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Proforma invoicing is a significant weakness in Xero for businesses who make to order, require prepayment (avoiding credit issues) to trigger the order acceptance, then potentially deliver several weeks after a proforma is paid.

On a related note, functionality is required to trigger an order acceptance. Once a proforma is paid, we currently use a work around of draft invoices (relabelled proforma) and second templates and copying quotes to generate an order acceptance, but this is messy.

This fudge working is not sustainable and will likely be the reason for moving away from Xero to an alternative solution. Unfortunately, if we moved, there would be no motivation to return to Xero.

We have to manually raise proforma invoices regularly for parts / accessories for payment in advance of goods being shipped. This is quite time consuming as we are duplicating work by raising a pdf document that then has to be raised on Xero once payment is received.

Ha! So there is guide to proforma invoices on the xero public website

https://www.xero.com/nz/guides/what-is-a-proforma-invoice/

But no way to actually create one in Xero, when it is needed by their clients .. Interesting...

We haven't needed this since the last year and have had to do off system work arounds. It would be helpful to have this functionality in Xero

We are evaluating other options because it is critical for our company.

Been using Xero for years and never been asked for a proforma until today and there isn't a facility for one, which surprised me (and others, it would seem!)

We use Draft invoices as proformas, and need to have online payment links enabled. Why is it not possible to have this functionality?

A card payment link for pro forma invoices should be standard practice, this is where Xero is lacking the understanding business requirements, just another IT company!

We use the Draft Invoices as our Orders that are a Work In Progress. We do require payment upfront before a lot of jobs commences, so applying payments to Draft Invoices would solve our problem of writing notes of payment on the Draft Invoice and then having to apply the payment once approved to an Invoice at a later date.

We take deposits prior to accepting work and many clients need paperwork to facilitate the process. Having to issue 2 separate invoices for every job effectively doubles the work and should be completely unnecessary. If we can get away without an invoice for the deposit, we use a Stripe link but this attracts larger fees than if a customer was paying a Xero invoice - so it is pretty much lose/lose for us. This is basic accounting Xero. Way more important than a cash flow graph on the dashboard. Please could you get in to the accounting functions rather than the pretty distractions.

It would help if you could add a payment link on Draft Invoices, customers could pay before the order is manufactured or picked then you approve it and allocate the payment. We send out a lot of invoices that need to be paid before delivery, if we have to send out approved ones and they do not pay we have to remember to go in and delete the invoice. If they were in drafts you could look at draft invoices and know exactly who has not paid.

A Proforma function would be great

Really, all the people asking and still no pro forma yet. You seem to keep updating and changing things yet this request from many people for many years has still not addressed.

Agreed, Pro Forma should be an option. I feel it should be under the save option - "Save as Pro Forma"
Its not good enough to come up with a "work around" to use a standard business function - if a business already uses Quotes as part of their invoicing process you can't even use the below work around and have to use the Draft invoice status to make a pro forma.
Seems like such a small middle step between quote and invoice.

I've just switched to Xero from Quickbooks at my accountants insistance, only to discover there's no option to allow multi-stage invoices for clients to pay deposites for materials.
How is this an unaddressed issue for the last 3 years, going by the locked comment section directing me to this page?

What I have done is create an item called DEPOSIT in which I have made the unit value - %. Then in the quantity box I put the value of the sells pre-tax and then make the item Tacable.

I think Xero should have a way for you to include a Balance Due column which subtract the total from the deposit at the bottom after the deposit amount.

Don't think this would be hard to program, but boy would it make life a bit easier for a small business

Could Xero add to " Pro - Forma" to settings?
I would like to send oro-forma to my customers and "Quote" is not what I'm looking for. My customers are already agreed with my term and conditions so I need only send pro-forma to receive payment before the work start.

I think there is a workaround using the Quote functionality in Xero that we use at StratFin.uk

1. Create a PROFORMA invoice branding theme

2. rename the QUOTE template as 'PRO FORMA INVOICE'

3. Create a quote as you would ordinarily and select the 'PRO FORMA INVOICE' theme

4. Send the Pro-Forma invoice via Xero using the quote functionality (you can change the reference to 'PFI 0000' if you want here

5. When the customer pays, issue an invoice from the quote as you would normally including the tax and other information

6. The receipt can then be reconciled against the tax invoice and dated the date of the receipt

7. email the invoice to the customer for their records

I think there is a workaround using the Quote functionality in Xero that we use at StratFin.uk

1. Create a PROFORMA invoice branding theme

2. rename the QUOTE template as 'PRO FORMA INVOICE'

3. Create a quote as you would ordinarily and select the 'PRO FORMA INVOICE' theme

4. Send the Pro-Forma invoice via Xero using the quote functionality (you can change the reference to 'PFI 0000' if you want here

5. When the customer pays, issue an invoice from the quote as you would normally including the tax and other information

6. The receipt can then be reconciled against the tax invoice and dated the date of the receipt

7. email the invoice to the customer for their records

Really Important we have this

pro Formas are a standard part of running a company - I can't believe this is not a default option