Overview

The Vendor Balances view keeps a running tab of amounts owed and due to vendors. Transactions (Invoices, Credit Memos, Checks) and payment applications update the vendor balances table automatically.

Prerequisites

Required Prerequisites

• Vendor Setup
• Financial Account Setup
• Checkbook Setup
• Accounts Payable Check Format

Optional Prerequisites

• Preference: Default Vendor Checkbook ID
• Preference: Days back that applications can be unapplied

Step 1: Viewing vendor balances.

Expand the Purchasing module on the navigation menu and select Vendor Balances. This will open the Vendor Balances list view, which displays all vendor settlement balances for vendors. By default, the balances are displayed as they are today and any vendors that have zero balances are hidden. The inquiry criteria can be changed by clicking the Inquiry Criteria toolbar icon.

The settlement balances are displayed with the following details:

• Check Amount: This field allows users to enter an amount for payment. Quick checks can be written by entering an amount to this field and clicking Process Checks from the toolbar.
• Net Balance: Displays the current net balance including unposted transactions.
• On Hold: Displays the total dollar amount of Invoices/Credit Memos that are on hold. 
• Pending Checks: This field displays Yes, if the vendor currently has any pending checks that have not been printed yet.
• Posted Balance: Displays the current balance of all posted transactions.
• Unapplied Credits: Displays the total dollar amount of credits that have not been applied towards invoices.
• Unapplied Payments: Displays the total dollar amount of payments that have not been applied towards invoices.
• Unpaid Invoices: Displays the total invoice amount that has no payment applications.
• Unposted Transactions: Displays the total dollar amount of transactions that have not been posted yet (status New or Approved).
• Vendor: Displays the name of the vendor.

Posted Balance, Unpaid Invoices and Net Balance amounts are displayed negative when the amount is owed to the vendor.  Unposted Transaction amount is also displayed as negative when the transaction is an invoice.

Users can view Vendor transaction history details by clicking 'View' from the header toolbar which opens a dropdown menu with the options 'Transactions', 'Payment Applications' or 'Invoice Applications' to display Transaction and Application inquiries.  Transaction inquiries and Payment Applications and Invoice Application inquiries can be opened by selecting a Vendor and clicking the menu item.

Step 2: Entering vendor payments.

Vendors can be paid by using a Quick Check or Check Batch process.  

Writing quick checks

The Vendor Balances list view allows users to enter a payment amount to the ‘Check Amount’ field. Checks can be written to several vendors simultaneously. When the Pending Checks flag is set to yes, the vendor currently has open, unprinted checks that have been added to a check batch.

After the check amount(s) have been entered to the ‘Check Amount’ field(s), click ‘Process Checks’ toolbar icon. This opens the Process Checks window with the created batch.

Check printing process is described in step 3.

Quick check process requires the payments to be applied towards invoices to update the vendor balances accordingly. The process is described in step 4.

Building check batches

Users can also build check batches using ‘Build Check Batch’ feature. When check batches are built with Invoices, Credit Memos and Checks, the Credit Memos and Checks assigned to the batch are automatically applied towards the Invoices assigned to the batch. A new check is created for the remaining balance and this check is also automatically applied towards the invoices when the check is printed and approved. This feature can be accessed from the Vendor Balances list view. When the ‘Build Check Batch’ toolbar is clicked, a blank check batch record is opened. The ‘BatchID’ defaults to (Build New Batch), but previously created check batches can be opened by selecting the batch name from the ‘BatchID’ menu. A user can have several check batches simultaneously and the check batches are named with the user name and a number.

The header section of the batch record allows users to filter transactions that will be added to the check batch that is being created. All the header section filters are AND type meaning that the filtered transactions must meet ALL the criteria the user enters. Users can enter the following criteria:

• Due Date As Of: Allows users to define the due date. Any invoices with the defined due date and due date before the defined date are added to the batch.
• Discount Date As Of: Allows users to define the discount date. Any invoices with the defined discount date and discount date before the defined date are added to the batch.
• Doc No: Allows users to define a specific document number.
• Include Transactions: Allows users to specify which Transaction types to include in the check batch:
  • Invoices Only – displays the Invoices available for payment to include in the check batch
  • Invoices & Credit Memos – displays the Invoices available for payment and any Credit Memos for the Vendor/s, which are deducted from the Max Amount to Pay
  • Invoices & Checks – displays the Invoices available for payment and any Checks that have been printed for the Vendor/s, which are deducted from the Max Amount to Pay
  • Invoices, Credit Memos, and Checks – displays the Invoices available for payment and any Credit Memos and Checks for the Vendor/s, which are deducted from the Max Amount to Pay
• Vendor: This text box allows users to enter a Vendor name to filter by.
• Vendor Class: This multi-select combo box allows users to select one or more vendor classes.

