Quick Start: Create an invoice

In Microsoft Office Accounting 2008, there are three main ways to create an invoice: Open a new Invoice form, convert a quote to an invoice, and convert a sales order to an invoice.

Note: You can create invoices for both active and inactive customers.

Tip: If you frequently create invoices that have the same field or line item information, you can save an invoice as a template that you can reuse. For more information, see Create a recurring document.

Create a new invoice

If this sale did not result from a quote or a sales order, you can create a new invoice by following these steps:

1. On the Customers menu, point to New, and then click New Invoice.

2. Enter the information on the invoice.

3. Do one of the following:

   • To close the invoice, click Save and Close.

   • To create another invoice, click Save and New.

   • To save the invoice as a template that you can reuse, click Recurring.

Create an invoice from a quote

If this sale originated with a quote, you can generate an invoice using the information from that quote by following these steps:

1. On the Customers menu, point to Customer Lists, and then click Quotes.

2. Right-click an open quote, and then click Convert to Invoice.

3. Enter the information on the invoice.

4. Do one of the following:

   • To close the invoice, click Save and Close.

   • To create another invoice, click Save and New.

   • To save the invoice as a template that you can reuse, click Recurring.

Create an invoice from a sales order

If a sales order was created for this transaction, you can create an invoice that uses the information from that sales order by following these steps:

1. On the Customers menu, point to Customer Lists, and then click Sales Orders.

2. Double-click the sales order. Its status must be Not Invoiced or Partially Invoiced.

3. On the toolbar, click Create, and then click Create Invoice.

   A new invoice appears that contains all the information from the sales order. Its status is Not Paid.

   Note: If any line item on the sales order contains a negative quantity, it is not carried over to the invoice, and you have to add the item to the invoice.

4. Enter the information on the invoice.

5. Do one of the following:

   • To close the invoice, click Save and Close.

   • To create another invoice, click Save and New.

   • To save the invoice as a template that you can reuse, click Recurring.

Keep in mind

Here is some additional information about creating invoices:

• To view all invoices, on the Customers menu, point to Customer Lists, and then click Invoices.

• When you save an invoice that has a status of Open, the invoice is posted to the customer's accounts receivable balance. You can also save a partial invoice when only part of a sales order can be fulfilled. Additionally, the sales tax is posted to the same customer account.

• Because an invoice affects accounting, you cannot delete it. If you need to make changes to an invoice, you can edit it or void it.

• Cash discounts are posted as part of the invoice payments, not as part of the invoice.

• This article covers three main ways of creating invoices. You can create invoices in some additional ways:

  • Create a new invoice from the Job List.

  • Create partial invoices.

  • Create an invoice from an employee time entry.

  • Create a new invoice from the Item List.

  • Create an invoice by copying and editing.

  • Create progress invoices for a job.

    Note: For information about how to create invoices using these methods, see Office Accounting 2008 Help.

For additional information

• Create an invoice