Invoicing customers

There are 3 ways to create invoices from SortScape:

1. You can create, send and manage invoices directly from inside of SortScape without connecting to Xero or QuickBooks Online.

2. You can connect to Xero and create / send Xero invoices from inside of SortScape.

3. You can connect to QuickBooks Online and create / send QuickBooks Online invoices from inside of SortScape.

Many invoicing settings — including due dates, invoice numbers, and invoice templates — depend on which of these options you use. If you are not connected to Xero or QuickBooks Online, you are using SortScape’s built-in invoicing and those settings are configured in SortScape (see Setting invoice due dates and Setting invoice numbers).

You can only use one invoicing method at a time. If you need to change from Xero to QuickBooks Online, move to SortScape built-in invoicing, or switch the other way, see Switching invoicing method.

Create an invoice

Quick guide

Log in as an administrator and make sure invoicing is set up for your account. Requires invoicing must be turned on for the visit. If it is off, Create invoice is not available, and the completed visit will not appear in the pending invoicing list or prompt you to invoice it.

Choose the path that matches the visit:

• One or more completed visits: Open Invoicing and select Completed (Xero or QuickBooks Online) or Visits pending invoicing (SortScape built-in invoicing). Select the visits, click Invoice, then complete the Create invoice form.
• One completed visit: Open the visit from Schedule. If needed, click Complete first. Then click the primary Create invoice button.
• One visit before work is complete: Open the visit from Schedule, click the ⋮ menu next to Complete, then select Create invoice.

Common mistake: Invoicing → Invoices shows invoices you have already created. It does not show visits waiting to be invoiced. Switch to Completed or Visits pending invoicing to create an invoice from completed visits.

From the Invoicing screen

Log in as an administrator and open Invoicing.

The Invoicing screen has two tabs:

• Completed (shown when you invoice through Xero or QuickBooks Online) or Visits pending invoicing (shown when you use SortScape built-in invoicing). Use this tab to create new invoices from finished visits.
• Invoices. Use this tab to search, view, and manage invoices you have already created. You cannot select completed visits here to create a new invoice.

Use the Group by dropdown in the top-right corner to organize visits by property or billing contact. Select the visit(s) you want to invoice and click Invoice at the top of the screen, then complete the Create invoice form. If you selected multiple visits, SortScape combines them into one invoice.

When combining multiple visits into a single invoice, all selected visits must share the same billing contact. Visits at the same property always qualify. Visits at different properties also qualify when those properties use the same billing contact. If you select a visit with a different billing contact, SortScape automatically deselects the others.

To create an invoice from completed visits:

1. Open Invoicing.
2. Select the Completed or Visits pending invoicing tab (not Invoices).
3. Use the Group by dropdown to sort visits by property or contact (billing contact).
4. Select the grouped visits you want on one invoice.
5. Click Invoice, then complete the Create invoice form.

If you landed on Invoicing → Invoices and do not see visits to select, switch to the Completed or Visits pending invoicing tab.

One invoice for multiple properties

You can put visits from more than one property on a single invoice when those properties share the same billing contact. This is common when one landlord or property manager pays for several sites.

1. Make sure each property uses the same billing contact. On the property record, set Billing contact to that person or company (see Changing a property billing contact).
2. Open Invoicing.
3. Set Group by to Group by contact (top right).
4. Select the visits you want across those properties.
5. Click Invoice, then complete the Create invoice form.

SortScape only blocks selection when visits have different billing contacts, not when they are simply at different addresses. If properties bill to different people, create separate invoices.

From a visit on the schedule

To invoice a single visit, open it directly from your schedule.

If the work is already done:

1. Open the visit from Schedule.
2. Click Complete if the visit is not already complete.
3. Click the primary Create invoice button.

If you want to invoice before marking the visit complete:

1. Open the visit from Schedule.
2. Click the ⋮ menu (next to Complete).
3. Select Create invoice.

Create invoice is available on visits that are not yet marked complete, as long as you are an administrator, Requires invoicing is enabled, and invoicing is set up for your account. This lets you bill a customer before work is done or before you mark the visit complete.