Note: ‘Include Transactions’ is a required field.

Besides the filtering criteria, users can also define the following details:

• Checkbook: Checkbook that is used to create checks for the batch. Defaults to the checkbook defined in ‘Default Vendor Checkbook ID’ Purchasing Preference.
• Apply Date: This is the Check Batch date and the application date. This field defaults to the current date, but can be edited.
• One Check Per: This field allows users to define, if vendors with multiple invoices should receive one check to cover all invoices (value set to Vendor) or each invoice should have a matching check (value set to Document). Note: When the value is set to Document, the Include Transactions field will default to Invoice Only and cannot be edited.
• Apply Expired Discounts: This field allows users to select, if expired discounts should be applied (Yes) or not (No). Any non-expired discounts are applied by default, but the discount amounts can be manually edited.

When the appropriate values have been entered/selected in the header section, click ‘Build Batch’ toolbar icon to create the check batch. This will populate the grid section of the record with the invoices that meet the criteria selected and replaces the ‘Build Batch’ toolbar icon with ‘Append to Batch’ toolbar icon. The grid section displays the following data:

• Checkbox: Unchecking the checkbox next to the vendor name, zeroes the ‘Terms Discount Taken’ and ‘Amount to Pay’ amounts.  Checking the check box fills both fields with the maximum amounts.
• Vendor Name: Displays the vendor name and vendor ID assigned to the invoice.
• Transaction Type: Displays the type of transaction.  The values displayed include “Invoice”, “Credit Memo”, and “Payment”. Credit Memo and Payment transaction types will be displayed in red.
• Transaction: Displays the transaction ID. This is a hyperlink, which opens the corresponding transaction record.
• Doc No: Displays the document number. This value is pulled from the transaction record.
• Orig.Trans.Amt: Displays the original transaction amount. This value is pulled from the transaction record.
• Doc Date: Displays the document date. This value is pulled from the transaction record.
• Due Date: Displays the due date of the transaction. This is calculated from the payment terms.
• Discount Date: Displays the last day of the discount period. This is calculated from the payment terms.
• Orig.Terms.Discount Amt. : Displays the original discount amount.
• Terms Discount Amt. Not Taken: Displays the discount amount that has not been used yet.
• Open Amt.: Displays the amount due on the invoice for payment. Credit Memo’s and Checks will be displayed in red and subtracted from the invoice amount.
• Terms Discount Taken: This field allows users to enter the discount amount that will be used. The value defaults to the full available discount amount when

a) The discount is not expired.

b) The discount is expired and the ‘Apply Expired Discounts’ is set to Yes.

The value defaults to 0 if the discount is expired and the ‘Apply Expired Discounts’ is set to No. This field is editable and a user can change the amount or remove the amount by changing the amount to 0. 

• Max Amount to Pay: This field displays the amount that is left from the invoice after taken discounts and previous payment applications (if any).

New invoices can be added to the check batch by redefining the search criteria and clicking ‘Append to Batch’ toolbar icon. This will add the new invoices meeting the defined criteria to the grid.  

Note: Invoices on payment hold will not be displayed in the check batch.

Check batches can be deleted by clicking Delete toolbar icon. This toolbar icon is disabled when no check batches have been selected.

When the grid details are updated, click Save from the grid toolbar. This saves the changes and also updates the ‘Batch Total’ amount in the header section. To print these checks, click ‘Print Checks’ toolbar icon. This opens the check batch in the ‘Process Checks’ window.

Note: Invoices that are assigned to active non-posted check batches, cannot be voided and payables documents cannot be applied to these invoices.

Note: If there are two open check batches created, the same Check # is assigned and users must manually change it.

Step 3: Printing checks.

Both Build Check Batch and Quick Check processes follow the same check printing process. The Check Process page can be accessed from the Vendor Balances list view (for Quick Checks) and from the Build Check Batch page (for Check Batches).

By default, the system creates a new check batch with the following header section details:

• # of Checks: This field auto-populates to display the number of checks for processing. This field is never editable.
• Batch ID:  The Batch ID auto-populates with the user name and the next check batch number. This field allows users to navigate between unapproved check batches.
• Check # Range: This field auto-populates to display the check numbers that will appear on the processed checks.
• Check Date: This field defaults to today’s date but can be edited. In order to print and approve the check(s), the check date must reside within an open fiscal period.
• Check Total: This field displays the total amount of the checks in the batch. This field is for informational use only and is never editable.
• Checkbook: This field defaults to the checkbook defined in the Purchasing Preference ‘Default Vendor Checkbook ID’, but the field is editable and lists all active checkbooks.
• Next Check #: This field defaults to the next check number based on the selected checkbook, but the field is editable. The check number auto-populates when the checkbook is selected.
• Status: Displays the status of the check batch.

