Write your first invoice

You write an invoice in Rhinvoice in the editor: choose the customer, add the lines, check the live preview and click Issue. Only then does the invoice get its number and become unchangeable. After that you open the PDF, send it, and mark the invoice as paid when the money arrives.

Before your first invoice, finish the first start: country, company and a bank account.

1. Add a customer

The editor picks customers that exist already. Add one under Customers → New customer, or import your customers from a CSV or Excel file (customers and articles).

2. Open the editor

Click New invoice in the navigation, or press N anywhere outside an input field. The editor shows the form on the left and the preview on the right, as the invoice will look on paper. On a phone or in a narrow window you switch between Edit and Preview.

3. Fill in the invoice

1. Customer: type a name, number or city and choose the customer. Rhinvoice shows the address as it will appear on the invoice.

2. Dates: leave Date empty to use the date of issue, and Due date empty to use the payment terms of the customer or company. You can also pick Payable within a number of days.

3. Lines: Add line, then enter description, quantity, unit and price. Articles are suggested while you type. Apply takes the line into the list; clicking a line in the list or in the preview opens it again. Add text line adds a heading or a note without amount. Alt+↑ and Alt+↓ move a line.

4. Texts (optional): intro, payment terms and closing, also from your text templates.

5. More details (optional): subject, reference, service period, currency and a discount for the whole document.

The Tax treatment follows from the countries of your company and the customer: domestic, reverse charge, export or small business, with the notice the law requires. Rhinvoice takes the VAT rate that applies on the service date. Details per country: Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria.

4. Save the draft

Save (⌘↵ on a Mac, Ctrl+Enter on Windows and Linux) keeps the invoice as a draft. Once a draft is saved, Rhinvoice saves later changes by itself; the bar at the bottom shows Saved and how long ago. A draft can still be changed or deleted (Delete draft).

5. Issue the invoice

Click Issue. Rhinvoice asks Issue the invoice?: the invoice gets its final number and cannot be changed afterwards. Corrections are only possible with a cancellation invoice. Before issuing, Rhinvoice checks the mandatory details of your country and says what is missing.

Issued means final

From issuing on, content and PDF are frozen and the PDF is kept with its SHA-256 checksum. To correct an issued invoice, cancel it (Cancel invoice creates a cancellation invoice with its own number) and write a new one. See Issuing and cancelling.

6. PDF, print, e-mail

On the issued invoice:

• PDF opens the PDF in a new tab, Download saves it, Print prints it.
• Send by e-mail sends it with the PDF attached, once the mail server is set up under Settings → E-mail.

The PDF carries the payment part: the Swiss QR-bill in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, the EPC QR code (GiroCode) for euro invoices in Germany and Austria. A ZUGFeRD / Factur-X e-invoice is embedded in the PDF (E-invoices).

7. Mark as paid

When the money arrives, open the invoice:

• Mark as paid records the full amount with today’s date. The message that follows has Undo.
• Record payment (key P) is for another date or a partial payment: enter Payment date and amount, then Save payment. The invoice then shows Partially paid and the open amount.

In the invoice list, Paid in a row marks a single invoice as paid; several invoices can be selected and marked at once. An invoice past its due date shows as Overdue. More in Payments and reminders.

Keyboard shortcuts

Key	Action
N	New invoice
Q	New quote
/	Focus search
⌘K / Ctrl+K	Open command palette
⌘↵ / Ctrl+Enter	Save
P	Record a payment (in a document)
⌘Z / Ctrl+Z	Undo the last action (while its message is visible)
G then I	Go to invoices
?	Show all shortcuts

Single-key shortcuts only work while no input field is focused.

Questions

When does an invoice get its number?

Only when you issue it. Drafts have no number yet, so deleted drafts leave no gaps. Rhinvoice assigns the next number of the invoice sequence, without gaps and without duplicates.

Can I change an invoice after issuing it?

No. From issuing on, content and PDF are frozen (GoBD, Art. 958f CO, BAO). A correction needs a cancellation invoice with its own number; then you write a new invoice.

How do I record a partial payment?

Open the invoice and choose Record payment (key P). Enter the payment date and the amount received; the invoice then shows as partially paid with the open amount.

Is there a keyboard shortcut for a new invoice?

Yes. Press N anywhere outside an input field. Cmd+Enter (Ctrl+Enter on Windows and Linux) saves, and ? shows all shortcuts.