After a visit is marked complete, Create invoice also appears as a primary button on the visit.

Invoicing before work is complete

If you invoice a visit before marking it complete, keep in mind:

• The Completed or Visits pending invoicing tab only lists completed visits. You cannot bulk-invoice multiple incomplete scheduled visits from that screen.
• For time-and-materials visits, line items may still show estimated hours until the visit is marked complete and actual time is logged.
• Checklist items only transfer to the invoice when marked Work done.
• Once invoiced, the visit is locked. You cannot change logged time, materials, or line items unless you remove invoice status.

See also Can I invoice customers before work is complete? for advance billing and bulk scheduled-visit scenarios.

Select the visit(s) you want to invoice and click “Invoice”

SortScape shows a Create invoice preview with the visit’s line items pre-filled before you submit the invoice. The line items come from the invoicing basis you set for that visit (see below). On this screen you can add, remove, or edit line items and other invoicing details before you submit the invoice.

Line items you add only on this preview are saved on the invoice and sent to Xero or QuickBooks Online. They are not added back to the visit. They will not appear when you reopen the visit or in Property history on the property screen.

To have a line item show on the visit, add it to the visit’s Invoice items before you click Create invoice. See One-off charges on a single visit.

By default, the invoice uses the billing contact set on the property. You can select a different billing contact when creating an invoice, and optionally save that choice as the new property default.

If you need help deciding who should be the service contact vs billing contact (for example rentals, strata/body corporate, or HOA setups), see Setting up service and billing contacts for rentals, strata, and HOAs.

If “Create invoice” is missing for a visit

If you cannot see Create invoice on a visit, check the following:

1. You are logged in as an Administrator (employees and contractors cannot create invoices).
2. The visit has Requires invoicing enabled.
3. Invoicing is set up for your account (built-in invoicing, Xero, or QuickBooks Online).

A visit does not need to be marked complete before Create invoice appears in the visit ⋮ menu.

If Requires invoicing is turned off, that visit is treated as non-billable and won’t show invoice actions. To invoice it, edit the visit, enable Requires invoicing, set the billing type and line items, then save.

Remove a visit from Visits pending invoicing

The Visits pending invoicing tab lists completed visits that still need an invoice. These are visits, not invoices, so there is no delete button on that list.

To stop a visit appearing there:

1. Open the visit from the list or your schedule.
2. If the visit is already marked complete, click Reopen first. Completed visits cannot be edited until they are reopened.
3. Click Edit.
4. Under Invoice settings, turn off Requires invoicing.
5. Save the visit.
6. If the work was already done, mark the visit complete again.

The visit will drop off the pending list.

If you cannot click Edit

• The visit is completed or skipped: click Reopen, then Edit.
• You are a Contractor: contractors cannot edit visits. Ask an Administrator or Employee to make the change.
• Employees can edit visits. You do not need Administrator permission only to turn off Requires invoicing.

Clear several visits from the pending list at once

The pending list is completed work waiting to be invoiced, so the fastest way to clear it depends on what you want:

• You want to bill the work: on Invoicing → Visits pending invoicing, tick the visits and click Invoice. Visits that share a billing contact combine onto one invoice.
• The work was already paid (cash) or you do not want a SortScape invoice: tick the visits, click the arrow next to Invoice, and choose Mark invoiced. Enter a label such as cash. This clears them from the list without creating an invoice or a payment record. See Clear a cash visit without creating an invoice.
• The visits should never be invoiced: turn off Requires invoicing on each one (see the steps above). There is no bulk option for this, so do it per visit.

Does Skip remove a visit from the pending list?

Yes, indirectly. The pending list only shows completed visits, so a skipped visit does not appear there. You can only skip a visit that is not yet completed, so to skip one that is already on the pending list, click Reopen first, then Skip. Only skip a visit if the work did not happen. If the work was done, invoice it or use Mark invoiced instead.