The check grid populates with the vendor names and amounts entered on the vendor balances list view / build check batch grid. Users can also add additional check recipients by clicking New from the grid toolbar. This will add line items in the grid for data entry. The account combo box includes all active vendors that are not on-hold. Checks created from New toolbar, updates the Vendor Balances list view after the check batch record is saved.

The check grid contains the following details:

• Account: This is the vendor name.

• Address 1: Displays the address 1 line of the selected vendor address. This field is editable until the check batch is printed.

• Address 2: Displays the address 2 line of the selected vendor address. This field is editable until the check batch is printed.

• Address 3: Displays the address 3 line of the selected vendor address. This field is editable until the check batch is printed.

• Address ID: Defaults to the vendor’s check default address, but this is editable until checks are printed.
• Amount: This field displays the amount entered on the vendor balances page, but the field is editable. If the amount is changed to 0 and the check batch is saved, the vendor is removed from the check batch. The amount cannot be edited after the checks are printed.

• City: Displays the city of the selected vendor address. This field is editable until the check batch is printed.

• Check Number: Displays the check number assigned to the payment. This field populates after the check(s) have been printed.
• Description: Defaults to the Check Description defined  on vendor record. Is blank if not defined and is editable until the checks are printed.
• Payee: Defaults to the Check Name defined on Vendor record. Is blank if not defined and is editable until the checks are printed.

• State: Displays the state of the selected vendor address. This field is editable until the check batch is printed.

• Zip: Displays the zip code of the selected vendor address. This field is editable until the check batch is printed.

Note: Editing address doesn’t update the address on the vendor record.

Click Save to save any changes made to the check batch. This updates the header section of the batch record accordingly. To print the check(s), click ‘Print Checks’ toolbar icon. This loads the checks as a PDF file for printing. After printing, the check batch status is changed to Printed. At this point the check grid cannot be edited.

Note: Purchasing Preference 'Accounts Payable Check Format' is required in order to print checks.

Note: Check batches that are in status of New and Printed are accessible from the Batch ID menu.

To finalize the check batch, click ‘Approve’ from the toolbar. This changes the batch status to Ready to Post and the system automatically updates the vendor balances to reflect the payments.

The batch the transaction belongs to must be posted in the Host system, if the Integration Setup for Checkbook Transaction is set to Timed or Immediate.

If the Integration Setup for Checkbook Transaction is set to None, the transaction status is set to ‘Posted’ when the transaction is saved as ‘Ready to Post’  

Note: Approving a check batch will remove the check batch from the Batch ID menu when exiting the Process Checks window.

Step 4: Applying payables Documents.

If vendor checks are created using the ‘Quick Check’ process instead of the ‘Check Batch’, the payment must be applied towards the payable transaction in order to update the vendor balances appropriately.

To apply payables documents, expand the Purchasing module, select Vendor Balances and click ‘Apply Payables Documents’ from the toolbar. This opens a list view, which displays all unapplied and partially applied payment transactions including approved checks and Credit Memo transactions. All fully settled transactions are hidden by default, but this can be changed from the Inquiry Criteria window by setting ‘Hide Fully Settled Transactions’ to No. This allows users to view all payment transactions, including fully applied ones. This list view is for informational use only and none of the fields can be edited in this view.

See Help Documentation to view the description of each header field.

Select one of the payment transactions and click ‘Apply Payable Document’ to continue with the application process. Only one transaction can be selected at a time, but vendors and payment transactions can be navigated from the record view as described below.

Note: Select the transaction row to continue with the application process instead of clicking the Transaction hyperlink. The hyperlink opens the transaction record view.

The ‘Apply Payable Document’ toolbar icon opens a record view, where applications can be made. The header section displays the payment transaction details and the grid section displays the payable transaction details. All unapplied and partially applied invoices are displayed in the grid.

The header section displays the following details:

• Account: Displays the vendor name assigned to the payment transaction. This menu allows users to navigate between vendors. Only vendors with unapplied payments are displayed in this menu.
• Open Amount: Displays the total amount of the payment transaction.
• Transaction: Displays the payment transaction ID. This menu allows users to navigate between payment transactions assigned to the vendor selected in the Account menu.
• Unapplied: Displays the amount that has not been applied towards any invoice. This field is auto-updated when applications are made in the grid.

