Invoicing - Customers to pay deposits on invoices
To have the ability for customers to pay deposit through invoices
Purposes: Business can just send one invoice to customer/client, so they don’t have to send multiple invoices when it comes to part payment.
Thanks for your continued engagement with us on this idea, everyone. We understand there are many different ways business work and conduct business with customers, and that you need more flexibility in the way you manage and receive payments for invoices with Xero. While pockets of research have been done in the past we’re getting a fresh lens and conducting a broader piece of discovery to deeply analyse and understand where our efforts could be focused in this space to alleviate existing hurdles in receiving payments for majority of Xero users. We’d like to open the invite to be a part of our teams research pool, where you’d get the chance to share more on the importance of managing payments for your business. This may involve being interviewed, or helping answer questions through short surveys or questionnaires.
✍️ If this is something you’d like to be a part of, please fill in this short form. Our research team will be in touch with many of you over the coming months. Though we won’t be able to invite everyone into every stage, we’ll return to round out on their outcomes and how this forms our next steps.
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Gary Young commented
Stripe settings are controlled by Xero when you link the payment services through, hence you cannot change the payment settings in Stripe to allow for a partial payment. We have set up our invoices so that the deposit amount is shown on the invoice through use of macros in the word setup for the invoices.
This works fine if the customer pays via bank transfer as they pay the amount that is shown. However, if they wish to pay by credit card (through Stripe) Xero does not allow Stripe to accept anything other than the full amount. Just change the settings on the link to Stripe to allow for this to happen and it may solve a lot of issues for many of the users. -
Hayden King commented
This feature is FUNDAMENTAL. No one wants to have to do 2 invoices for the same job. Using a 3rd party app defeats the purpose of simplicity and also doesn't automatically apply the card fee to the amount.
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Garry Utterson commented
1. Turning a quote into a "Deposit Only" invoice. Still shows full amount but with a "Due Now/ Deposit Only" column.
2. The option to show that has been paid then on completion of a job to edit invoice if necessary and or turn it into a "Final Payment" invoice.If our accountant shows money paid on a invoice currently I cannot edit to add to what would be a final invoice.
Thank you Selwyn Gishen below. I like your method.
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Amanda Kiefer commented
We would like to have a "request a deposit" button to be included on invoices sent from Xero so that customers can track client payments on jobs that require a deposit prior to completion.
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Daniel Juengling commented
Please introduce, essential for our business integrated with Stripe
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Fiona Sullivan commented
This would be a really helpful facility.
Please place it has a priority to do.
Thanks
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Peter Tuson commented
Hi Kelly, I wondered if you have any update on this for us? I think this request has been a top-voted one for a number of years now and is fairly 'basic' functionality in terms of the end user (perhaps not so with development).
As an aside, the method we have been using to get around this feature not existing has been shown to have lost us nearly £3000 revenue in the last year due to our user error (where we have been 'bodging' invoices so Xero payments asks the customer for the correct part payment).
It's difficult to go back to customers where we have made a mistake on invoicing but notice it months later.
Could you please list your best practice for taking a 30% deposit, for example, on a £2500 invoice? We're looking for a way that is:
1. Foolproof
2. Doesn't lumber a customer with multiple invoices for a single purchase (customers use their invoices to insure their goods).We sell high value jewellery and very few customers pay in one hit. Deposits vary by customer and the value of the item. We won't start manufacture until half of the invoice value has been paid.
Alternatively, can the community recommend any other accounts packages that does offer this functionality? It's our year-end soon so porting elsewhere would be timely if needed.
Thank you
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Selwyn Gishen commented
There is a workaround that I use. If you require a deposit, say 50% on a charge of $1000 for example, create your invoice and specify the total amount for the job you are charging but for quantity put .5. The amount actually invoiced will be $500. Then use the repeat invoice function to automatically send another invoice in 30 days or whenever. An extra step but it works perfectly fine. You can can use different quantity percentages, such as .25, .1 etc if you offer multiple payments over time.
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Gavin Mealing commented
Why should we have to rely on a 3rd party provider such as stripe to provide the basic functionality any sales and invoicing software should have? surely its as simple as passing a variable field to the payment processor? If i could swap this package for another I would in a flash, unfortunately the company I work for won't let me.
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Colm Murphy commented
We have multiple requests from clients to make partial payments on an invoice, which is available through other payment integrated partners e.g. with SAGE a partial payment can be made.
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Mike Atchison commented
This is very important to my business. I wish I knew it was a major drawback of Xero before investing my time in setting it up.
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Daniel Rico commented
Sage has it, change to sage, it's a better platform
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Dianne Lambert commented
Definitely a must for my business, customers often want to spread the cost over two or more cards, can you please look at this asap?
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Riaan Badenhorst commented
@Michael Tetro. It does not seem Xero will add this feature anytime soon. Some of my clients has already left Xero because of basic features not included in a higher than market prices. Then they offer add-ons from third parties you have to pay extra for. It is clear that Xero has grown too big and has lost touch to their clients needs.. All about the glits and glammer now... pity..
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Michael Tetro commented
It's almost 2023... Every one of my bookings take a 50% deposit as a reservation fee to hold the date and time. It makes me look out of touch that I can't take a partial deposit. I end up splitting the invoices into two and that creates more work for everyone. If this feature doesn't get added soon I will be leaving Xero entirely for another service. Please fix this now. Thank you.
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Tom Rookwood commented
Simply don't understand how in 2022 Xero doesn't have functionality to take partial payment though Stripe.
And the work around via stripe is just as tedious as they dont offer a one lick option to pass of their fees - you have to work it out manually with a calculator each time.
Endless comments like mine should make this priority No. 1 on the To Do list for Xero
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Adam Jubela commented
It's sad Xero ignores his 1000s of clients requesting simple functionalities. I wish I had the time to organize all of us to quit xero and see if they would actually care.
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Ed Belt commented
This should be a basic feature of Xero without needing an add on.
Alot of companies require a deposit from customer before they start and this should be able to be displayed on the Quote showing a deposit amount required and the ability for that to work through the system seamlessly and show on the invoice when the invoice is created with out the need to rase multiple invoices for a single simple job or the need to use timely work arounds to work out what a deposit should be and record the track payments.
Given the amount of companies that require deposit's can't understand why this was not in the workflow from the start?
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Riaan Badenhorst commented
@Maria McAdam. You can. but if defeats the purpose of showing the deposit payable on the invoive, or for the construction and motor trade, where an insurance claim is made to change the deposit to the co-payment/excess. Some do add it as a line item linked to a balance sheet account, but most insurances do not accept invoices like that. Point blank is that this feature should have been added ages ago. I just shaw that a much lower voting idea got added to "whats new" on the recent certification update course.
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Maria McAdam commented
It's possible to record a part payment on an invoice through the invoice (but not through the bank reconciliation area). This can then be reconciled.