Vendor Invoices

Vendor Invoice processing is one of the most tedious tasks in every organization. It consumes a lot of time and requires a lot of manual keying of data, historical research of old invoices, delayed payouts, getting approvals at multiple stages, vendor involvement over unpaid invoices, tracking payment success or failures, report generation, record-keeping, etc. The manual process of vendor payments will never give an advanced insight into company payables and additionally has a great scope of error too, right from data feeding to making the final payments.

Paytm Payouts Vendor Invoice module makes way for an automated vendor payment process. It is designed for the instant addition and validation of vendor details and 24*7 payment scheduling via any payment mode. 
Payouts product minimizes the invoice processing time, reduces manual data input, automates payment and approval process, improves record-keeping, etc. It caters as a single system to all payout requirements such as advanced payments, partial payments with real-time sync, scheduling vendor payments and reconciliation of invoices. It also allows vendors to check their payment status directly. The vendor invoices module hence optimizes and simplifies the process of creating, managing, monitoring and processing invoices.

Invoices

Add Invoice

To make a payment against an invoice, first, a new invoice needs to be added using the steps below:

1. Under the left main menu bar, select 'Vendor Invoices'.
2. At the top right corner, click the 'New Entry' button.
3. Select 'Add Single Invoice'.
4. Select a 'Vendor' from the dropdown menu. This menu is fetched from the contacts section. To add a new vendor instantly, see here.
5. Fill in other details such as the Invoice Number, Dates, and Description for the invoice.
6. Select the 'Store' from the list to which this invoice is to be associated.
7. Click 'Upload' to upload the digital copy of the invoice.
8. Click the 'Add Invoice' button to add this invoice to the dashboard.
   
   The new invoice lists under the 'Invoices' section of the vendor invoices module.

Add New Vendor

In case of any new vendor whose details are not added in the 'Contacts' menu, select 'Add New Vendor' from the dropdown menu. This will enable you to add the basic contact details while adding the invoice details.

1. Under the 'Add Invoice' section, click 'Select Vendor'.
2. Select the 'Add New Vendor' option. This opens the 'Add New Vendor' form.
3. Fill in the details of the vendor in the form.
4. Click 'Add Contact' to save the details and add the payee as a contact in the system.

💡  Tip
It is recommended to add the vendor’s bank account details to allow the users to schedule future payments for that vendor.

Add Bulk Invoices

You can also add Invoices in bulk in the Payouts dashboard using the steps below:

1. Click the 'New Entry' button.
2. Select 'Bulk Add Invoice'.
3. Download the template file and fill in the details of all the invoices to be uploaded.
4. Click the 'Upload File' button to upload the file with invoice details.
5. Click 'Proceed' to upload invoice details in bulk.

Note: The status of the vendor invoice depends on the approval rules. Depending on the approval rules, the added invoice(s) can be seen in the approver user’s account under the ‘Approvals’ section in the left menu. 

1. Under the 'Approvals' section, the approver user will select the Invoice option and then 'Add Invoice' to view and approve all the invoices which are in pending stage. It is from this section that the approver can approve or reject an invoice.
2. Click here to know more about approvals.
3. The status of the invoice will change from 'Approval Pending' to 'Unpaid' when the invoice completes the approvals stages.

Invoice Status

Once an invoice is added to the dashboard, it usually has to be approved by one or more people in an organization and is then processed further for its payout. Paytm Payouts allows the merchants to create a customized approval workflow to automate the approval chain.
As the invoice passes through each stage of approval, its status changes at every level. It is important to have a clear understanding of each invoice status available in the Payouts dashboard.

Below are the different statuses of an invoice:

• Submitted: When an invoice is added to the system it gets 'Submitted'. This is a transient stage, thus when the approvals are triggered for this invoice, this state automatically changes to 'Approval Pending'. If there is no approval flow applicable for the invoice, then it automatically goes from 'Submitted' to 'Unpaid' state.
• Approval Pending: If the submitted invoice has to be approved by one or more users (also known as approvers), it is shown as 'Approval Pending' in the dashboard. The approver users can see this invoice in the Approval section of the dashboard to approve or reject it.
  To know more about the approval flow of the invoice, click on the rightmost menu against the invoice and select 'View Approval History'.

  Note: If all the approvals are accepted the invoice moves to the ‘ Unpaid’ stage. But if the invoice is rejected at any stage, it will move to the ‘ Approval Rejected’ stage.

• Approval Rejected: If the invoice is rejected by an approver user it moves to the 'Approval Rejected' status. At this stage, the invoice cannot be edited. However, it can be moved to 'Returned' status.
  1. To move the invoice status in order to edit it or to re-submit it, click the right menu under the 'Actions' header.
  2. Select 'Return invoice' and 'Confirm' to move the invoice to the 'Returned' status.

