A few fields must be filled in before PSS will save an invoice or a fee setting. Each requirement exists for a practical reason:
- A client — every invoice must be tied to a client, because the client is who you are billing and where payments, reminders, and history are tracked.
- A status — the status drives everything else: which list an invoice appears in, when it becomes late, and when reminders and late fees apply.
- An invoice number (ID) — this is the human-facing reference on the invoice and the key used to keep your records (and any QuickBooks sync) consistent. PSS suggests the next number automatically so each invoice has a unique reference.
- A subject — the one-line summary printed on the invoice and used in the email subject, so the client can tell what they are being billed for.
- A payment term (due date) — the due date is what the system uses to decide when an invoice is late and when reminders and late fees should fire, so a term is always set.
- A fee catalog item — when you enable a late fee or a processing fee, you must choose a catalog item for it. This is because the fee is posted to the invoice as a real line item, so it appears on the invoice and carries through to your accounting and QuickBooks.
- A recurring start date / monthly day — a recurring template needs a future start date, and monthly templates must start on the 28th or earlier, so the schedule can generate an invoice every period without skipping short months.