How to Create and Send Invoices in Tracksales

Invoice statuses

Every invoice has a status that controls what you can do with it:

• Draft — The invoice was just created or has not been finalized yet. It is fully editable. You cannot record payments or apply credit notes until it is finalized. Credit notes cannot be created for draft invoices; finalize the invoice first.
• Due — The invoice has been finalized. You can record payments and apply credit notes. Only limited fields remain editable (see below).
• Paid — The invoice has been paid in full. The same limited-editing rules as "Due" apply.

New invoices are always saved as Draft. When you are ready to accept payments, you use Mark as Finalized to change the status to Due.

1. Creating a new invoice

Go to Invoices from the main menu and click Create Invoice. Then:

• Select a customer — Use the customer search to choose who the invoice is for. The customer cannot be changed after the invoice is finalized (status Due or Paid).
• Order # — Optional reference (e.g. purchase order number).
• Invoice date and Due date — Set the invoice date and payment terms (e.g. Due on receipt, Net 7, Net 30). The due date can be edited even after the invoice is finalized.

Add line items by searching for products, entering quantity and rate, and optionally discount (percent or fixed) and tax per line. Quantity and rate fields show decimals only when they have a non-zero decimal part (e.g. 1 instead of 1.00, 10.5 when there are decimals). You can add or remove line items and edit all amounts while the invoice is Draft.

You can add customer notes (e.g. payment instructions or terms) in the notes field; these appear on the invoice and can be edited later even after finalizing.

When finished, click Create Invoice. You are taken back to the invoices list with the new invoice’s details panel open in the split view. The new invoice has status Draft and balance starts at zero until you finalize it.

Creating an invoice from an estimate

If you already sent the customer an estimate and they have accepted it, you can convert that estimate into an invoice in one step. Open the estimate from the Estimates list, then in the details panel click Convert to Invoice. A new invoice is created with the same customer, line items, discount, tax, and totals. The new invoice opens in the invoices list in Draft status—you can adjust the due date or add notes, then use Mark as Finalized when you are ready to accept payments.

2. Viewing invoice details (split view)

From the invoices list, click an invoice row to open its details in the panel on the right. What you see depends on the invoice status:

• When status is Draft — The overview shows a short message about finalizing. You see a Mark as Finalized button (not "Record Payment"). The Payments and Credit Notes tabs are hidden, because payments and credits are only allowed after the invoice is finalized.
• When status is Due — If there is a balance due, you see Record Payment. Apply Credits also appears when the customer has at least one open credit note with available balance—use it to apply those credits to this invoice (a modal lists available credit notes and you enter the amount to apply from each). The Payments and Credit Notes tabs are visible so you can record payments, view applied credits, and apply more credits from the Credit Notes tab when applicable.
• When status is Paid — The overview indicates the invoice is paid. You can still open the Payments and Credit Notes tabs to see history.

3. Finalizing a draft invoice

Until you finalize an invoice, you cannot record payments or apply credit notes against it. When you are done editing and want to accept payments:

1. Open the invoice (status Draft) from the list.
2. In the details panel, click Mark as Finalized.
3. The status changes to Due, and the balance is set to the invoice total (minus any existing payment links, if applicable). The Record Payment button and the Payments and Credit Notes tabs become available.

4. Editing an invoice

Click Edit Invoice from the invoice details panel. What you can change depends on the status:

• While status is Draft — You can edit everything: customer, dates, terms, line items (add, remove, change quantity, rate, discount, tax), and customer notes. Saving updates the invoice and recalculates totals and balance. After saving, you are returned to the invoices list with this invoice’s details panel open.
• When status is Due or Paid — Editing is limited to: Customer notes, Order #, Terms, and Due date. The customer cannot be changed. Line items cannot be added, removed, or edited (quantity, rate, discount, and tax are read-only). This keeps payment and credit history consistent with the finalized amounts.

If you try to update an invoice so that the new total would be less than the payments already applied, the system blocks the update and asks you to dissociate those payments first.

5. Recording payments and applying credit notes

Recording payments and applying credit notes is only possible for invoices with status Due (or Paid, for viewing). When there is a balance due:

• Record Payment — Records a payment against the invoice (e.g. cash, bank transfer).
• Apply Credits — Shown only when the customer has at least one open credit note with available balance. Click it (on the overview or on the Credit Notes tab) to open a modal that lists those credit notes. Enter the amount to apply from each to this invoice and submit; the invoice balance and each credit note’s balance update. If the invoice balance reaches zero, the invoice status becomes Paid. For full details, see Credit notes.

Use the Payments and Credit Notes tabs to see payment and credit history, apply more credits when available, or remove an applied credit (with confirmation). See Payment tracking and Credit notes for more.

6. Invoice reference numbers

Each invoice gets a unique reference number (e.g. INV-000123) when it is created. The number is generated automatically and never reused, so you can rely on it for filing and reconciliation even if you have older data in the system.

7. Managing the invoices list

From the Invoices page you can search by customer or reference, filter by location or status, and change the page size. Use the Columns button to choose which columns to show (e.g. date, invoice number, customer, amount, balance due, status). Your column choices are saved so they stay the same next time you visit. Click any invoice row to open its details in the panel on the right.