Check for missed invoicing

Use the Visits pending invoicing tab on the Invoicing screen when you want to review completed visits that still need an invoice. This is where you check whether billable work was completed but not yet invoiced.

1. Open Invoicing.
2. Select the Visits pending invoicing tab.

You can also open the same list from the Pending invoicing card on the Dashboard (administrators only). See Dashboard.

If you need completed visit details in a spreadsheet (for example, work done, hours, or invoicing status), use Invoicing → ⋮ → Export completed visits. See FAQ - How do I export visit information for a specific customer?.

Recording cash payments

How you record cash depends on whether you need the money in SortScape’s paid totals, or you only need to clear the visit from pending invoicing.

Record cash as a payment

If you use SortScape’s built-in invoicing, create the invoice and use Record payment. This adds the cash to the invoice payment history and the Sales and tax report Payments received totals. See Recording invoice payments for the steps.

If you invoice through Xero or QuickBooks Online, create the invoice from SortScape, then record the cash payment in Xero or QuickBooks Online. Use that accounting system’s reports for payment and tax totals.

Schedule day/week/month Value totals still use each visit’s estimated value. That is not the same as payments received.

Clear a cash visit without creating an invoice

Use this when the customer already paid on site and you do not want a SortScape, Xero, or QuickBooks invoice. This only marks the visit invoiced in SortScape. It does not create a payment and does not appear in paid or payments-received totals.

1. Open the visit from the schedule, or select it on the Invoicing screen.
2. Click the arrow next to Create invoice (or Invoice on the pending list).
3. Select Mark invoiced.
4. When prompted for an invoice number, enter cash (or another label such as Cash - paid on site).

Nothing is sent to Xero or QuickBooks Online. Use Mark invoiced only when you do not want an invoice or payment record created in SortScape or your accounting system.

If the visit should not require invoicing at all, turn off Requires invoicing instead (reopen the visit first if it is already complete). See Remove a visit from Visits pending invoicing.

Applying discounts

SortScape does not include a separate discount field or percentage on invoices. To reduce the invoice total, add a line item with a negative unit price and set the quantity as needed. Use a clear description so your customer understands the adjustment, for example “Loyalty discount” or “Promotional discount”.

You can add a discount line item:

• On the Create invoice form when invoicing one or more completed visits.
• On a visit’s Invoice items before the visit is invoiced (including one-off and repeating line items).

The invoice total will decrease by the amount of the negative line. Tax is calculated on each line item according to your usual settings (see Tax treatment of invoices below).

For example, to apply a $15 discount, add a line item with description “Promotional discount”, quantity 1, and price -15.00.

Entering a negative price on a phone

Some Android on-screen keyboards (especially number or decimal keyboards) do not show a minus (-) key, so you cannot type a negative price in the app on those devices.

If your keyboard has no minus key:

1. Open SortScape in a web browser (on a computer, or on your phone’s browser if that keyboard can type -).
2. Edit the invoice, quote, or visit line items as usual.
3. Enter the negative price (for example -10.00) and save.

Negative prices work the same once entered. The limitation is only typing - on some phone keyboards, not the discount feature itself.

Checklist items and invoices

Checklist items represent tasks or services associated with a visit. To ensure these items appear on your invoice:

1. Navigate to the “Work Required” section where pending tasks are displayed.
2. Mark each completed item to change its status to “Work Done”.
3. Only items marked as “Work Done” will be automatically transferred to the invoice when you create it. Double-check the completion status of all checklist items before creating an invoice to avoid missing entries in your final invoice. Checklist items marked as “Work Done” during the visit are automatically included in the line items on this form. This ensures all completed tasks or services are accurately represented in the invoice.

Sending the invoice

When creating and invoice, you may see the option to either “automatically email invoice” or “automatically send invoice text message.”

Emailing invoices

If you click the “Automatically email invoice” checkbox when creating an invoice then the invoice will be emailed to the customer as soon as it’s created. Please note that this box is only selectable if the billing contact has an email address specified and, in the case of Xero, the default invoice status is set to either “approved” or “waiting approval” on the Xero page.

