Adjusting Invoices After Sending to Clients

So, you forgot to add a discount or you listed the wrong price for an item or service on your client's invoice. And now it's sitting in their inbox or they've already reached out asking about the amount due.

Any bookkeeper (DIY or hired) has been in this scenario before. Mistakes happen *shrug* ...but mistakes can be fixed! *superman pose*

What can you do? Let's discuss.

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Handling invoice adjustments incorrectly leads to record-keeping errors! Poor records mean 1) higher risks of noncompliance and audit issues (like potential fines), 2) appearing disorganized to your clients (i.e. not having accurate answers to their questions), and 3) not having enough information to make business decisions (i.e. historical costs, seasonal fluctuations, etc.). By handling invoices adjustments correctly, you will a) be compliant with standard procedures and able to address audit questions more easily, b) appear much ore organized despite the error made and c) will actually build trust with your clients as they will know you can correct missteps with grace.

So, now what should you do to address invoice errors?

A few things you should NOT do :

Don't edit the existing invoice and resend with changed pricing.

Editing an invoice after sending to a client creates the potential for multiple copies of that invoice floating around. This could cause issues when future balances or amounts owed come into question.

Don't create a new invoice with a negative balance.

I've seen this happen many times. Please, please, do not do this. While adding a new invoice with a negative balance would bring the total account balance to where you want it, an invoice with a starting negative balance is a red flag for any bookkeeping or accounting professional. An invoice is a bill to be paid to you, not a credit from your to your client.

Don't just tell your client to pay under the total shown on the invoice.

Telling your client to pay a lower amount than what is shown on the invoice leaves you with two problems: 1) your client may see this as unprofessional and a sign of disorganization and 2) you will still have to deal with the unpaid balance in your ledger anyhow!

Don't delete the invoice.

Deleting the invoice deletes all records of it in your system. But again, the original copy sent to your client will still be out in their inbox + your outbox. Your system will re-use the invoice number on whatever new invoice you create next which will cause further confusion. You now have two invoices "released into the wild" with the same number but different sale values/line items which will certainly cause confusion.

What you CAN do to fix the issue without causing potential audit issues:

Add a credit memo to the account.

Adding a credit memo to the account will reduce the overall balance and document what the adjustment was for. You will then apply the credit memo to the invoice which will reduce that invoice total specifically eliminating the need to void or edit the invoice directly.

Void the invoice and create a new one.

Voiding the invoice will zero out its balance but will retain the record. This keeps your ledger cleaner and you can then create a new invoice with the corrected amounts and send to your client.

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