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Create an Invoice

Each invoice from a vendor or supplier is entered into its own unique invoice record. Below are details on creating an invoice inside Chrome River.

  • Invoices may also be created simply by forwarding the email from a supplier with an invoice attached. See Create Invoices Via Email for complete details.

1. From the Dashboard, click the +CREATE button in the upper right corner of the Invoices ribbon.

2. On wide-screen devices, it is recommended to first scroll down to the Attachments section and click BROWSE FILE to upload the invoice image(s). You may also drag and drop the invoice into the Invoice Entry screen to attach it.

This allows you to easily see the invoice information next to the entry screen.

Invoice Header Information

You may create a new invoice from scratch or use the Prior Invoices screen to use a previous invoice as a template and pre-populate many of these fields.

The fields on your screen may vary from those shown below, based on company policy and guidelines.
  • Vendor Name: Click to bring up Recent and All vendor names and vendor IDs
  • Begin typing to search by any part of the Vendor Name or Vendor ID
  • If the vendor is not found or does not exist, click the CREATE TEMPORARY VENDOR button to create a temporary new vendor request. See Create a Temporary Vendor for more information.
  • Vendor Address: Once you have entered a vendor, click this field to choose from a list of associated addresses.
  • If the vendor address is not found or does not exist, click the CREATE NEW ADDRESS button to create a temporary new vendor address request. See Create a Temporary Vendor for more information.
  • Invoice Number: Enter the invoice number exactly as it is displayed on the invoice image.
  • Invoice Date: Click to open the CALENDAR and choose a date that corresponds to the invoice date on the invoice image.
  • Posting Period: If your organization has activated this feature, select the period of time for which the transaction should be posted.
  • Due Date: If there are vendor payment terms associated with the selected vendor address record, those terms and the due date are displayed here.
  • Invoice Amount: Enter the invoice amount or click the CALCULATOR icon to use the calculator to perform addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
    Selecting the top-right UP ARROW (^) in the calculator will display an electronic tape of the last 4 entries. If there are more than 4 entries, use the scroll bar to look back and verify the data entry. Pressing the ENTER key will sum the last entry and update the amount field.
  • Currency: Currency codes are automatically populated in this field based on the Vendor Address selected. If the currency code displayed here does not match the one on the invoice image, select the correct code from the Currency drop-down. The system updates the exchange rate from XE.com daily at 00:00 UTC and will use this to provide an estimate of the exchange rate based on the invoice date.
  • Discount Terms, Discount Date, and Discount Amount: If your organization has activated this feature and the vendor offers a discount for early payment, you may apply the terms via these fields. They will reflect the default terms set in the Vendor Address record, but you may override the default terms here (or add them if the Vendor Address has no default terms). See Apply Discount Terms to Invoices and Purchase Orders for more details.
  • PO Number: Enter the number or click SEARCH to located the corresponding purchase order. You may attach multiple purchase orders from the same vendor to a single invoice.

OCR VISION for Automatically Populating Data

If your organization subscribes to Chrome River's OCR VISION, the following information will automatically be extracted from the invoice image you attach and populated in the fields for you:

  • Invoice Number: If the system is unable to find or extract an Invoice Number, it will generate one in the following format: [Invoice Amount] [Invoice Date]
  • Requester: Extracted from the image and matched to your organization's master data.
  • Vendor Name: Extracted from the image and matched to your organization's master data.
  • Vendor Address: Extracted from the image and matched to your organization's master data.
  • Currency Code
  • Invoice Amount
  • Invoice Date: If the system is unable to find or extract an Invoice Date, it will use the date that the attachment was uploaded.
  • Bill To
  • Ship To

If the invoice also contains a purchase order number that is in the Chrome River system, the PO will be linked for extraction of the relevant data listed above. Additionally, the following information will be extracted and used to create line items:

  • Amount Spent
  • Item Quantity
  • Item Unit Price
  • Vendor Item ID
  • Item ID
  • Item Description
  • Item UM (unit measurement)
  • Allocations
  • Cost Code
  • Timekeeper ID
  • Units of Measure
  • Line-Item User-Defined (UDA) Data

For complete details, see Automatically Populate Invoice Data via OCR VISION.

Invoice Detail

The fields on your screen may vary, based on company policy and guidelines.
  • Check Memo: Enter information that will appear in the printed check remittance advice.
  • Description: Text entered here will automatically populate in each line-item description (where it may be modified as appropriate).
  • Requester: Use the drop-down menu to select the person who requested or incurred the goods or services on the invoice.
  • Site Address: The location where the invoiced goods/services were delivered or will be used.
  • Bill-to Address: The address where the invoice was sent.
  • Identifier: Select from a list customized by your organization.

Special Handling

If special handling of the invoice record is required, click on the down arrow to expand the Special Handling section.

  • Check Request: Use the drop-down menu if the check associated with the payment needs to be sent directly to someone in the organization (rather than mailed to the vendor) or if it needs to be held in Accounts Payable (AP) for pickup by someone in the organization.
  • If necessary, click the field below the drop-down to select the appropriate person.
  • Handling Options
  • Rush: Invoice processing needs to be expedited.
  • Park Invoice: This function governs the ability to route via workflow, approve or export an invoice, depending on your company's routing rules.
  • Hold Payment: Depending on your configuration of Chrome River, this flag may be used to signify to your accounting system that, after posting the invoice, payment should be held until a future date.
  • Pay Via Wire: Optional, depending on your configuration.
  • Overnight Check: Optional, depending on your configuration.
  • Separate Check: Optional, depending on your configuration.
  • FX Processor: If your organization works with a foreign-exchange processing company, check this box to select the currency terms.
  • Special Handling Instructions: Information that would help Accounts Payable process the invoice payment.