The invoice PDF is attached to the email when you use SortScape’s built-in invoicing, QuickBooks Online, or Xero with Email Xero invoices from SortScape? turned on. Optional visit photos or files you select are sent as separate attachments. They are not added into the invoice PDF itself. See Selecting attachments and Why is the invoice PDF not attached to the invoice emails?.

To have the invoice always get automatically emailed, turn on Automatically email new invoices? in Settings → Messaging → Invoice messages.

Sending invoices as a text message

If you are creating invoices directly within SortScape or Xero, you can also optionally send new invoices as a text message. (Sending invoices via text message is not available for QuickBooks Online customers).

If you click the Send invoice text message checkbox when creating an invoice, SortScape sends a text message to the customer as soon as the invoice is created, including when the invoice is stored in Xero. The text uses your SMS text message credits. This box is only selectable if the billing contact has a primary mobile number specified and, in the case of Xero, the default invoice status is set to either “approved” or “waiting approval” on the Xero page. If the contact has additional SMS reminder numbers, the invoice text is sent to each number and uses one SMS credit per recipient. See Multiple mobile numbers for SMS reminders.

Sending invoices after they have been created

If you don’t tick the “Automatically email invoice” checkbox or “Automatically send invoice text message” checkbox when creating the invoice, then you will need to send the invoice AFTER it’s been created.

If you create your invoices inside of SortScape and are not connected to Xero or QuickBooks Online you can navigate to the invoice in SortScape, open it, and then click on either the email icon or chat icon in the upper right hand corner of the invoice. That will allow you to send the invoice either by email or text message.

If you are connected to Xero or QuickBooks Online and did not tick the send options when creating the invoice, you need to send it from Xero or QuickBooks Online after it has been created. SortScape cannot send a Xero or QuickBooks Online invoice after the fact.

Invoice status when using Xero or QuickBooks Online

On the Invoicing screen, each invoice shows a status such as Draft, Sent, Overdue, or Paid. If you send invoices from Xero or QuickBooks Online rather than from SortScape, the status in SortScape still updates, but not immediately.

When you create an invoice in SortScape, it is saved to your accounting system and usually shows as Draft in SortScape until the next status sync runs. SortScape regularly pulls invoice details (including sent and paid status, amounts, and due dates) from Xero or QuickBooks Online:

• Xero: about every 12 hours
• QuickBooks Online: about once per day

Your integration still runs more often (about every 30 minutes) to keep contacts and products up to date. Invoice status is synced on the schedule above to limit API usage.

This status sync does not add or change line items on the visit. Visit invoice items are set on the visit before you create the invoice, or by editing the visit after you remove invoiced status.

After a sync runs, invoices you have sent from Xero or QuickBooks Online should show as Sent in SortScape. Until then, seeing Draft does not mean anything went wrong. It just means SortScape has not refreshed that invoice yet. It is normal to see a mix of Draft and Sent if some invoices have synced and others are still waiting.

If you want to update statuses sooner, open Settings → Integrations → Xero or Settings → Integrations → QuickBooks Online and click Sync with Xero or Sync with QuickBooks now. Check back after a few minutes.

How to tell who sent the invoice: SortScape only records emails and text messages it sends itself. Open Settings → Messaging → Sent messages. If an invoice is not listed there, it was sent from Xero or QuickBooks Online, not from SortScape. An invoice can show as Sent in SortScape after a status sync even when SortScape did not send it.

Status sync applies to invoices from roughly the last 120 days. Older unpaid invoices may not show an updated status in SortScape.

If you tick Automatically email invoice or Send invoice text message when creating the invoice, SortScape can mark the invoice as sent straight away without waiting for the next sync.

Invoice status after partial payments

SortScape’s built-in invoices support one or more payments against the same balance. See Recording invoice payments for partial-payment status, balances, and payment history.

Sending payment receipts

See Sending payment receipts for invoices for receipt options, online-payment behavior, and Payment received templates.