• Returned: When the approval is rejected for an invoice, a user can choose to return that invoice to make corrections and resubmit it. This is usually done in the case of any data entry mistakes.
  1. To resubmit this invoice, click the 'Actions' menu and select 'Re-Submit'.  
  2. Click 'Confirm' to move the returned invoice back to the 'Submitted' status and hence back into the approval flow.
  3. Click 'Edit' option to make changes to the invoice and resubmit it.
     The edited invoice will now again move into the approval flow.
  4. Choose the 'Cancel' option, if the rejected invoice has to be terminated completely. In this case, the invoice will be added again in the system with a different invoice number.

     💡  Tip
     The 'Returned' state does not terminate the invoice. Hence it can be edited and re-submitted under the same invoice number unlike 'Cancelled' state where the invoice is terminated.

• Unpaid: When all the approvals for the invoice are completed it moves to the 'Unpaid' status.
• Paid: The status of the invoice changes from 'Unpaid' to 'Paid' if the payment of an invoice is completed.
• Partially Paid: The status of the invoice changes from 'Unpaid' to 'Partially Paid' if the payment of an invoice is partly done.
• Cancelled: An invoice is completely terminated if it is 'Cancelled'. In this case, it cannot be edited any further.

  💡  Tip
  It is a common practice to 'Cancel' an invoice when important details are wrong such as invoice number mismatch, wrong vendor name, wrong invoice amount etc.

  Note: A document can also be cancelled even if it has been raised by the linked vendor directly through the 'Bills and Collections' section.

Edit Invoice

Follow the steps below to edit already submitted invoices:

1. Select an invoice at the 'Returned' status from the list view in the 'Invoices' section.
2. Click on the 'Options' menu under the 'Actions' header.
3. Select the 'Edit' option to open the tab for 'Edit Invoice'.
4. Make the required changes and click the 'Save' button.
    

Note: An invoice can be edited only at the 'Returned' status. After editing, the invoice can be resubmitted for approval flow if applicable.

Add/ Edit Reconciliation

In a business, it can happen that the payments against any invoice can be settled in cash or by cheque, Paytm, Cards or bank transfer. The dashboard can allow the merchants to add these entries under Payment. These payments in the system can be then settled against the specific invoices using Add/ Edit reconciliation.

To settle the payment for an invoice,

1. Click the 'Add/ Edit reconciliation' option in the actions header.
2. The top section displays the invoice details such as the invoice name, vendor name, invoice date and due date. This section also provides further information about the invoice such as the total invoice amount along with the split of the payment received, credit note, and the pending amount for that invoice.

Note: Add/ Edit reconciliation option is available for all Paid, Unpaid and Partially Paid invoices to settle the payments received by cash, paytm, cheque, cards or bank transfer.

Reconcile

• Payments Received - This section allows the user to view the record of unsettled payments in the dashboard. It shows the complete details of the payment such as date, source, amount, and the unused amount of the payment.

  1. Select the payment check box and click 'Proceed' to settle the payment amount against the selected invoice whose details are available at the top section.

     💡  Tip
     The payment amount which has to be settled for the invoice can be edited. For eg, if the system shows a cash payment of Rs 1000 but only Rs 800 are to be settled against the selected invoice, then the amount under the header ‘ Reconciled with Invoice’ can be changed/ edited.

• Cash, Paytm, Cheque, Card and Bank transfer- A new payment can also be recorded for the selected invoice by selecting any of the payment methods from the top.
  1. Select the payment method. For example; Paytm, cash, card etc.
  2. Select the date of the payment received, and enter the amount.
  3. Click 'Proceed' to record the payment and the payment method for the selected invoice.

Note: In case the amount is fully settled for the invoice, the invoice status will change to 'Paid'. But if the amount is partially settled, the invoice status will change to 'Partially Paid'.

Edit Reconciliation

This section allows the merchant to edit the already reconciled amount against an invoice. This can happen for cases where the payment is settled from partially paid to fully paid, or in cases where the amount is mistakenly settled against a different invoice etc.

1. Select the payment case and make the changes in the amount under the 'Reconciled with Invoice' header.
2. Click 'Proceed' to complete the editing of the payment for that particular invoice.

Note: There can be scenarios where the payment is settled against a wrong invoice. Hence this option allows the merchants to edit such invoices. In such a case, the invoice can be moved back to the 'Unpaid' or 'Partially Paid' status from the Paid status.

