Invoices
The core sales document. Revenue recognized, AR created, inventory reduced — all on saving.
The invoice is the financial event. When you save an invoice, three things happen simultaneously: revenue is recognized, accounts receivable is created, and (for product items) inventory is reduced. Draft invoices have zero financial impact — saving is the point of no return.
Use Cases
| Use Case | Who | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Bill a customer for goods sold | Sales / Accountant | Standard revenue recognition |
| Bill for services rendered | Sales / Accountant | Time-based or project-based billing |
| Bill with tax | Accountant | Collect VAT or sales tax on behalf of authority |
| Bill with deferred revenue | Accountant | Annual contract — recognize revenue period by period |
| Set up recurring billing | Accountant | Monthly subscription or retainer — generate automatically |
| Bill multiple locations | Sales | Different invoice per center or branch |
| Track payment against invoice | Accountant | Piecemeal payments — apply partial receipts over time |
Creating an Invoice
Navigate to: Sales → Invoices → New
Header Fields
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Customer | Required. Searchable dropdown. On selection: loads the customer's defaults. |
| Date | Required. Defaults to today. The date the invoice is issued. |
| Payment Terms | Dropdown: Due on Receipt, Net 7, Net 14, Net 15, Net 30 (default), Net 45, Net 60, Net 90. |
| Due Date | Auto-calculated from Date + Terms. Manual override allowed. |
| Document Number | Auto-generated on saving. Format: INV-000001. A draft carries a D-INV000001 number until it is posted. |
| PO Number | Optional pill. Customer's purchase order reference number. |
| Currency | "Change Currency →" in the items table sets the currency and exchange rate for the invoice. |
Items Table
| Column | Details |
|---|---|
| Item | Searchable picker with a category filter and List / Grouped views. Products show their stock: the quantity on hand, Low (at or below the item's reorder point), or Out. Toggle Item / One-off to add an ad-hoc line that is not in the catalogue. |
| Qty | Number input (2 decimal places). |
| Rate | Auto-populated from the item catalogue. Center-specific price if a center is selected. |
| Discount | Per-line discount. No Discount by default. |
| Tax | Per-line tax rate from the rates configured in Finance. No Tax by default. |
| Amount | Calculated: (Qty × Rate) minus Discount, plus Tax. |
| Note | An optional note under each catalogue line, printed on the document. |
Optional Field Pills
These fields are hidden by default. Click the pill to reveal the field.
| Pill | Color | What It Adds |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Blue | A brief subject line displayed on the document header |
| Center/Location | Emerald | Assign to a branch. Enables location-specific pricing and stock levels. Shown when the business has centers. |
| Project | Orange | Link to a project in the Operations module |
| PO Number | Cyan | Customer's purchase order reference |
| Tags | Purple | Multi-select categorization for filtering and reporting |
| Note | Amber | Internal memo — not printed on the customer-facing document |
| Attachments | Gray | Upload supporting documents (contracts, delivery proofs, etc.) |
| Defer Revenue | Amber | Spread revenue recognition over a contract period — see Deferred Revenue |
| Recurring | Indigo | Set up a recurring billing schedule — see Recurring Invoices |
Form Actions
| Button | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Save | Posts the invoice. Revenue recognized. AR created. Inventory reduced. Final number format: INV-000001. |
| Save as Draft | In the Save menu. Saves without posting. No financial impact. Draft number format: D-INV000001. |
| Save & Print · Save & Duplicate · Save & New | In the Save menu. Post, then print, copy or start the next one. |
Invoice Page
After saving, the invoice page shows the full record with three controls: a primary action, Download, and More.
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Document Number | Displayed in header. Format INV-000001. Immutable after posting. |
| Status Badge | Unpaid, Partly paid, Paid, Settled (cleared by a credit note), Written off, Draft, Voided; Pending Approval, Returned or Rejected while in a workflow. |
| Due Banner | N Days Overdue (red, with the balance), Due Today, Due in N Days, or Not Yet Due. |
| Approval Banner | If an approval workflow applies: Pending Approval, Approval In Progress, Approved, Returned for Revision, or Rejected, with level progress. |
| Record Payment | Primary button while a balance remains. Opens the receipt form pre-filled with this invoice. |
| Download | PDF, Excel, or Customize PDF… to choose which columns and sections print. |
| More → Update | Drafts edit freely. Updating a posted invoice voids it and issues a new number. |
| More → Share | Copy Link, WhatsApp, or email the PDF. |
| More → Print | A4 or thermal, per your printer preset. |
| More → Duplicate | Creates a new draft with the same line items and customer. Date resets to today. |
| More → Convert to | Record Payment (a receipt) or Credit Note. |
| More → Write Off as Bad Debt | Recognizes the uncollectible balance; the invoice reads Written off. |
| More → Void Document | Reverses the journal. Marks the invoice Voided. Type the number to confirm. |
| Lifecycle | Payments (with the collection progress), Returns, Delivery, and the Order or Quote behind this invoice. |
Sharing and Reminders
Invoices are delivered to customers from More → Share:
- Copy Link — a link to the live invoice view, no sign-in required.
- WhatsApp — a pre-written message with the invoice number, total and link.
- Email — the PDF attached, with To, CC, subject and message pre-filled.
There is no automatic reminder schedule. To chase an overdue invoice, share it again with a reminder line in the message — the due banner tells you how many days overdue it is. See Sharing & Reminders.
Journal Entries
When an invoice is saved, Trabalance creates two sets of journal entries automatically.
Revenue and AR Journal
| Account | Debit | Credit | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accounts Receivable | 10,000 | — | Full invoice amount owed by customer |
| Sales Revenue | — | 9,346 | Revenue recognized (net of tax) |
| Sales Tax Payable | — | 654 | Output tax collected on behalf of authority |
Inventory Journal (product items only)
| Account | Debit | Credit | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of Sales | 5,200 | — | Cost of items delivered at weighted average cost |
| Inventory Asset | — | 5,200 | Inventory reduced at weighted average cost |
Inventory is valued using the weighted average cost method. The unit cost used in the cost of sales journal is the running weighted average at the time of posting — not the purchase price of any specific batch.
Piecemeal Payments
A single invoice can be paid in multiple installments. Each payment creates a separate receipt that is matched to the invoice.
Invoice status: Unpaid. AR balance: $10,000.
Create a receipt for $4,000. Allocate to this invoice. Invoice status changes to: Partly paid. Remaining: $6,000.
Create a receipt for $6,000. Allocate to this invoice. Invoice status changes to: Paid. AR balance: $0.
The customer statement reflects each payment as it arrives. The invoice's Lifecycle panel shows Invoiced, Paid and Balance, the percentage collected, and every receipt with when it was paid and into which account.
Related
- Filling in the form: Creating an invoice.
- Everything on the invoice's page: The document page.
- Getting paid: Receipts.
- Correcting one you have already posted: Editing, voiding and restoring.
- When it will never be collected: Writing off bad debt.