Note to Xero customers

Xero invoices have separate settings for email and text messages:

Email: You can choose how Xero invoices are emailed by enabling or disabling Email Xero invoices from SortScape? under Settings → Integrations → Xero:

• When turned ON: Invoices are emailed from SortScape with a PDF attachment included. Edit the email template under Settings → Messaging → Invoice messages.
• When turned OFF: Invoices are emailed from Xero. The subject and body of these emails are generated using your Xero account’s default Sales Invoice template. Emails sent from Xero do not include a PDF attachment of the invoice, so please make sure your default Sales Invoice template in Xero includes a link to the online invoice.

Text message: Unlike email, there is no setting to send invoice SMS through Xero. SortScape sends invoice texts only when you tick Send invoice text message at creation time (see above). Edit the template under Settings → Messaging → Invoice messages. To send an invoice after creation, use Xero. SortScape does not have information on what Xero may charge to send invoices from within Xero.

Who receives replies to invoice emails

When Email Xero invoices from SortScape? is turned on, SortScape sends the invoice email.

The From address is your business name via SortScape. The Reply to address is:

• Your account Job email reply-to address, if set under Settings → Messaging → Settings, or
• The SortScape user who created or sent the invoice, if reply-to is not set

If an employee creates invoices and you do not want customers replying to that employee, set the reply-to address to a shared inbox under Settings → Messaging → Settings.

For more on email replies, see Managing customer text messages and emails.

Correct billing contact or address after an invoice is created

You cannot change the billing contact on an existing invoice in SortScape when you use Xero or QuickBooks Online. Those invoices are managed in your accounting system, not in SortScape.

Invoiced visits are locked. They do not appear on Visits pending invoicing until you remove invoiced status. You cannot create a second invoice for the same visit while it is still marked invoiced.

The easiest fix is to get billing details right before you create the invoice. On the New invoice screen, use Select billing contact for a one-off change, or update the property’s Billing contact if the default should change. See Changing a property billing contact.

Xero or QuickBooks Online

Once an invoice has been created in your accounting system, SortScape cannot change the billing contact or billing address on that invoice. What you do next depends on your accounting workflow and whether the invoice has already been sent.

For Xero or QuickBooks Online customers, the usual fix is to update the billing address on the contact in your accounting system, or change the invoice contact to a contact with the correct billing details.

If the invoice is already in Xero or QuickBooks Online and you are not sure how to correct it, contact SortScape support.

You cannot edit billing addresses on contacts in SortScape when connected to Xero or QuickBooks Online. Address changes are made in your accounting system and sync back to SortScape.

SortScape built-in invoicing

If you use SortScape’s built-in invoicing, you can update an existing invoice directly:

1. Open Invoicing → Invoices and open the invoice.
2. Click Edit.
3. Change Select billing contact if needed.
4. Save the invoice.

If the billing contact is correct but the billing address is wrong, open that contact, update the billing address, then return to the invoice.

You can also open the visit and choose Remove invoiced status if you only need to unlock the visit. See Editing time or line items after a visit has been invoiced.

If you want to fully cancel and recreate a built-in invoice, delete it from Invoicing → Invoices → open invoice → ⋮ → Delete. That returns linked visits to Visits pending invoicing.

Selecting attachments

You can add photos and other attachments to invoices. For example, if your employees upload photos of completed work to a visit, you can attach those photos to the invoice so they are sent to your customer.

When using accounting integrations:

• In Xero, attachments default to “Send with Invoice”
• In QuickBooks Online, attachments default to “Attach to email”

This allows attachments to be shared with your customer when the invoice is sent.

Important: Attached photos are sent as separate attachments. They are not rendered inside or at the bottom of the invoice PDF.

Attachments are not included by default. You must manually select which attachments to include when creating the invoice. This helps prevent photos intended for internal use from being accidentally sent to customers.

Only photos and files attached directly to the visit can be added to an invoice. Attachments stored on the property (job site), including ones marked Show on visits, do not appear in the invoice attachment picker.

If you need a property photo on an invoice, upload it to the visit first (or upload it again on that visit), then select it when you create the invoice.

