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Preparing and Sending an Invoice
Preparing and Sending an Invoice

Make the necessary adjustments to invoice and prepare it to approve and send.

Erin Jamison avatar
Written by Erin Jamison
Updated over a week ago

Index

Once you have selected the billable items from Unbilled and created invoices, you will be taken to a draft invoice view. If only one invoice was created, you will be taken to that invoice. If multiple invoices were created, you will be taken to the draft invoice list.

Write On / Off

Billable Time

For Billable Time, this can be done by changing the amount value at the total amount level or for each row. If calculated at the total amount level, the system calculates how much write-on/off there is for each row based on the hours and billable value per combination. If calculated at the row level, it will calculate the write-on/off for that time entry only.

Fixed Fee

If you track time on Fixed Fee work items, a calculation of the write-on/off per individual time entry will be created. When you view the time entry section on the fixed fee work item, you will see two additional columns called billed and write on and off.

Each time a time entry is added, in the background we will calculate the write-on and off and billed amount for each time entry.

Billed Status
Once an invoice has been approved, all time entries already added will be marked as billed and any time entries added after will then be marked as billed as well

Carrying Time

Billable Time

If you decide that you don't want to bill all the time entries listed on the invoice and want to bill them at a later time, you are able to carry the time entries.

This can be done one at a time or in bulk by clicking on the checkbox and clicking the button option that says 'Carry'.

Once the invoice is approved, these time entries can be found back in the Unbilled section. If you want to re-include time entries before approving the invoice, click the checkbox again and click 'include'.

Fixed Fee

Unlike billable time, you cannot carry individual time entries. Instead, you can carry the amount of the invoice. This can only be done if the Fixed Fee Item is marked as a progress bill (see toggle section below for information on progress vs final bills). To carry adjust the amount to be a lower value.

Amount

For Fixed Fee items, you can adjust the amount value. If the item is marked as a Final Bill, changing the amount value will increase the total amount of the invoice. It will not change the write-on/off value. If the item is marked as a Progress Bill, it performs the carry action.

Expenses

Expenses can be manually written on or off by changing the amount column. They currently can't be carried when on a Fixed Fee item (to come) but if recorded against a Time and Materials work item, can be carried exactly like Billable time.

Final Bill Toggle

Next to each work item on the Invoice is a toggle. When toggled on, it indicates that will be the final invoice for that work item. For Fixed Fee items, this means the Fixed Fee work will no longer appear back in unbilled after the invoice is approved. For time and materials work, any time entries added after the invoice is approved will not appear back in Unbilled.

The Final Bill Toggle is toggled off by default for Time and Materials work items and on by default for Fixed Fee items.

If there are billable items for the same work (e.g expenses and time) and you toggle it on for one of the items, it will turn the toggle on for all billable items attached to that work item that is on the invoice.

Overriding Information on the Invoice

If there's information that you'd like to change for the invoice, you can manually update the following items to affect changes in the invoice:

  • Title of the Billable Item: Open the corresponding work item > details tab > add in the new in the External Name field. This can also be set on the template to be used when creating future work.

  • Description: Can be overridden by opening the 'Presentation' tab in the draft invoice and clicking the white box under 'Description, clearing the text, and entering new text.

  • Tax: Open the 'Presentation' tab in the draft invoice and the dropdown within the invoice, you can select any tax rate that has been entered in Settings.

  • Payment Instructions: Open the 'Presentation' tab in the draft invoice, the payment instructions can be updated on the side menu

  • Invoice Date: Select a new date from a custom date picker within the draft invoice under the 'Presentation' tab. Ensure you're picking a date within the open accounting period.

  • Payment Date: Select a different Net Option by selecting a name date from a custom date picker from the 'Presentation' of an invoice.

  • Email: The email found in the billing details section will be visible. This can be updated by navigating to the Bill To contact and selecting a different email in the Billing Details section.

  • Billable Time: For Time & Materials Work, choose to display a summarized view or list out all time entries.

Customizing the Invoice

Invoice Name

If you're not sending a tax invoice to one of your customers, you can change the field that appears on the invoice from 'tax invoice' to 'invoice'. Setting and customizing this field is easy to do. It can either be set on the invoice template, or on a per-invoice basis.

