Traffio's credit note feature lets you make adjustments to an invoice that has already been finalised and sent to the client. If you're familiar with Traffio's invoicing, the credit note area will look similar. The process for creating credit notes is like creating invoices.
While invoices are created from jobs, credit notes are created from invoices. Like invoices, each credit note line item can be linked to an item classification. Depending on your accounting system, these classifications map to the financial accounts that track the credit.
Importantly, credit notes are not balanced against future invoices. For example, you are not able to apply a credit note to an invoice to reduce the outstanding balance.
How to Create a Credit Note
Credit notes can only be created from existing invoices that are in a 'finalised' state.
Navigate to Billing on the sidebar
Select the Invoices tab
Select the desired Invoice
Click the Credit button
Toggle on or off Single Item Credit Note (turning on will create credit note with single line item, turning off will create credit note with all line items of original invoice)
Ensure Credit Note Item Amount is correct
Choose Item Classification (optional)
Click Continue
You can add, remove and edit the contained line items as you require
Click Save
Click Finalised once happy with the credit note
How to Issue a Credit Note
Similar to invoices, credit notes must be in a 'finalised' state before they can be emailed to the client.
Navigate to Billing on the sidebar
Select the Invoices tab
Select the desired Invoice (must be in a finalised state)
Select Credit Notes tab
Click into Finalised Credit Note
Click the blue Email button
Select/Enter desired Contact
Click Email
Credit notes can be carbon copied to recipients set in the 'Email Preferences' area of the corresponding invoice cost centre.
How to View Credit Notes
Credit notes can be viewed from two primary locations within Traffio.
The main credit notes screen can be accessed under Billing > Credit Notes.
Additionally, credit note counts and totals appear in the Billing > Invoices screen.
Only finalised credit notes will appear in the 'Credit notes' and 'Credit amount' columns of this screen.
Integrations and Exporting Credit Notes
Initially, the credit note functionality is only integrated with the Sage Intacct and Pronto accounting packages. If your accounting package supports credit notes and would find credit note functionality beneficial, contact the Traffio team to discuss possible options.
When using one of these accounting packages, each line item in a credit note is associated with a particular financial account through the item classification linked to the line item. These accounting packages allow you to associate item classifications to financial accounts through a mapping screen which is often accessed through the Accounts tab (tab name may differ depending on accounting package) of the invoice cost centre of the original invoice.
Even without direct integration with accounting packages, credit note data can still be exported from Traffio using the 'Export' button in the top-right of the 'Billing' > 'Credit Notes' screen which can then be used to be imported into your accounting package of choice.