Automatically add visit attachments to new invoices

If you want every visit attachment selected automatically when creating an invoice, turn on Automatically add visit attachments to new invoices.

To turn this on or off:

1. Choose your invoicing method:
   • Xero: Settings → Integrations → Xero
   • QuickBooks Online: Settings → Integrations → QuickBooks Online
   • SortScape built-in invoicing: Settings → Invoicing → Invoices
2. Find Automatically add visit attachments to new invoices and turn it on or off.

This setting applies to all users in your account.

This is different from Invoice messages, which controls automatic invoice emails and reminders, not photo attachments.

Creating contacts and items in Xero or QuickBooks Online

If the billing contact you specify does not already exist as a customer in the connected Xero or QuickBooks Online account, then a new customer will be created in that system.

If a material referenced on an invoice line item don’t exist as a product or service in the connected Xero or QuickBooks Online account then a new product will be created in that system.

Note for QuickBooks Online users:

• To add the service date to a QuickBooks Online invoice, enable QuickBooks service date? under Settings → Integrations → QuickBooks Online. The Service Date option should also be enabled in QuickBooks Online.
• For US customers that allow their customers to pay QuickBooks Online invoices electronically, you can allow invoices to be paid with online bank transfers or credit card by updating Allow online credit card payments and Allow online ACH payments? under Settings → Integrations → QuickBooks Online.
• The “service date” field on the QuickBooks Online invoice line item will be the date the SortScape visit was completed.

Setting the invoicing basis for a visit

Customers who started using SortScape before October 2024 read about the old method for setting the invoicing basis here.

When creating or editing a visit, you can set how the visit will be invoiced. When creating or editing a visit you will see two checkboxes

Requires Invoicing - if this box is selected, you can create an invoice for this visit from the visit ⋮ menu (including before the visit is marked complete) or from the Invoicing screen after the visit is marked complete. If you don’t plan to create an invoice for this visit then you can un-select this box so that you’re not prompted to invoice this visit later.

Charge hourly based on time logged - this is for visits billed on a time-and-materials basis. If this box is selected, any hours you log against the visit will be invoiced at the hourly rate set. Set Estimated time (hours:minutes) using the Presets dropdown and fine-tune with the - and + buttons. SortScape adds a line item with those estimated hours to the Invoice items section. When the visit is marked complete, the line item will be updated with actual hours logged. This update happens before you create the invoice. Once a visit has been invoiced, logged time and line items can no longer be changed unless you remove invoice status.

To control how logged hours are rounded on the invoice, choose your invoicing method:

• Settings → Invoicing → Invoices
• Settings → Integrations → Xero
• Settings → Integrations → QuickBooks Online

Change Round employee time to. Options are No rounding, 5 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or 60 minutes. Each employee’s hours for a job are rounded up to the next selected minute block.

For more detail on the estimated time field, see Setting estimated time.

For example, if you estimate a visit will take an hour at $60 per hour, then you will see a line item for the estimated amount of $60 as shown below:

Once you mark the visit complete then that 1 hour estimate will be replaced by the actual hours logged against the visit either manually or by using the visit timer. You can add or edit logged hours after marking a visit complete, but only before the visit has been invoiced. For example, if 1.5 hours were actually logged, then the visit would look like the one below once it’s been completed:

Invoice items lists all the line items that will be added to the invoice when you create it. To apply a discount on a visit before invoicing, add a line item with a negative price (see Applying discounts).

How invoice items affect schedule totals

The total of a visit’s Invoice items (plus any estimated hours line for time-and-materials visits) is what SortScape uses as the visit’s estimated value on the schedule. At the bottom of the schedule you will see Total for the day, Total for the week, or Total for the month, with a Value column that adds up those visit totals by crew.

Visit cards on the schedule do not show dollar amounts on the card itself. Open a visit to review its invoice items and total. For more detail, see Seeing estimated values on the schedule.

