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Credit an invoice (Credit Notes)

The SARS-correct way to reverse part or all of an invoice — the VAT is reversed, the customer's balance updates, and you can send a credit note document.

When to use a credit note

A credit note is how you reverse an invoice you have already issued — for returned goods, an overcharge, or a cancelled job. You never edit or delete an issued invoice; you raise a credit note against it. That keeps your records SARS-correct: the VAT is reversed and there is a clear paper trail.

Credit a customer invoice

  1. Open the invoice and tap ↩️ Credit this invoice.
  2. Choose what to credit: Whole invoice, Specific lines (tick the lines), or An amount — type any Rand value, like R500 off for a snag, and Worklog works the VAT out of it and caps it at what is still creditable on that invoice.
  3. Type a reason, for example Goods returned.
  4. If the invoice is still unpaid, choose how to settle it: Reduce what they owe lowers the balance, or Put on account holds it as credit for next time or a refund. A paid invoice always goes on account.
  5. Check the total, then tap Create credit note.
💡If you are registered for VAT, the VAT is backed out of the credit automatically. An invoice that is fully credited gets a purple Credited badge.
💡If the owner switched on "Credit notes need approval" in Business details, your credit saves as awaiting approval instead — the button reads Send for approval, and nothing changes on the invoice or the reports yet. Whoever has approve rights sees it under Needs you today on the dashboard and at the top of the Invoices list, opens the invoice, and approves or rejects it there — rejecting asks them for a reason. If yours is rejected, you see it with the reason on the invoice, at the top of the Invoices list and under Needs you today; tap Got it — dismiss once read, and prepare a fresh credit if it should still happen.

Send the credit note

Each credit note you raise shows on the invoice detail with a 📤 Send credit note button, so you can share the SARS-worded Credit Note document — it references the original invoice — with your customer.

Credit on account, and refunds

Credit held on account shows on the customer's Statement, where you can settle it — Applied to invoice, or Refund paid, which records the refund as money out. It also nets your Age Analysis, VAT201 and Profit & Loss automatically, so your reports stay honest.

A supplier who credits you works the same way from the supplier invoice — tap ↩️ Supplier credited me — and settles on the supplier Remittance.

What a credit note actually changes

  • An issued credit reverses the revenue — and its VAT — from the credit's own issue date. Profit & Loss and the VAT201 move immediately; nothing waits for money to change hands.
  • Fully crediting an invoice flips it to CREDITED, even one already marked paid, so the Credited filter always shows the whole story.
  • A credit awaiting approval reverses nothing yet — it only counts once an approver issues it.
Related guides
Create and send an invoice →Send a customer statement →Record a supplier invoice →Work on your VAT201 →
Still stuck? Open the in-app help assistant, or email us at hello@worklogsolutions.co.za.
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