Invoicing & Payments

Customer invoices in TravelFlow are raised on the consultant side of the system, not inside the accounting portal. This article explains where invoices come from, how they are numbered, and how payments against them are recorded.

Where Invoices Are Created

There is no Invoices item in the accounting menu. Invoices are created in two ways:

• Manually by a consultant from Consultant > Documents > Invoices using Create Invoice. That form is limited to the Consultant, Consultant Admin and Super Admin roles, so an Accountant cannot raise an invoice there.
• Automatically from a completed booking. The booking's basket items become invoice lines and the invoice is created with the status sent and terms of net 30 — not as a draft.

The Create Invoice quick action on the accounting dashboard does not open an invoice form; it opens the New Transaction screen.

Invoice Numbering

Every invoice, whether written by hand or converted from a quotation or voucher, takes the next number from one per-year counter and is numbered INV-YYYY-NNNN, for example INV-2026-0001. The number is given when the invoice is saved, and it cannot be typed or chosen. If the counter cannot be read, the invoice is not saved and you are told, rather than given a made-up number.

VAT on Booking Invoices

On invoices generated from a booking, VAT is always charged on the markup and never on VAT (owner decision, 3 November 2026). A flight's fare and a RateHawk hotel's price are passed through to the supplier, so VAT is charged on the markup only; a South African hotel's own VAT, already in its price, is shown and not charged again. A line priced by hand follows its VAT choice: no VAT or VAT included in the supplier price passes the price through, and VAT added to it charges VAT on the full sale. Invoices made before keep the VAT they were issued with.

Recording a Payment

Customer payments are captured at Consultant > Documents > Payments with the Record Payment button. Like the invoice form, this screen is open to Consultant, Consultant Admin and Super Admin only. The invoice detail page no longer carries its own Record Payment button. Complete:

1. Invoice — pick the outstanding invoice being settled.
2. Amount — must be greater than zero and no more than that invoice's outstanding balance; a larger amount is rejected.
3. Payment method — EFT / Bank Transfer, Credit/Debit Card, Cash or Cheque.
4. Reference and the payment date.

Saving creates a payment record, updates the invoice's paid and outstanding amounts, and posts a journal entry that debits the deposit bank account and credits Accounts Receivable (1200). A payment for less than the full amount is a partial payment; there is no separate deposit concept and no report that distinguishes deposits from other part-payments.

Each payment is tied to one invoice. If a customer settles several invoices with one transfer, record a separate payment against each invoice.

Corrections

An invoice is never really erased. The Delete button on the invoice page is a soft delete: the invoice is marked voided and kept for audit. It is refused if any payment has been recorded against the invoice — “Reverse the payments first” — but the page still shows a success message either way, so reload the invoice list to confirm the status actually changed. Voiding an invoice through the status change posts a reversing journal entry so the ledger stays balanced. To reduce an invoice partially rather than cancel it, use a credit note.