About retention invoices

You can create retention invoices when you need to allow your client to withhold payment on an agreed percentage of the original quote until the work is completed to their satisfaction.

WorkflowMax allows you to produce retention invoices by using a combination of progress invoices and a final invoice.

Producing retention invoices

To produce a retention invoice, you need to follow these high-level steps:

1. Produce a quote for the planned work. Once this quote has been accepted, it automatically becomes a job in WorkflowMax.
2. Produce progress invoices. As work progresses on the job, you need to produce a series of progress invoices at agreed stages of the work. For example, you might produce a progress invoice for 50% of the quoted value once half the work is complete, then another progress invoice when all work is complete. The last progress invoice would be for the balance of the quote, but would exclude the withheld amount, which may be 10% of the invoiced amount.
   • Details...

     To produce a progress invoice as work progresses:

     Repeat these steps as required to produce one or more progress invoices during the course of the work.

     1. Go to the Financial tab of the job.
     2. From the left hand menu select New Progress Invoice.
     3. Select/enter the percentage of the quoted value you want to bill for in this invoice.
     4. Edit/accept the Default percentage progress description then select Next.
     5. Select Approve and print from the Approve drop-down. Approving the invoice will automatically - and immediately - create a copy of the sales invoice in your Xero account where it can be reconciled against the incoming payment from the client.
     6. Select the desired print Template, then Print. From the left hand menu, select Email. Complete the details and Send Email.

     To produce the last progress invoice when work is complete:

     1. Go to the Costs tab of the job.
     2. In the Description field enter: Retentions - 10% of the quoted value (or similar).
     3. In the Quantity field enter: -1 (negative 1).
     4. In the Unit Cost field enter: 0 (zero).
     5. In the Unit Price field enter: 500.00 (10% of the quoted value in this example).
     6. (optionally) Provide more information in the Notes field. For example: Retentions withheld as per Contract # WCC-166675-12 until 20 Feb 2016.
     7. Save your changes.
     8. Go to the Financial tab of the job.
     9. From the left hand menu select New Progress Invoice.
     10. Select Quoted/Estimated Time and Costs, then Next. The retentions information is highlighted with pale orange shading, as it is a cost that was not included in the original quote.
     11. Make sure that the Bill checkbox is selected, otherwise the billable retention amount is zero.
     12. Approve and print as above.
3. Produce a final invoice. This invoice is for the withheld amount and completes the invoicing cycle.
   • Details...
     1. Go to the Costs tab of the job.
     2. In the Description field enter: Retentions claimed - 10% of the quoted value (or similar).
     3. In the Quantity field enter: 1 (positive 1).
     4. In the Unit Cost field enter: 0 (zero).
     5. In the Unit Price field enter: 500.00 (10% of the quoted value in this example).
     6. (optionally) Enter more information in the Notes field. For example: Retentions claimed as per Contract # WCC-166675-12 until 20 Feb 2016.
     7. Save your changes.
     8. Go to the Financial tab of the job.
     9. From the left hand menu select New Final Invoice.
     10. Select Quoted/Estimated Time and Costs, then Next. The retentions information is highlighted with pale orange shading, as it is a cost that was not included in the original quote.
     11. Make sure that the Bill checkbox is selected, otherwise the billable retention amount is zero.
     12. Select Approve and print. Approving the invoice will automatically - and immediately - create a copy of the sales invoice in your Xero account where it can be reconciled against the incoming payment from the client.
     13. Select the desired print Template, then Print. From the left hand menu, select Email. Complete the details and Send Email.

Example scenario

The high-level steps shown above for producing a retention invoice are included in PDF document below.