Delete a sales invoice entered by mistake

A saved sales invoice cannot be edited. If an invoice was entered by mistake (wrong customer, wrong items, wrong quantities), delete it and enter it again. Deleting is a full reversal, not just hiding the record.

Delete or return?

• Delete when the sale should never have been recorded, for example a typing error found the same day.

• Record a customer return when the sale was real and the customer brought goods back later. A return keeps the original sale and records the return next to it. See Record a customer return.

Before you start

• You need the permission to create sales invoices. The same permission allows deleting them.

• The invoice must have no customer returns recorded against it.

Steps

1. Open Sales › Invoicing › Sales Invoices and find the invoice. Use Search by customer, mobile, phone… or the filters.

2. In the row's Actions menu, select Delete.

3. Read the confirmation: Delete invoice #{id}? This reverses its GL entries and restores stock.

4. Select Confirm. The message Invoice deleted appears and the invoice leaves the list.

What the system reverses

• Every accounting entry the invoice posted: revenue, tax, cost of sales and the cash or customer-balance side.

• The stock the invoice took out of the warehouse.

• The customer's account entry for the invoice, and any loyalty points it earned.

When deletion is refused

If customer returns are recorded against the invoice, the system refuses to delete it and explains why. Deal with the return first, or leave the invoice and the return as they are.

A deletion can also be refused when the period it belongs to is closed in accounting. Ask your accountant.

Common questions

Can I void a POS sale the same way? Yes. POS sales have a Void action under Administration › Point of Sale › Sales, which runs the same reversal. See Review and void POS sales.

Is there an edit screen for invoices? No. Delete the invoice and create it again.