One-off charges on a single visit

If you need to charge extra on one visit without changing the price on future visits (for example, extra work or materials on top of a regular fixed-price maintenance visit), add a one-off line item while viewing that visit on the schedule.

1. Open Schedule and click the visit.
2. Do not click Edit on the repeating visit series.
3. In Invoice items, add a line item with the extra description and price.
4. Confirm the new line item has a “1” icon. That means it applies to this visit date only.

Add the extra line item on the visit before you click Create invoice. Lines added only on the Create invoice preview appear on the invoice and in Xero or QuickBooks Online, but not on the visit or in Property history.

Line items behave differently depending on whether you are viewing or editing the visit:

• Viewing a visit (not in edit mode): a new line item is added to that visit date only. It shows a “1” icon.
• Creating or editing a repeating visit: a new line item is added to every visit in the series. It shows a circular repeating icon.

Do not change the price on an existing repeating line item if you only want to adjust one visit. That updates the price on all future visits in the series. Add a separate one-off line item instead.

For a full walkthrough, see How do I change the price on just one visit without changing future visits?.

If you need extra scheduled hours for that day as well (not just an extra charge), create a separate one-off visit for the extra work. See How do I add extra work to a repeating visit without changing future visits?.

Invoice items missing on the visit page?

The Invoice items section on a visit (in view mode) only appears when time and materials tracking is enabled for your account. This is on by default.

If you open a visit from Schedule and see General Instructions and work required, Issues, Attachments, and Work done, but no Invoice items, check:

1. Open Settings → Time & materials → Settings.
2. Confirm Time and materials tracking enabled is on.

When tracking is off, Invoice items may still appear when you Edit a visit, but you cannot add one-off line items from the visit show page the way this article describes. Re-enable tracking to restore that workflow.

See Time and materials administration.

Delete or cancel an invoice (SortScape built-in invoicing)

If you created an invoice in SortScape and want to remove it:

1. Open Invoicing and go to the Invoices tab.
2. Open the invoice.
3. Click the ⋮ menu and select Delete.
4. Confirm the deletion.

Deleting the invoice removes it from SortScape and returns any linked visits to Visits pending invoicing so you can invoice them again.

Remove invoiced status on a visit is different. It unmarks the visit as invoiced but does not delete the invoice record. Use Delete on the invoice when you want to cancel it entirely.

You must be logged in as an Administrator to delete invoices.

Editing time or line items after a visit has been invoiced

Once a visit has been invoiced, whether you used Create invoice or Mark invoiced, the visit is locked. You cannot add or remove logged time, materials, or invoice line items.

If you need to change the hours or line items after invoicing:

1. Open the visit.
2. Select Remove invoiced status.
3. Make your changes (add or edit logged time, materials, or invoice line items).
4. When finished, create the invoice again or use Mark invoiced.

This unmarks the visit as invoiced. It does not delete a SortScape invoice record. To remove the invoice entirely, use Delete on the invoice (Invoices tab → open invoice → ⋮ → Delete).

For visits billed hourly based on time logged, hours can be added or edited after the visit is marked complete, but only before the visit has been invoiced. The invoice line item updates to reflect actual logged hours when the visit is marked complete — not after an invoice has already been created.

Setting invoice due dates

Where the invoice due date comes from depends on how you invoice:

• SortScape built-in invoicing: set the company default due date under Settings → Invoicing → Invoices. You can also override payment terms on an individual contact. See Setting invoice due dates and Setting invoice defaults for a contact.
• Xero or QuickBooks Online: the due date is controlled in your accounting system, not in SortScape. See Setting invoice due dates for details.

Tax treatment of invoices

SortScape built-in invoicing

Set your company Default tax rate and Default tax treatment under Settings → Invoicing → Invoices. To use different tax settings for one customer, override them on that contact. See Setting invoice defaults for a contact.

When an invoice is headed “Tax invoice” or “Invoice”

With SortScape built-in invoicing, the heading on the invoice PDF and on the online invoice your customer opens is either Tax invoice or Invoice. SortScape sets this automatically from the invoice’s tax treatment and line items, so the wording matches what a GST-registered business is expected to send. There is no separate switch for it.

