In ActiveCollab, sending invoices to clients is quick and easy. You can create them manually or based on tracked time and expenses.
Only Owner users and Members with access to invoices and estimates can create and issue invoices.
Use invoicing in ActiveCollab when you need to:
- Bill clients for tracked time and expenses
- Send invoices for flat-fee projects
- Keep financial records in sync with your projects
How to create invoices
- STEP 1: Open Invoices,
- STEP 2: Click +New Invoice,
- STEP 3: Select a client company or enter a new one,
- STEP 4: Enter the address and choose a currency and a language in which you wish to issue the invoice.
- STEP 5: Enter the invoice ID, which will be generated automatically for all subsequent invoices (see below),
- STEP 6: Set the issue date and the due date,
- STEP 7: Choose how you wish to add invoice items:
- Free-form invoice - add items, costs, and quantity manually.
- Invoice based on tracked time and expenses in projects - select projects, the time period, and how to group invoice items,
- Invoice for Fixed-price budgets,
- STEP 8:
- Add items manually or from a template,
- Add a tax where applicable (learn more),
- Add a discount (optional),
- STEP 9:
- Add a Note for the client or a private comment/reference (optional),
- Add QR code (optional)
- STEP 10:
- Click Create Invoice.
After creating an invoice, you’ll be able to preview and edit the draft.
How to generate an invoice ID
ActiveCollab can create invoice IDs automatically, based on the invoice number you set for the first invoice. Here are a few examples:
0001, 0002, 0003, ...
1/2016, 2/2016, 3/2016, ...
1-2016, 2-2016,3-2016, ...
2016/12-1, 2016/12-2, 2016/12-3, ...
INV-2016-01, INV-2016-02, INV-2016-03, …
Note: Only dash (-) and slash (/) are recognized as separators, but not dot (.)
How to send invoices
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an unsent invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click Send by Email
- STEP 4: Enter one or more recipients
- STEP 5: Enter the email message
- STEP 6: Click Send Invoice
Note: When you send the invoice, your client will receive an email with the invoice PDF as an attachment.
How to mark an invoice as sent
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an unsent invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click Mark as sent
- STEP 4: Confirm your choice
Note: The client will not be notified about this change.
How to mark payments
If you enabled online payments, you’ll be notified when the client makes the payment. You can also manually mark an invoice as paid:
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click Mark payment
- STEP 4: Enter the amount and payment date
- STEP 5: Click Save Payment.
The invoice will then appear under Paid or Partially paid, depending on whether a full or partial payment has been made.
Note: When the invoice is partially paid, you can choose the option:
Notify the client about this payment.
How to disable reminders
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Disable reminders
- STEP 4: Confirm on Disable
Note: Reminders won’t be sent to the client when this invoice is overdue.
How to access logs
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Access logs
How to resend an invoice
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open a sent invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Resend
- STEP 4: Enter one or more recipients
- STEP 5: Enter the email message
- STEP 6: Click Send Invoice
How to edit an invoice
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Edit
- STEP 4: Enter the changes and click Save
How to duplicate an invoice
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Duplicate
- STEP 4: Enter the changes and click Save
How to cancel an invoice
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Cancel
- STEP 4: Confirm on Yes, cancel invoice
Note: Canceling will archive the invoice.
How to download the PDF to preview the invoice
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Open an invoice and click on the three dots (...)
- STEP 3: Click on Download PDF
How to group invoices
Invoices can be grouped by:
Frequency
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( above the “Estimates” section)
- STEP 2: Click on frequency in the upper left corner
- STEP 3: Choose between Daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly, and all
- STEP 4: Choose the date
Status:
- Not sent
- Sent
- Partially paid
- Paid
- Cancelled
Not sent invoices have the following options: send by email, mark as sent, mark payment, disable reminders, access logs, edit, duplicate, download as PDF, or cancel.
Sent have the following options: send by email, mark payment, disable reminders, access logs, edit, duplicate, download as PDF, or cancel.
Partially paid have the following options: send by email, mark payment, disable reminders, access logs, edit, duplicate, download as PDF, or cancel.
Paid have the following options: send by email, access logs, duplicate, download as PDF, or cancel.
Cancelled invoices can be duplicated, downloaded as PDF or deleted.