Best Practice Tip: If you'd like your invoices to have a consistent look and feel, setting the field on the invoice template is a good solution.

Individual Time Entries

On the invoice template and from the presentation tab on each invoice, you can choose to display your invoices by individual time entry (for billable time). If you make this change from the invoice template, all future invoices will be presented by individual time entries if applicable.

When this option is chosen, the quantity column will be hours, and the unit price will be the rate of the time entry. There is no change to the quantity and unit price columns if the summarized option is chosen.

If a write-on or off is made, the quantity column will be updated to ensure the unit price does not change and remains consistent between invoices. For example:

Data tab:

  • Time entry with 1 hour recorded at a rate of 100

  • Actual = 100

  • Amount changed on data tab = 150

  • Write on/off = +50

Invoice presentation:

  • Quantity = 1.5

  • Unit Price = 100

  • Amount = 150

Display Options

Within the invoice template options, you have the ability to remove the quantity, unit price, and amount columns as well as the amount breakdown from the invoice. This can be set in the invoice template itself, which will apply to all future invoices created. However, if needed, this can be overridden per invoice depending on the customer.

Invoice Actions

When viewing the draft invoice, you are able to approve or approve and send.

Approve and Send

Using the feature will allow you to both approve and send the invoice straight away. The invoice will come from the user who clicks send. Before it is sent, the system will confirm the to and from email addresses before sending and allow you to cancel sending. If you cancel sending, the invoice will be in an approved state.

Sending issues

There are some issues that will stop the invoice from being able to be sent. When these occur, you will be told what the issue is and how to fix it:

  1. No Accounting Period
    If the firm has not set an accounting period you will need to set it in Billing Settings before sending invoices

  2. Invoice Date not open in an Open Accounting Period
    If the invoice date is not in an open accounting period, you will not be able to approve or send the invoice. You will need to select an invoice date in the current accounting period

  3. Negative Invoice
    If the invoice total = a negative value. You will need to resolve the issues and retry

  4. Missing Details
    If you try to send an invoice with missing details you will be told which details are missing and need to add them. If you try to approve, you will just be warned.


Once successfully sent, you will find the email and a PDF version of the invoice in their sent folder in Triage. Due to privacy and the need to ensure all dollar values remain private, invoices are not automatically added to timelines. You can manually add it to a timeline or @mention colleagues through comments in the email.

Once sent, the invoice moves from the Draft list (or approved state) and into Awaiting for Payment list.

Approve

In addition to approving and sending, you can choose to just approve the invoice. Once approved, you are able to perform the following actions:

Sending

The same rules apply as above and the same checks will be made to ensure the invoice is legal. If you need to change the invoice date or add missing details, you are able to edit the invoice by putting it into a draft state.

Exporting

If you use QuickBooks Online (QBO) or Xero, you can prepare invoices in Karbon and then export them and import them into the appropriately formatted exports for your system.

To do this, click 'Export to QuickBooks Online (QBO)' or 'Export to Xero' from the approved list or from the triple dots at the bottom of the invoice. Once you have done this, the invoice will move into the Exported section.

Please keep in mind: You cannot export and then send an invoice. Each invoice can only be exported or sent.

Editing an Approved Invoice

If you want to update the invoice to either fix an error that is stopping them from sending it or to make other changes, you are able to edit the invoice. If there are missing details, you will be prompted to do this from the modal. You can also edit the invoice from the triple dots. Once the edit invoice action has been clicked, the invoice will move back into Draft. It will then need to be Approved or Sent again.

There are some scenarios where approved invoices cannot be edited:

  • Work item or Contact associated with the invoice has been deleted:

  • If there is a draft invoice existing for a work item on the approved invoice (e.g. since approving the invoice, a draft invoice has been created):

Voiding an Approved or Sent Invoice

If you'd like to void an invoice, you are able to do this by clicking the triple dot option from the invoice list. Once voided, the invoice will move into the Voided section and the items that it comprised will move back into the Unbilled section.

Resend or download an invoice

For those invoices that have a status of Awaiting Payment or Paid, you can either resend the invoice via a Client Request to the Billing Entity, or download the invoice as a .pdf file to forward or print out. You can find this option on the 3 dot options menu of these Invoices, as well as in the receivables area for each client.

For resending invoices, you can also multi-select invoices and re-send these in bulk to your clients.

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