Invoice and Credit Memo Lifecycle
Invoices and Credit Memos in Nue have the following statuses in their lifecycle:
Draft
When an invoice is in the "Draft" status, it means that it has been created but not yet finalized or sent to the customer. It serves as a preliminary version that can be edited and reviewed before it is officially processed. Draft invoices are typically used for internal purposes to ensure accuracy and completeness before they are considered active.
The invoices in DRAFT status are enforced with the business rules below:
- Draft invoices can be activated or canceled
- If a draft invoice exists for a customer’s billing period, new invoice items will be added to the draft invoice
- Only draft invoices can be updated with more invoices items.
- There can be only one draft invoice for a billing account.
Active
An invoice in the "Active" status indicates that it has been finalized and sent to the customer for payment. This status signifies that the invoice is currently in the billing cycle and awaiting payment. The customer is expected to review the invoice, make the necessary payment, and fulfill any outstanding obligations mentioned within the invoice. The active status reflects the ongoing transactional phase of the invoice.
The invoices in ACTIVE status are enforced with the business rules below:
- Invoice items in active invoices are considered billing transactions
- Active invoices are immutable: they cannot be updated without being canceled first. Only the latest invoice can be canceled.
- Only unpaid (Payment Status is not equal to Paid), active invoices may be canceled.
Canceled
When an invoice is marked as "Canceled," it means that it has been voided or invalidated. This status is typically assigned when there is a need to nullify the invoice due to various reasons such as errors, changes in agreements, or customer requests. A canceled invoice no longer holds any financial obligations, and it is removed from the active billing cycle. It serves as a record to indicate that the invoice was initially created but has been officially nullified.
The invoices in CANCELED status are enforced with the business rules below:
- Once an invoice is canceled, the assets, subscriptions, entitlements and usage billed in this invoice will be re-billed in the next billing run
- Canceled invoices cannot be reactivated
- Canceled invoices may be deleted.
Users can manage the lifecycle of invoices and credit memos in both Nue App and Nue on Salesforce. Nue manages the synchronization of the invoices and credit memos across both platforms.
The following diagram illustrates the lifecycle:
Pending Activation (Optional)
Before activating an invoice, its status can be marked as "Pending Activation" as an optional step. This status is typically used when there are additional processes required to activate an invoice. For instance, customers may need to calculate the tax of an invoice using their tax engine instead of Nue tax engine integration. In some cases, there may be additional information to be added to an invoice before it is activated. To enable this 'Pending Activation' status for invoices and credit memos, administrators can do so from the Nue System settings.
- If the status 'Pending Activation' is enabled, when a draft invoice is activated through Nue UI or Nue API, the invoice status changes to 'Pending Activation' before being processed.
- Users can update specific fields of the invoice in 'Pending Activation' status through Nue API before activation, such as Tax Amount, Amount, and Balance.
- When an invoice in 'Pending Activation' status is activated through Nue UI or Nue API, it will be activated.
- Users can also cancel an invoice in 'Pending Activation' status. In this case, the invoice's status will change to 'Canceled'.
Preview
Oftentimes, sales reps and customer success managers have a need to preview invoices for quotes, orders, or accounts. For more information about previewing invoices, please refer to this article.
"Preview" status is not part of the lifecycle of an invoice or a credit memo. When a new Preview request is issued, and new preview invoices are saved, the previously saved preview invoices for the same quote, order, or account will be deleted automatically.
Invoice and Credit Memo Actions
Please be aware of the following business rules governing the display and execution of actions related to invoices and credit memos on the Invoice or Credit Memo list page:
| Action | Allowed when invoices or credit memos are in these statuses | Allowed when users have the following custom permissions |
|
ACTIVATE |
|
Activate Invoice |
|
CANCEL |
|
Cancel invoice |
|
DELETE |
|
Delete Invoice |
|
VIEW |
|
N/A |