How to filter invoices
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( under the
- “People” section)
- STEP 2: Click on the Filter button next to the Sort button
- STEP 3: Proceed to filter by:
- - Status
- Client
- Due date
- Currency
How to sort invoices
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( under the
- “People” section)
- STEP 2: Click on the Sort button next to the Filter button
- STEP 3: Proceed to filter by:
- Issued on
- Due on
- Activity
- Amount
How to use QR CODE
You can include a QR code in your invoices.
Set it up to be the payment link or a custom note of your choice.
Once scanned, it will take the user directly to the payment page. If you pick the custom note, you can enter any link you'd like the QR code to lead to.
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Invoices ( under the
- “People” section)
- STEP 2: Create a new invoice or edit an existing one
- STEP 3: Scroll down at the bottom of the invoice to Add QR Code
- STEP 4: Click Save
E-Invoice
Electronic invoicing or e-invoicing, is the process of sending and receiving
electronic invoices between a buyer and seller in a special, structured data format.
( see more)
Accepted e-invoicing formats may differ from region to region however, the most
common ones globally include:
XML-based formats
PEPPOL
JSON
All e-invoices can be processed automatically.
How to turn on e-invoice
- STEP 1: Access System settings in the upper right corner under the My Profile button
- STEP 2: Access Invoice and Estimates settings
- STEP 3: Click Turn on E-invoices
- STEP 4: Complete Company Address and Details
- STEP 5: Click Save
Send E-invoice to Clients
When enabled, eInvoice will be included in email notifications that are sent to clients.
How to download e-invoice
- STEP 1: Click the 3 dots in the upper right corner of an invoice
- STEP 2: Click Download Invoice
How to create an invoice from an estimate
- STEP 1: From the main left menu, click on Estimates ( under the “Invoices” section)
- STEP 2: Select a desired estimate from the List/Grid view and click on the three dots in the upper right corner
- STEP 3: Click Create Invoice. Fill in the required invoice information.
How to customize the appearance
- STEP 1: Log in to your ActiveCollab account.
- STEP 2: In the upper right corner, next to the Search button, click on My Profile button
- STEP 3: Select System settings from the dropdown menu
- STEP 4: From the dropdown menu, select Invoicing
- STEP 5: From the dropdown menu, select Customize invoices
- STEP 6: You will be able to adjust the following:
invoice label
Paper size (A4 / Letter)
Company details
Company logo ( JPGs or PNGs - up to 3MB. Dimensions 80x80px)
Company name
Company address and details ( Note- Address format is defined in General Settings )
Header
Show border between header and body of the invoice
Logo Position ( left/right aligned)
Client Details Position ( left/right aligned)
Footer
Print Footer
Show border between footer and body
Footer Item Position ( paper number on the left/ invoice number on the left)
How to Use the Invoices Tab within the Client Company section in ActiveCollab? (See more)
How to View Invoices?
In this tab, you'll see a list of all invoices tied to the client. For each invoice, you'll see:
Invoice number
Issue date
Due date
Status (draft, sent, paid, overdue, etc.)
Total amount
How to Create a New Invoice?
Click the + New Invoice button.
Add line items: tasks, services, or custom entries with rates, quantities, and taxes.
Define the due date, payment terms, and currency.
Set the invoice status (e.g. draft or sent).
Save or preview the invoice.
How to Send an Invoice?
Click Send to email the invoice directly to the client.
Customize the subject and message if needed before sending.
A PDF version of the invoice will be attached to the email.
How to Edit or Manage an Invoice?
Click the three-dot menu (⋮) next to an invoice in the list for quick actions:
Send by Email
Mark as sent
Mark Payment
Disable reminders
Access logs
Download PDF – Download a copy of the invoice.
Print – Open a print-friendly version of the invoice.
Duplicate – Create a new invoice using the same content.
Delete – Permanently remove the invoice.
How to Record Payments?
Open the invoice and click Add Payment to log a manual payment.
Enter payment amount, method, and date.
Once the full amount is paid, the invoice status will automatically change to Paid.
How to send overdue Invoices?
Locate the “Overdue” summary box
At the top of the page, you’ll see four financial summary boxes: Draft, Sent, Paid, and Overdue. Look for the Overdue box.
Click the bell icon in the Overdue box
If there are any overdue invoices, you’ll see a bell icon inside the Overdue box.
Click the bell icon to send reminders for all overdue invoices for that client.
Confirmation appears
A confirmation message will appear in the top-right corner, letting you know the reminders were successfully sent.
This method sends reminders for all overdue invoices related to that client in one click.