How Payments Work.
How InvoiceScript records payments, what partial payment means, and how payment status transitions work.
How Payments Work
For: business owners and bookkeepers tracking incoming payments.
InvoiceScript records payments. It does not process them. When your customer sends a bank transfer or pays you in cash, you open the invoice and record what you received.
The payment model
Each payment record stores:
- Amount: how much was received, in the invoice's currency
- Date: when the payment arrived
- Method: bank transfer, cash, card, or other
- Reference: a bank transfer reference or transaction ID (optional)
- Notes: any context (optional)
An invoice can have multiple payment records. Each partial payment brings the balance closer to zero.
Status transitions
InvoiceScript moves the invoice through statuses based on cumulative payments:
| When | Status becomes |
|---|---|
| No payments recorded | Sent (or Overdue if past due date) |
| Total paid < invoice total | Partially paid |
| Total paid ≥ invoice total | Paid |
Deleting a payment recalculates the balance and reverses the status if needed. If you delete the only payment on a paid invoice, the status returns to sent (or overdue).
Worked example
Northwind Studio invoices Initech Pty for a brand identity project: NW-2026-0005, total A$4,200.00.
-
May 20: Mira records a deposit of A$2,100.00 (bank transfer, reference DEP-20260520). Status: partially paid.
-
June 15: Initech sends the remaining A$2,100.00. Mira records the second payment. Status: paid.
The invoice detail page shows both payments with dates, methods, and references. The balance shows $0.00 remaining.
What "mark as paid" means
Recording a payment for the full remaining balance is the same as marking the invoice as paid. InvoiceScript does not have a separate "mark as paid" button. You record the payment with the actual amount, and the status updates.
Payment recording scope
Payments can be recorded on invoices and credit notes. Quotes and pro-formas are non-binding documents. They represent proposals, not financial obligations, and do not accept payments.
What InvoiceScript does not do
InvoiceScript does not connect to your bank. It does not pull transactions, match payments, or reconcile statements. You record payments by hand. If you need bank feeds or automatic reconciliation, your accounting software handles that part.
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