Recording payments and managing transactions
Payments in Sliptree are recorded as transactions. A transaction has its own amount, date, and payment method, and is attached to the invoice it pays off. Recording partial payments is supported, so an invoice can be paid down in instalments.
Recording a payment
Open the invoice and click Add payment in the side panel (under Manage payments if a payment already exists). Fill in:
- Amount — defaults to the invoice's unpaid balance. Edit it to record a partial payment. The shortcut next to the label copies the unpaid amount into the field.
- Payment method — starts with the payment method set on the invoice, and you can change it for this payment. See Which payment method a payment gets for an invoice that has none.
- Date — when the payment was actually received.
- Description — optional internal note (not shown to the customer).
Click Save. The invoice's payment status updates immediately based on the new balance.
Which payment method a payment gets
A payment takes the Payment method of the invoice it pays. This holds in Add payment, where the field starts with that method, and when you choose Mark as paid from the status badge of an invoice or use Bulk status changes, where Sliptree records the payment for you. After Mark as paid, a message names the payment method that was recorded, and Edit in that message opens Manage payments, where you can change the method or the date.
If the invoice has no payment method, the payment takes your Default payment method, and Bank transfer when you have not set one. You set it in Business settings, in the section Invoice late fees, payment terms & notes. New invoices and new recurring invoices also start with that method, and you can still change it on each one.
If most of your customers pay in cash, set Cash as the default and you no longer change the method on every invoice. In a country where cash must be rounded to 5 cents, choosing Cash here also sets Round invoice totals to in the same section to Nearest 0.05, and a note under the field says so. You can change it back before you save. See Rounding the total of an invoice or estimate.
Partial payments and the outstanding balance
You can record any amount up to the unpaid total. Multiple partial payments on the same invoice stack up:
- The invoice stays Partially paid until the balance reaches zero.
- Once fully paid, the invoice moves to Paid automatically.
- The Unpaid figure at the top of the Manage payments panel always reflects the current remaining balance.
See Invoice payment status for how the payment status interacts with document status.
Removing a payment
To remove a payment from an invoice:
- Open the invoice and go to Manage payments.
- Click Edit next to the payment, then Delete.
The invoice's payment status recalculates automatically. If you removed the last payment, the invoice goes back to its previous status and becomes editable again.