Comments

The Comments field allows you to provide additional feedback during the approval process. Enter your notes and click POST to add them to the invoice.

Attachments

Click BROWSE FILE to upload the invoice image.

On desktop computers, you may simply drag the image onto the Invoice Entry pane to upload it.

The image will appear below as a thumbnail. Click the thumbnail to view the image in the lightbox. On wide-screen devices the lightbox opens to the left of the Invoice Entry screen. On narrow-screen devices, it slides in over the Invoice Entry screen.

Allocations

The Allocations section allows you to add expense line items to your invoice.

Once an Invoice Date has been added, the ADD EXPENSE button will be enabled to allow you to add line items.

Initially, the Remaining amount listed will be the Invoice Amount entered in the header. As you add expenses, the Total will change to display how much of the total amount has been allocated to line items. When the invoice is fully allocated, the Remaining amount will be 0.00.

Click ADD EXPENSE to select the appropriate expense item type from the mosaic. If your organization only has one expense type, it will be preselected for you.

Depending on the expense type selected, there may be more or fewer fields to fill out.
  • Amount: Enter the line-item amount or use the calculator to perform addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
  • Description: The Description text will automatically populate from the Description entered in Invoice Detail section. Modify it or enter additional information in the description field if needed. This text is generally included in the cost narrative that will appear on clients’ bills (for items allocated to billable matters) or in the General Ledger allocation description field in your accounting system.
  • GL: Click to select the GL account to be charged for this expense.

Click SAVE to add the line item to the invoice.

In Preview mode on the Approval Dashboard, in the Draft Invoices list and in Invoice Management, you will be able to sort the line items on the invoice by Line Number, Expense, Account, Amount or Compliance. Just click on the heading name and select from the drop-down, if applicable, to choose your sort option.

Allocate Amounts

The blue ALLOCATE AMOUNTS link allows you to add further pre-tax allocation to existing amounts in the same proportions as the current allocation.

For example, if you select a line item for $20 and another for $30, clicking ALLOCATE AMOUNTS and entering a $100 rush delivery charge will increase the first line item by 40% to $60 and the second line item by 60% to $90.

  • The items selected for allocation must all be either positive or negative. If there is a mix, you will receive an error message.
  • Every time you allocate, Chrome River will run compliance rules that may trigger warnings and violations.

1. Check the boxes next to the amounts you wish to allocate and click ALLOCATE AMOUNTS.

2. Enter the amount you wish to have prorated across the selected line items and click ALLOCATE.

3. The new amounts will be reflected in the Allocation Details pane.

Global Edit

The GLOBAL EDIT button allows you make the same change(s) on multiple line items simultaneously.

1. Check the boxes next to the desired line items and click GLOBAL EDIT.

2. Make the desired changes and click APPLY.

User-Defined Data (UDAs) will only appear in the pop-up window if two or more of the selected line items share UDAs.

Cancel Edits to Invoice

You may cancel edits to an invoice at any time before it has been submitted or saved, with a few exceptions.

  • You may not cancel a draft invoice that has
  • A note
  • One or more line items
  • An image attached

If you have not yet saved the draft, clicking CANCEL deletes the record and prevents it from appearing in your Drafts list.

If the invoice has already been saved, clicking CANCEL will only cancel the edits you have made since the last time you saved the invoice.

Save vs. Submit

If the invoice is not ready to be submitted or approved, click SAVE to keep the invoice record in its current status (i.e., in My Unsubmitted Invoices or on the Approval Dashboard). You will have the option to edit the invoice from either location until it is submitted.

If the invoice is ready for approval routing, click SUBMIT and then APPROVE from the drop-down.

You will be asked to confirm that you approve the invoice. You may optionally select an additional reviewer from the drop-down list or add a comment.

Your company’s invoice-routing rules will determine which of these options are available to select.
  • Accept for Approval/Payment: Invoice will be routed for approval based on the routing rules and approval policies your company has implemented. Invoice tracking will mark you as having approved the invoice for payment
  • Accept with Additional Reviewer: Invoice will be routed for approval to the user you specify in the Person Selector drop-down menu. Invoice tracking will mark you as having approved the invoice for payment. Once the user you have selected submits the invoice for approval, the invoice routing rules will determine who next is required to approve the invoice.
  • Return to Requester: If you are not the invoice requester, the invoice will be returned to the requester identified on the invoice header. Invoice tracking will mark you as having returned the invoice.
  • Return to Accounts Payable: Invoice will be returned to Accounts Payable for review. Invoice tracking will mark you as having returned the invoice.
  • Return to Creator: If you are not the invoice creator, the invoice will be returned to the creator for review. Invoice tracking will mark you as having returned the invoice.
  • Return to Other: Invoice will be returned to the person selected from the drop-down menu. Invoice tracking will mark you as having returned the invoice.

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