Pay Invoice

The merchants can choose to make the payments for invoices either one by one or for multiple invoices at once. To make the payment for 'Unpaid' and 'Partially Paid' invoices, follow the steps below: 

1. Select one or more invoices in the 'Invoice' to start the payment process.
2. Click 'Proceed' to Pay. The right menu shows two options: Pay now & Mark as Paid.
3. The 'Pay Now' option is used to make invoice payments from the disbursal account or payout funding account.
4. Choose the disbursal account to pay for the selected invoice (s) and click Pay to make the payment.

   💡  Tip
   Invoice Payments can also be scheduled for a later date and time by 'Pay Later' option. Click 'Pay Later' and select a future date, time and disbursal account. Then click 'Save' to schedule the invoice payment.

   💡  Tip
   The ‘ amount to be paid’ can be edited to make partial or full payments for the selected invoice. The transfer details section in the ‘Pay Invoice’ right menu can be expanded to view the vendor details..

   Note: The payment status of the vendor invoice depends on the approval rules set for the disbursal account chosen for issuing the payment. Depending on the approval rules, the pending invoice can be seen in the approver’s account in the 'Approvals' section in the left menu. In the approvals section, the approver will select Invoice and then 'Pay Invoice' to view and approve all the invoices pending to be paid. Click here to know more. The status of the invoice will change from 'Unpaid' to 'Paid' or 'Partially Paid' only after the approvals are completed.

5. 'Mark as Paid' option is used to record an offline invoice payment usually done via cash, Paytm, cheque, card or bank transfer.
6. Select the mode of offline payment and complete the details such as date, amount and description.
7. Click 'Record Payment' to make an entry in the Payments section for this offline payment.
8. This entry is automatically reconciled with the selected invoice for which the 'Mark as Paid' option was used.
    

View Invoice

All the vendor invoices can be viewed under the Invoices section:

Invoice

The 'Invoice' tab gives a list view of all the invoices added in the Paytm Payouts dashboard. Whenever a new invoice is added through the 'New Entry' option, it reflects in the list view under the 'Invoices' tab.

1. The top summary widget in this section shows the overdue amount and the total amount of the invoices along with the number of invoices.
2. Use top filters to refine the results on the basis of the invoice date, status, vendor name, or invoice number.
3. Use the 'Generate Report' button to download the report of invoices. Click here to know more.
4. Further, to view the details of any particular invoice, click the menu under the 'Actions' header.
5. Select 'View Invoice' to know the invoice details such as status, amount, store name, due date, vendor details, payment details etc.
6. Use the 'Download' option from the 'Actions' header to download the PDF copy of the selected invoice.
7. 'View approval history' option in the 'Actions' menu allows the user to view the approval status of the invoice.
8. 'Add/Edit reconciliation' option is available for paid & partially paid invoices to make adjustments to an invoice against the offline payments made to the vendors.

💡  Tip
Use the 'Pay Now' button at the bottom to initiate the payment of this invoice. The invoice can also be marked as 'Paid' if the payment has been made by cash, cheque, Paytm, card or bank transfer.

Cancel Invoice

To delete an invoice completely it has to be 'Returned' first.

Note: Only 'Unpaid' and 'Approval Rejected' invoices can be returned..

1. From the right menu under the 'Actions' header select 'Return Invoice.
2. Click 'Confirm' to return the invoice.
3. Select the returned invoice and then select the 'Cancel' option in the right menu.
4. Click 'Confirm Cancel' to delete the invoice. The status of the invoice changes to 'Cancelled'.

Add Payments

Paytm Payouts allows the merchant to record offline and advance payments made to their vendors via cash, card, bank transfer, Paytm, Cheque, etc. These payments can be later reconciled against the specific invoices. To add any offline or advance payment follow the steps below:

1. At the top right corner, click the 'New Entry' button.
2. Select the 'New Payment' option.
3. Fill in the details of this payment such as vendor, site( store) and amount.
4. To make an online payment click on ‘Make Payment’. But in case the payment to the vendor is already made or will be paid offline then the entry for this payment can be made by clicking the 'Create Entry' button.
5. Click the 'Make Payment' button to select a disbursal account and proceed to pay.

   Note: The merchant can also select the 'Pay Later' option to schedule the payment on a future date.

6. In case the entry is to be made for offline payment, click 'Create Entry' and select the mode of payment such as cash, Paytm, cheque, bank transfer or card.
7. Add the details for the payment date and amount and click 'Record Payment'.
8. This entry then appears in the 'Payments' section as an unreconciled entry.
    

Payment Status

Once payment is added to the dashboard, it usually has to be approved by one or more people in an organization and is then processed further for its payout. Payouts dashboard allows the merchants to create an approval workflow to manage the chain of approvals automatically before payment is disbursed.

