Create Invoice

When to use this flow

Converting job progress into a progress claim or final invoice.
Issuing a standalone invoice for ad-hoc work.
Turning separate labour entries (approved timesheets) into their own invoice.
Creating or editing a batch-generated draft.

Launch it from Invoices → New Invoice, from a job’s Create Invoice button, or by opening a batch draft (Step 2/3/4 reuse the same wizard).

Step 1 – Pick the client & source

Client picker

Start typing a company name to search. Select one to load contacts and that company’s active jobs.
Need a one-off customer? Switch to the Ad-hoc tab, enter the company name, and optionally add a contact. The system creates a lightweight client behind the scenes.

Job tabs

Progress invoices – shows jobs with work still to claim. Cards display job number, billing stage, remaining dollars, assigned team, and last update. Select one to prefill the invoice with that job's allocations.
Final invoices – filters to jobs marked Finalized so you can raise the closing invoice without hunting through the progress list.
Bill separate labour – lists approved labour entries waiting to be billed separately. Pick a customer, tick the labour rows, and the wizard auto-adds those lines when you create the draft.

Once you select a company from the client picker, the Progress and Final tabs automatically filter to show only that company's jobs—handy when the customer already told you which project needs billing.

Auto-prefill behaviour

Selecting a job preselects the company + contact, links the invoice to the job, and (for final invoices) can auto-submit straight into Step 2 when you open the wizard from the job detail screen.
Deselecting the job clears the link so you can issue a standalone invoice for the same customer.

Hit Create Draft to move into the wizard. Drafts created from batch runs automatically open on Step 3 with a banner describing the batch.

Step 2 – Invoice settings

Use this card to lock in dates, payment terms, pricing mode, and discounts.

Issued date & due date – set the issued date manually or leave today’s date. Choose Net 7/14/30, Due on receipt, End of month, or custom days/day-of-month; the preview line shows the actual due date.
Pricing mode – toggle between tax-inclusive and exclusive pricing. This controls how line totals and PDFs are rendered.
Discount – add a dollar amount; GST is handled automatically.
Online payments – enable card/BPAY toggles if your deployment supports them; otherwise leave them off. The badge at the top reminds you which invoice type you’re building (Standalone, Progress, or Final) so you know which downstream actions will fire. Save states show inline (“Saved 2 min ago”); you can revisit settings later from Step 3 or 4.

Step 3 – Scope & claims (builder)

This is where you assemble the monetary side of the invoice.

Job-linked invoices

Job lines – progress/final invoices pull locked lines from the job plan. Quantities, unit prices, tax codes, and notes are editable unless the job is locked.
Progress claim summary – the right column shows baseline vs claimed vs remaining totals per allocation. Use the target completion shortcuts (e.g. enter 50 for 50 %) to generate a claim snapshot, then click Save progress claim. Once saved, the snapshot powers the printable claim form and the “Download claim form” button later.
Manual override – switch to manual mode if you’d rather build the invoice like a standalone document. Autosave and warnings still apply, but job intent won’t overwrite your edits.
Warnings – if allocations exceed the job balance you’ll see export warnings. Resolve them before attempting to export or send the invoice.
Final invoices – the builder highlights “Final invoice lines” (imported from the job) plus a reconciliation widget showing Contract, Claimed prior, This invoice, and Balance after for every allocation. All of those must be correct before you send the final bill.

Standalone or separate labour invoices

Use the item table exactly like the quote builder: add lines, quantities, unit prices, tax codes, and optional notes. Autosave runs after every valid edit.
A dedicated panel lists any draft manual rows (blank descriptions or zero quantities) so you can tidy them up before sending.

Batch context

If you opened the draft from a batch run, a banner at the top gives the run name and a Back to batch preview link. Sending the invoice removes it from the batch queue automatically.

Click Continue to Step 4 once the builder shows “Saved …” and no validation warnings remain.

Step 4 – Polish & send

Editor

Rich-text toolbar with headings, lists, bold/italic, and callouts.
Presentation toggles for unit price, tax column, and group subtotals. Changes update the live preview and PDFs.
Internal notes live under the editor—these stay inside ESS and never hit the customer PDF.

Final checks & actions

Save Draft – manually flushes the doc if you want a confirmation toast.
Mark as sent – available while the invoice is Draft. It saves the polish document, confirms totals in a dialog, and locks the invoice. Email the PDF manually afterward—the system doesn’t send it for you.
Download PDF – always available. Opens the current draft (or sent version) in a new tab.
Download claim form – appears when a progress claim snapshot exists. Use it for supporting paperwork.
Mark as paid – becomes available once the invoice is Sent. Use it after money arrives.

Leaving Step 4 automatically unlocks the Invoice detail view, where you can handle revisions, credit notes, or exports.

After creating the invoice

Need changes after sending? Open the invoice detail page and click Create draft revision. The system saves the customer-facing PDF as a version, returns the invoice to Draft, and routes you back to Step 4 to resend.
Issue a credit or void: also handled from the detail page; see the dedicated guide.
Batch follow-up: once you mark a batch draft as sent, it disappears from the batch tab so you always know which invoices remain outstanding.

Create Invoice

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