We recommend entering an adjustment to an invoice instead of entering a negative invoice in Billing or Accounts Receivable. This will credit the invoice balance and correctly adjust the retainage balance.

Sage 300 CRE doesn't see negative invoices as credits that you can apply directly to positive invoices. If you unapply a cash receipt applied to a negative invoice, open cash receipt amounts can adjust incorrectly. You’ll need a chargeable file fix to correct this issue. 

These solutions work for invoices that appear on aging reports in the Amount, Current and 30/60/90/120 Day columns. If the washing amounts appear in the retainage column, see information to help clear retainage held that nets to zero.

These steps won’t work if the negative and positive are clearing a future date issue. Future dated invoices clear from the aging report at the future date.

If you choose to enter negative invoices instead of an adjustment, choose from the five options outlined below to clear these entries. Your resolution will depend on your specific situation.

Apply an incoming payment to the negative and positive invoices

If you’ll receive another payment from this customer, you can select the washing invoices at the time of deposit. This will show the washing invoices and the intended invoice all paid.

1. Go to Accounts Receivable, Tasks, Enter Cash Receipts, Standard View.
2. Enter the applicable information in the Deposit Information and click OK.
   
   NOTE:

   Confirm the Number of deposit items and Total deposit amount equal the cash received. How you apply the amounts doesn't affect this.

3. In the Enter Cash Receipts Deposit Items window, enter all applicable information for the cash receipt.
   
   NOTE:

   Enter only positive amounts that balance with the amounts entered in step 2 above.

4. In the Cash Receipt Selection window, deselect any selected invoices by clicking them.
5. Confirm the Amount applied is blank.
6. Select the negative invoices first, and then select the positive outstanding invoices for the deposit. The total amount of the invoices applied must be greater than zero.
7. Confirm that the Deposit item amount and the Amount applied boxes equal the total deposit amount.
8. Click OK.
9. Click Finish.

Use an existing payment to show the negative invoice paid

Example: You entered an invoice for $10,000 and a cash receipt for $9,000. Your customer disputed $1,000 and you entered a negative invoice for $-1,000.
Follow these steps in the exact order they appear to remove the invoice from the report.

1. Go to Accounts Receivable, Tasks, Adjust Receivables.
2. Select the Customer.
3. Enter an Accounting date.
4. Select All Activity in View.
5. Select a cash receipt applied to any invoice and click Unapply.
6. Select the Cs cs rc created by unapplying the receipt. Click Apply.
7. In the Invoice Selection window, deselect all invoices (click the Unapply button).
8. Select the negative invoice ($-1,000), then the original invoice ($10,000).
9. Click Finish.
10. Post the entries.
11. Re-run the aging report and verify that the invoices don’t appear.

Adjust all washing invoices using the same adjustment type

This option works if the invoices involved are for the same contract/contract item/job. If they aren’t, the totals could be higher on one job and lower on the other. The balances of the washing invoices must net to zero.

1. Go to Accounts Receivable, Tasks, Adjust Receivables.
2. Select the Customer.
3. Enter an Accounting date.
4. Select All Activity in View.
5. Select the first invoice and click Adjust.
6. Select the applicable adjustment type.
   
   NOTE:

   Use either AR Credit or Write-off to adjust the invoices without changing billed amounts on jobs or contracts.

7. Change the Adjustment date to match the Accounting date entered above.
8. Enter any optional Reference or Description information and click Distributions.
9. Click Finish.
   
   NOTE:

   If the Distributions out of balance window displays, click Auto Balance.

10. Repeat steps 4-8 for all applicable invoices for this customer. Repeat steps 2-9 for all applicable customers.

Enter a dummy deposit to show the invoices paid

Because this is a dummy deposit, you’ll void it in the final step.

This option works when there are only negative and positive invoices that are to the same job or contract. It also works when reports used require work billed to equal cash receipts and don't reflect adjustments. If the job/contract are different on the two invoices, this can cause issues on Job Cost reports. The negative invoice job will show fewer cash receipts and the positive invoice job will show more cash receipts.

1. Go to Accounts Receivable, Tasks, Enter Cash Receipts.
2. Select a view.
3. Create a deposit with one deposit item for $0.01.
4. Select the customer on the deposit item in the next screen.
5. When given the invoice selection window, highlight the negative invoices first and then the positive invoices. This will leave a penny outstanding on the deposit.
6. After selecting invoices, click OK.
7. In the Cash Receipts window, go to the next blank line.
8. Create a Customer Cash Receipt (type) for $0.01.
9. Finish and post the deposit.
10. Go to Accounts Receivable, Tasks, Adjust Receivables.
11. Select the customer.
12. Enter the Deposit date as the Accounting date.
13. Change the View to Unpaid Activity.
14. Scroll to the bottom of the list and highlight the Cs cs rc for $0.01.
15. Click Void.
16. Click Yes to Void Activity message.
17. Click Finish.
18. There will be two entries in the Cash Management register for $0.01 that wash each other out. Reconcile both.

Void the washing invoices

Only use this option if the invoices don’t have receipts or adjustments applied AND the amounts wash by contract item and job.

1. Go to Accounts Receivable, Tasks, Adjust Receivables.
2. Select the customer.
3. Enter an accounting date - this can be a current accounting date.
4. Highlight the positive invoice.
5. Click Void.
6. Click Yes to Void Activity message.
7. Highlight the negative invoice.
8. Click Void.
9. Click Yes to Void Activity message.
10. Click Finish.
11. Click Start if a Print Selection window opens.

How do I void an invoice in Accounts Receivable?
How do I adjust or write off an invoice in Accounts Receivable?
How do I move Accounts Receivable invoices to a history file?
Can I apply only part of a negative invoice to a positive invoice?
Why are my Accounts Receivable Aging reports still showing invoices that I've adjusted off? (Accounting date is in the future)
How do remove a negative invoice from my Accounts Receivable aging reports?