Note: When a user navigates between different Accounts / Transactions, the Open Amount, Unapplied Amount (and Transaction) fields are updated accordingly.  

The grid section displays unapplied and partially applied invoices assigned to the vendor with the following details:

• Applied Amount: This field allows users to enter the amount that is being applied from the payment transaction towards the payable transaction. The amount cannot be greater than the ‘Remaining  Amount’ of the payable transaction or the ‘Unapplied’ amount of the payment transaction selected in the header section.
• Apply Date: This field allows users to enter the application date. The date must reside within an open fiscal period.
• Avail. Terms Discount Amt.: Displays the available discount amount. This calculated by subtracting any previous discounts  applications from the Original Discount Amount.
• Checkbox: Checking the checkbox populates the ‘Terms Discount Taken’ and ‘Applied Amount’ fields with the full available amounts. Unchecking the checkbox changes the amounts to 0.
• Discount Date: Displays the last date of the discount date. The value is pulled from the payment terms assigned to the transaction on the properties tab.
• Doc Date: Displays the document date of the payable transaction.
• Doc Description: Displays the document description of the payable transaction.
• Doc No: Displays the document number of the payable transaction.
• Due Date: Displays the due date of the invoice. The value is pulled from the transaction properties.
• GL Date: Displays the GL Date of the transaction.
• GL Period: Displays the GL Period of the transaction.
• GL Year: Displays the GL Year of the transaction.
• JE: Displays the Journal Entry ID. This is a hyperlink, which opens the corresponding journal entry record. The journal entry is only created when Terms Discount Taken amount is entered and the application is saved.
• Orig. Terms Discount Amt.: Displays the original full discount amount.
• Original Amount: Displays the original full invoice amount.
• Payment Terms: Displays the payment terms of the payable transaction.
• PO: Displays the purchase order ID of the payable transaction.
• Remaining Amount: Displays the remaining amount after ‘Terms Discount Taken’ and any previous applications.
• Terms Discount Taken: This field allows users to enter the discount amount that is taken.
• Transaction: Displays the transaction ID of the payable transaction.
• Unapplied Amount: Displays the unapplied amount of the invoice. This is calculated by subtracting ‘Terms Discount Taken’ and any previous applications from the ‘Original Amount’.

Note: Unapplied on Hold Invoices/Credit Memos will not be displayed in the grid.  Partially applied on Hold Invoices/Credit Memos will be displayed, however no changes will be allowed. 

To enter applications, add ‘Applied Amount’, ‘Apply Date’ and also ‘Terms Discount Taken’ (if used) to the grid and click Save from the toolbar. One payment can be applied towards several invoices simultaneously and also several payment transactions can be used towards one invoice. The Transaction header section menu allows users to navigate between different payment transactions.

Note: If a vendor has unapplied payment transactions and no invoices, ‘No records to display.’ Message is displayed in the grid section.

Unapplying payables document

Applications can be unapplied from the transaction records. This feature allows users to unapply one or more transactions simultaneously from a transaction. To view and/or unapply payables documents, open the transaction record from Purchasing > Invoices list view or from Purchasing > Reports & Inquiries > AP Invoices Inquiry and click ‘View Applications’ toolbar icon. This toolbar icon is only enabled when the transaction status is either ‘Ready to Post’ or ‘Posted’. Clicking ‘View Applications’ toolbar icon opens a new window, which displays all the applications for the transaction with the following details:

• Applied Transaction Type: Displays the type of the transaction that has applications from the transaction record that was selected and opened. The type is either Credit Memo or Payment, if the transaction where the View Applications was clicked is an Invoice type transaction. The type is Invoice, if the transaction where the View Applications was clicked is a Credit Memo type transaction.
• Applied Transaction: Displays the transaction ID of the transaction that has applications. This is a hyperlink, which opens the corresponding transaction record.
• Applied Transaction Date: Displays the transaction date of the applied transaction.
• Applied Transaction Amount: Displays the total amount of the applied transaction.
• Discount Taken: Displays the amount of the discount that was applied.
• Applied Amount: Displays the amount that was applied towards the transaction.
• Applied Date: Displays the date of the application.

To unapply the application(s), select one or more transactions from the grid and click Unapply toolbar icon. This unapplies the applications and updates the ‘Apply Payables Document’ list view and record views to display the transaction(s) as unapplied. The Vendor Balances table is also updated accordingly.

Note: Purchasing preference ‘Days back that applications can be unapplied’ limits the time applications can be unapplied. If a user tries to unapply applications further back than the preference allows, an error message ‘The selected applications was applied further back than the allowed Days Back That Applications Can be Voided’ is displayed for the user.

See also Voiding Transactions.