What is a correct scenario for partial invoicing?

[_kj]

Hi guys,
I am working with a scenario where we issue Sales Order with all the Items to be delivered. However when we invoice, we invoice the customer according the contract - 3 invoices in total (40%, 30%, 30%) according the milestone fulfilment. The problem here is:

• Sales Order includes all the items that will be delivered - however those items are components of software system and are not corresponding invoice (in other words, when we issue first invoice, non of those items are delivered as this is even before we start to work)
• If I remove all the items in the invoice linked to Sales Order and replace with e.g. item “Service deliver as per agreement”, the link to SO is immediately lost, which is unwanted.

Is there any standard way how to invoice milestones and still keep the link to SO?

Thank you,
Karel

[gvyshnya]

@_kj: Karel, I am afraid there is no good solution for this scenario, out of the box. You will have to develop some customizations to achieve such a partial invoicing with tracking references to the underlying Sales Orders.

[_kj]

Hi @gvyshnya, thank you for reply. So far we are handling that by adding that dummy Item with 1 qty and zero price into the SO so when we create an Invoice and keep that Item, the link still remains there. However it is very weird solution, to be honest.

I suppose there is no other option how to link SO and Invoice manually, right?

[gvyshnya]

@_kj: I am afraid you won’t be able to do anyting else (besides the workaround you described) without custom softare development you commit for your custom ERPNext instance.

[Paul_Frydlewicz]

Even though this one is old, I stumbled across the same problem, and a nice work around here:

Multiple invoices from a single sales order

@ecollot I have the same case here and I have a workaround solution (this is called progress invoice). Please see the sample: [image] Now to do this, you will have to create custom fields for your invoice item (Qty, original amount, and billing %). Now you will have 2 columns for qty, you will have to make the original qty hidden and the custom one printable. Then, you need to fraction the qty on the original field (which hidden to client) and now you have progress invoice. Regards, Yahy…

[psrathi]

Choose UOM as Percent. It automatically starts working in Percentage billing. Do this right from the item creation stage. See below image

[JayRam]

I think @psrathi’s solution is simplicity in itself. Only thing you will have to do is create a separate item for the Project, make it a non-stock item to make it simpler. And use a UOM that allows non-integers (even Percentage as Pradeep suggests). Let’s say you use Kg. So Project XYZ 1 Kg is the Sales Order. In print formats you can always change the Percentage or Kg to anything you want. Now let’s say you have to bill the client for 50%, now you just bill for 0.5 Kg and produce 0.5/1 as a percentage in the Print Format where required. The Pending order report will now show that 0.5 Kg is due against this order.

While this is not an elegant solution, it’s an acceptable hack (or workaround).

If the project consists of items and services that you have to deliver, you obviously have to manage the complexity of the delivery of items with this method. I would create another Stock Item for the project and link this stock item in the same sales order and then create a BOM for the Item deliverables related to the project.

Thanks Pradeep. A client had a similar requirement many months back and I wish I’d thought of this solution then.

Thanks

Jay