As the payment passes through each stage of approval, its status changes at every level. It is important to have a clear understanding of each payment status in the Payouts dashboard. 

Below are the different statuses of an invoice:

• Unreconciled - When a new payment is created and not tagged to any invoice it remains in the unreconciled state. Usually, the payments are added in the case of advance payments and the invoice is yet to be generated. Hence this payment is due to be reconciled with an invoice.
• Approval Pending - When a payment is initiated by selecting a disbursal account, it enters into the approval flow set for that disbursal account. The payment entry will be available in the 'Payments' section with a Pending Approval status.

  Note: In case there is no approval flow set up for this payment, it’s status will be 'Unreconciled'.

• Approval Rejected - If the payment is cancelled at one of the stages of the approval workflow the payment status gets changed to approval rejected.
• Partially Reconciled - When any payment entry’s amount is partially reconciled with one or more invoices, its status changes to partially reconciled. The unreconciled amount of this payment entry can be reconciled with the appropriate invoice entries in future.
• Reconciled -  When the amount for a payment entry is completely reconciled against one or more invoice entries, the payment status changes to reconciled.

  Note: When 'Mark as paid' option is used for an invoice to record an offline payment usually done via cash, Paytm, cheque, card or bank transfer, then this payment entry is also created automatically in the 'Payments' section with a 'Reconciled status' and the respective invoice number. To know more, click here.

• Scheduled - When the 'Pay Later' option is used to schedule the payment for an invoice, its respective payment entry gets created automatically in the payments section with a scheduled status. To know more, click here.
• Failed - When the payments for an invoice fails due to some technical reasons, the payment status changes to failed status.
• Cancelled - Only the unreconciled offline payments can be cancelled from the options menu. These payment entries will no longer be reconciled against any invoices.

Edit Payments

Edit payment option is available to edit the details of a payment entry such as payment source, amount, etc. 

Note: For an unreconciled payment, the store details can also be edited along with the amount. However, for a reconciled or partially reconciled payment, only the amount details can be edited.

1. For a payment entry, under the 'Actions' header at the rightmost end, select the 'Edit Payment' option.
2. Make the desired changes in the payment details such as the amount, date, description and the payment source like cash, cheque, bank transfer, etc.
3. Click 'Save' to keep the changes made.
    

View/ Edit Reconciliation

The 'View/Edit reconciliation' option is available for unreconciled, partially reconciled and reconciled payments to make adjustments against an invoice.

Note: This section shows the list of pending invoices generated for the same vendor and same store for which the unreconciled payments are available in the system. The pending payments can hence be reconciled against this list of pending invoices.

1. For the payment, select the 'View/ Edit Reconciliation' option from the 'Actions' header.
2. Payment received displays the ‘total amount of the selected payment and the 'unused amount' is the unreconciled amount of this selected payment.
3. Under the 'Reconcile' tab, the list of pending invoices is available to be reconciled with the selected payment.
4. Enter the amount to be reconciled against the invoices in the list. This amount has to be lesser than the total amount of this selected payment.
5. Click 'Proceed' to confirm the reconciliation of the selected payment against the invoice(s).
6. Select the invoice, make the changes in the amount against the invoice.
7. Click 'Proceed' to make the changes.

💡  Tip
In case the amount of reconciliation is to be edited for any invoices for a payment, they are available under the 'Edit Reconciliation' tab.

View Payments

Payments

The 'Payments' tab gives a list view of all the payments made by the merchant to their various vendors. The list view shows the record of both the online and offline payment entries recorded by the merchant.

1. The top summary widget in this section shows the amounts of total payments and unused payments (which are mostly offline payments) in the merchant dashboard along with the number of payments. 
2. Use the top filters to refine the results on the basis of date, status, payment sources such as cash, cheque, Paytm, card, etc. vendor name or invoice number.
3. Use the 'Generate Report' button to download the report of invoices.
4. Further, to view the details of any particular payment, click on the menu under the 'Actions' header.
5. Select 'View Payment' to know the details such as status, amount, store name, vendor details, payment source, etc.
6. Use the 'Download' option from the 'Actions' header to download the PDF copy of the selected payment.

Note: Use the top filters for payment date, status etc and then click 'Generate Report' to get the report for a filtered data set. These reports are available in the 'Reports' section in the left main menu. To know more click here.

Follow the steps below to generate reports for invoices:

1. Click 'Generate' reports to initiate a report in the dashboard.
2. Use the top filters for invoice date, status, etc. and then click 'Generate Report' to get the report for a filtered data set.
3. These reports are available in the Reports section in the left main menu.
4. Go to the 'Vendor Invoice' section.
5. From the 'Select Report' section, choose to download or email the reports for Invoices, Payments or Credit Notes.