You can open this form by selecting File > Initialize Invoices in MS Invoice Edit.

Various selection criteria allow you to control what transactions are eligible for invoice initialization. You can restrict initialization based on location group, location, customer, customer job, and customer PO, bill frequency, and/or payment type.

You also have the option to print separate invoices per location group or location. Typically, you will use one option or the other, since using both options may produce an effect opposite of what you want. For example, if you elect to print separate invoices per location group, each invoice for a customer will include transactions posted to all locations within the location group. Selecting the option to print separate invoices per location will override the 'separate invoices per location group', and you will get separate invoices for each location instead of for each location group.

Once the criteria is defined, only those tickets or hauler time sheets that match the specified criteria will be initialized into the invoice batch. You can make multiple passes by changing the selection criteria and then reinitializing the batch. Each pass will add new invoices to the existing entries in the batch.

During initialization, the system automatically:

• assigns an invoice number to each invoice based on either the 'Last Invoice Number' in AR Company Parameters (if using invoice numbers from AR ) or the 'Last Used MS Invoice #' in MS Company Parameters (if using invoice numbers from MS).
• assigns the invoice date specified in the initialization criteria to each invoice.
• assigns a discount date and due date to each invoice based on the specified invoice date and payment terms. If you are printing a separate invoice for each customer/customer job or customer/customer job/PO#, the system uses the payment terms specified on the quote (if quote exists). Otherwise, uses payment terms specified for each customer in AR Customers.

When the initialization process is over, the system alerts you to the number of initialized tickets, as well as the number of skipped tickets due to incomplete receivable types. You can then edit invoices as necessary (though editing is limited) in MS Invoice Edit. You can then use the “Print Invoices” option in MS Invoice Edit (File menu) to print and post the invoice batch.

Discounts

Cutoff Date

If a cutoff date is specified for the customer’s payment terms (in HQ Payment Terms), the system will use that date when determining the invoice’s due dates and discount dates.

The following is a brief explanation of how the cutoff date affects the calculation of due dates and discount dates.

If the invoice date falls prior to both the ‘Due Date’ and the ‘Cutoff Day’, then the calculated due date will be in the same month as the invoice date. The same is true for discounts, except that the ‘Discount Day’ is used instead of the ‘Due Day’.

For example, you generate invoices on the 5th of July. The payment terms specify a ‘Cutoff Day’ of the 25th, and a ‘Due Day’ of the 30th. Therefore, the default due date for the invoice will be the 30th of July.

If the ‘Due Day’ or ‘Cutoff Day’ falls on or before the invoice date, then the due date will fall in the next month.As with the previous scenario, the ‘Discount Day’ is used instead of the ‘Due Day’.

For example, you are invoicing on the 5 of July. The payment terms specify a ‘Cutoff Day’ of the 1st and a ‘Due Day’ of the 5th. The default due date will be the 5th of August.

Intercompany Invoices

If you are using the intercompany invoicing feature (flag in MS Company Parameters), you can only create intercompany invoices through initialization.

Because the ticket (or time sheet) transaction is posted to a job or inventory location instead of a customer, there is no way for the system to locate the transaction when you are trying to add it in the transaction grid. However, during initialization, when the system encounters the intercompany sale, it pulls the “purchasing” company’s customer number (as defined in HQ Company Setup) and creates the invoice.

When initializing invoices for intercompany sales to 'Jobs', if you have set the "Invoice Level" (in AR Customers) to 1 (One invoice per Customer Job) for the 'sell to' company, the invoice initialization process will create a separate intercompany invoice for each job by substituting the JC Job for the Customer Job. The JC Job will be interfaced to AR in the same manner as Customer Jobs are for true customer sales.

When the invoice batch is processed and interfaced to Accounts Receivable, the job cost and inventory detail for intercompany invoices is stored in the MSII (Material Sales Intercompany Invoices) file so that it can be used later to create the Accounts Payable invoices. Once you have created the AP Intercompany invoices, Job Cost and Inventory detail is updated, and invoices can then be processed in the normal manner.