA, financial check and third-party risk management review |
Tier thresholds are set by each company; these are examples.
Send the form only once there is an approved request, so the vendor master stays clean.
Search by tax ID and name before creating any vendor, since duplicates lead to double payments.
Confirm account details by phone on a number you found yourself, not one on the form.
Insurance certificates and permits expire, so record the dates and ask for renewals.
Keep a single current form so every vendor answers the same questions.
Treat any email asking to change bank details as suspect until verified by phone.
A stationery supplier does not need a security questionnaire; tier the requirements.
Missing tax forms turn into a scramble at year-end reporting time.
The person who creates the vendor should not be the one who approves its payments.
Add your company name, the return address and your standard payment terms.
Flag what every vendor must complete and what only medium or high tiers fill in.
List the attachments needed (W-9, insurance, bank letter) and a return date.
Run the checklist, get a second review, then create the vendor record.
Cedar Health's workplace team requested Harbour Facilities for cleaning at two clinics, around 36,000 a year. Procurement sent the vendor form on 3 Sep and set a medium tier. Harbour returned it with a W-9, insurance certificate and bank letter on 5 Sep. AP's call-back found one digit wrong in the account number. The corrected record went live on 7 Sep. Figures are illustrative.
Every part on this page, in Word, Excel, Google Sheets and PDF, with the examples filled in.
Ask for a signed W-9, EIN and ACH details. Add a certificate of insurance for anyone working on your premises.
Swap the W-9 for a VAT number and company registration number, and collect IBAN and SWIFT details for payment.
Add security certifications, data location and a DPA to the compliance section, and route the vendor through security review.
Best for a fillable vendor form you customise.
Best for the onboarding tracker and checklist.
Best for vendors who print, sign and scan.
Spendflo has handled 15,000+ agreements, at 30% average savings on software spend.
See your savingsA good vendor form collects the same verified details from every supplier before anyone can pay them. Pair it with a checklist and an internal record, and onboarding becomes a routine rather than an email chase.
Six sections cover company, contact, offering, tax, insurance and payment.
Open the form →2Tax ID matched, bank details called back and a second reviewer on every record.
Open the checklist →3An internal record shows who asked for the vendor and who approved it.
Open the record →Quick answers to what people ask most about the vendor form template.
List the six sections you need (company, contact, products, tax, insurance and references, payment), mark required fields and add a signed declaration. Attach a document list so vendors send everything at once. Or download the ready-made form on this page and add your logo.
Yes, the vendor form on this page is available to download as an editable Word document. It is also available as a PDF for vendors who prefer to print and sign.
This page covers the vendor setup form rather than the agreement itself, which sets the commercial and legal terms. You can download the vendor form here, and a separate vendor contract template is linked below.
Vendor forms are documents suppliers complete so a business can set them up for purchasing and payment, covering identity, tax, insurance and bank details. Common types are setup, registration and application forms, and all three are in the free download.
You can download it free from this page in Word, Excel, Google Sheets or PDF. The download includes the vendor onboarding form, a checklist and an internal setup record.
Vendor management
Purchase orders
Contracts
Sourcing and RFx
Budgets and business cases
Procurement
Accounts payable
Purchasing
Software buying
Supply chain
Spendflo supplier onboarding collects vendor details, documents and approvals in one flow, linked to the intake request that started it.
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