An invoice is headed Tax invoice when both of these are true:

• The invoice tax treatment is Tax inclusive or Tax exclusive (that is, not No tax), and
• The invoice has a GST amount, or it has at least one line item using the GST Free tax rate.

An invoice is headed Invoice when either of these is true:

• The invoice tax treatment is No tax, or
• The invoice tax treatment is tax inclusive or tax exclusive, but there is no GST on the invoice and no line items use the GST Free tax rate.

This follows how GST works in Australia. A business registered for GST issues a tax invoice, and a sale can still be on a tax invoice when the item itself is GST free (for example some food or health services), as long as the business is GST registered. A business that is not registered for GST should not issue a tax invoice, so setting the tax treatment to No tax keeps the heading as Invoice.

To change which heading an invoice gets, set the tax treatment:

• For every customer, set the company Default tax treatment under Settings → Invoicing → Invoices.
• For one customer, override Invoice tax treatment on that contact. See Setting invoice defaults for a contact.

Where the heading appears

The Tax invoice heading is used in the two places your customer actually receives:

• The invoice PDF (including the PDF attached to invoice emails).
• The online invoice your customer opens from the emailed link.

Two other places always read Invoice, whatever the tax treatment:

• The invoice screen inside SortScape that you view as the business.
• The body of the invoice email itself, above the invoice summary.

So if you are checking the email body or your own invoice screen and see Invoice, open the attached PDF or the online invoice before assuming the wording is wrong. On a GST-registered account, the PDF usually already reads Tax invoice.

QuickBooks Online

SortScape uses the tax settings on each QuickBooks Online product / service to determine:

1. The tax rate to be applied on each invoice line item and
2. (Australian, New Zealand, Great Britain) Whether the tax on each invoice line item is tax inclusive or tax exclusive

Xero invoices

By default, invoices are created with the status of “approved” in Xero. You can change Default invoice status under Settings → Integrations → Xero to “draft” or “awaiting approval”, depending on your Xero invoicing workflow.

To determine whether an invoice should be “tax inclusive” or “tax exclusive”, SortScape uses the Tax Defaults specified in the financial settings of your Xero account as shown below:

When you invoice an item that doesn’t yet exist in Xero, we will create the Xero item for you when the invoice is created. When creating that item, we will code it according to the account code specified on the setting “Account for new Xero products.” For example, if you have account “Sales - 200” specified in your “Account for new Xero products” setting, then any new Xero item created from SortScape would use account “Sales - 200.”

To determine the tax rate applied on each invoice line item, SortScape uses the “Account code” set for the Xero Product or Service specified on the line item. If no Xero product or Service is specified then SortScape will use the “Account for new Xero products” setting specified in SortScape’s Xero settings screen.

If you have a Xero customer that is tax-exempt or has non-standard tax treatment then then you can:

• Go into Xero
• Edit that Xero contact
• Go to “Sales Defaults”
• Change their “Sales tax” settings like tax rate or tax inclusive / exclusive treatment
• Save the contact

This new tax rate will now get applied to any future invoices created for this contact.

Adding a billing reference to invoices

Sometimes your clients require you to provide an account number, client number or reference code on the invoices you send them. For this case, we have a “billing reference” field which can be set for each property. The “billing reference” will get added to any invoices that get created for that property.

If you are sending invoices through Xero, the billing reference will get added to the “reference” field at the top the Xero invoice.

If you are sending invoices through SortScape or QuickBooks Online, the billing reference will get added to the customer notes field at the bottom of the invoice.

To change the billing reference, edit the property and update the contents of the “billing reference” field.

Running an end-of-year invoice report

At the end of the year, your accountant may require a report of all the invoices created or paid during the year. If you are using Xero or QuickBooks online, this report can be run within those systems.

If you are using SortScape built-in invoicing, you can also download the Sales and tax report (.xlsx) from the invoice list export menu. It includes invoice, payment, and tax summaries for a selected period. See Sales and tax report (Excel export).