This help article describes how a Purchase order is allocating to a Purchase invoice. Allocating makes it possible to link the cost objects and product rows used on the Purchase order to the Purchase invoice.

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You can open the allocation view by selecting Purchases > Purchase orders > select Purchase order > Allocate invoice or Purchases > Purchase invoices > select Purchase invoice > Actions > Allocate rows.

A Purchase order can be allocated to a received Purchase invoice. The Purchase order must be sent or printed locally before the allocation can be done. Allocating the invoice does not create a stock entry to the stock in the background; instead, the rows must be handled in the delivery receiving section and you must define when the Purchase order rows have arrived in stock. In the view, you can define per row when each product has arrived in stock, and you do not need to wait until the Purchase invoice arrives.

Allocating a Purchase order requires read or edit rights to the purchase price, which can be set in the sales and accounts payable rights, as well as factual verification and/or approver rights. Adding or editing the right requires KH rights. In order to make the allocation or to access this view, you must also have edit rights to Purchase orders.

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The Purchase order can be linked to the Purchase invoice, in which case the cost objects and product rows used on the Purchase order are brought to the Purchase invoice. Allocating is done from the Purchase order view via the “Allocate invoice” link. After the “Allocate invoice” link you can see how many Purchase order rows are linked to the Purchase invoice.

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You can also move to the allocation view via the Actions button of the Purchase order or Purchase invoice by selecting “Allocate rows…”.

If rows are already linked, they appear under Linked Purchase orders.

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In the example situation, Purchase order 25 is allocated to Purchase invoice 1616. The Purchase order appears on the right-hand side and the Purchase invoice on the left-hand side.

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Proceed as follows when searching for Purchase invoices in the allocation view:

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The actual linking is done as follows:

In the example below, one Purchase invoice row is linked to three Purchase order rows. The link is saved when you click the “Save changes and link rows” button.

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After saving the link, the rows are linked to each other. Next to the “Save” button there is an upward-pointing triangle which, when pressed, opens two new options for linking:

NOTE. Row selection works according to the following logic:

With Purchase invoice automation, the allocation can be automated.

Note. If rows are replaced, the period must be open. Otherwise, the allocation would also succeed for a Purchase invoice in a locked period.

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NOTE! On a Purchase invoice related to a Purchase order you MUST NOT use the “single posting” function. This permanently removes the relationship between Purchase invoice rows and posting rows and prevents posting data from being inherited from Purchase order allocations (posting and cost object calculation).

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The “In all new allocations replace Purchase invoice rows with Purchase order rows” function distributes the total amount of the Purchase invoice between the selected Purchase order rows based on their total amount excluding VAT.
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Example:
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Assume that the total amount of the Purchase invoice is EUR 1000 and that the Purchase order has the following rows:

Purchase order rows 1–3 are allocated to the Purchase invoice.
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The amount of the new Purchase invoice rows is calculated with the formula:
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Purchase invoice amount * (Purchase order row amount excluding VAT / total of Purchase order rows amount excluding VAT)
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Where:
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Purchase invoice amount: EUR 1000
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Total of Purchase order rows amount excluding VAT: EUR 800

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You can open delivery handling of the Purchase order by selecting Purchases > Purchase orders > select Purchase order > Allocate invoice > delivery handling or Purchases > Purchase orders > select Purchase order > Delivery receiving.

The Purchase order can be set as fully delivered in the invoice linking view. There is an option “Handle the entire Purchase order as delivered” for the Purchase order. In that case, the entire Purchase order becomes delivered.

If only part of the products have arrived, handle the partial delivery in the delivery receiving view. When the Purchase order has been fully delivered, you can archive it, in which case it disappears from the Purchase order view.

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From the menu above, you can delete a Purchase order from the list. If you select the Purchase invoice from the same place, the Purchase invoice is removed from the linking view.

With the “Update Purchase order rows’ unit price from linked Purchase invoice rows” option, you can update a new unit price from the linked Purchase invoice to the selected Purchase order. For the update function to work, the following is required:

Below is an example of this on the Purchase invoice side.

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If there are no e-invoice rows, i.e. the invoice has arrived via the scanning service or the invoice has been entered manually, proceed as follows:

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If the vendor cannot send an e-invoice, do not allow consolidated invoicing, but require one invoice per Purchase order. Because the function for replacing Purchase order rows on the Purchase invoice removes all row data of the Purchase invoice and replaces them with the rows of the selected Purchase order, the replacement function cannot be used for multiple Purchase orders on the same invoice.

You must require from the vendor one invoice per Purchase order (in the case of partial deliveries, several invoices are possible) or a transition to e-invoicing. The problem arises when the vendor invoices, with one invoice, the content of several Purchase orders combined.

If the unit prices of the Purchase order are updated in this way, the update is visible in the handling history of the Purchase order. The price update is transferred not only to the Purchase order row but also as the purchase price of the relevant stock batch to the stock.

Below is an overview where the Purchase order is linked to three Purchase invoices (in the example, there is a separate Purchase invoice for freight and surface treatment) and the actual goods have been invoiced with one Purchase invoice.

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If the Purchase order is invoiced via the scanning service according to partial deliveries, for example for row 3 in the image rows 1 and 2 separately, you can proceed as follows:

These actions are necessary if a price update is needed for that batch in the Purchase order or in the stock.

If you only want to link rows, for example for the information of the accounts payable clerk regarding a received immaterial service, it may not be necessary to create an e-invoice row; instead, using posting rows only may be sufficient for transferring information to the approver of the Purchase invoice.

In the case of e-invoicing, manual work is not necessary and allocating can be automated with accounts payable automation rules.

If the Purchase order has been allocated to a Purchase invoice, the information is visible in the Open Purchase orders view or via the Purchase order list in the “Order rows allocated” field.

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Question: What are the requirements for allocating a Purchase order to a Purchase invoice?
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Answer: Allocation requires that the Purchase order is sent or printed locally. In addition, read or edit rights to the purchase price, factual verification and/or approver rights, as well as edit rights to Purchase orders are required. Adding or editing rights requires KH rights.

Question: Does allocating a Purchase order to a Purchase invoice update stock entries or delivery status?
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Answer: Allocation does not create a stock entry and does not update the delivery status. Delivery receiving and delivery status are handled in the delivery receiving view.

Question: When can I use the function “In all new allocations replace Purchase invoice rows with Purchase order rows”?
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Answer: You can use the function when you want to replace the invoice and posting rows of the Purchase invoice with the rows of the Purchase order and bring to the Purchase invoice the cost objects used on the Purchase order. The Purchase invoice must be unhandled and the period must be open if rows are replaced.

Question: Why must the “single posting” function not be used on a Purchase invoice related to a Purchase order?
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Answer: Single posting permanently removes the relationship between Purchase invoice rows and posting rows and prevents posting data from being inherited from Purchase order allocations (posting and cost object calculation). For this reason, single posting must not be used on a Purchase invoice related to a Purchase order.

Question: How do I update the unit price of Purchase order rows from the Purchase invoice?
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Answer: First, perform linking transactions. Ensure that single posting has not been used on the Purchase invoice and that the Purchase invoice has e-invoice rows (Invoice rows). Then, in the linking view, select “Update Purchase order rows’ unit price from linked Purchase invoice rows”.

Question: What should I do if the Purchase invoice has arrived via the scanning service and does not have e-invoice rows?
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Answer: Open the Linking transactions view, click the triangle next to the “Save changes and allocate rows” button and select “In all new allocations replace Purchase invoice rows with Purchase order rows”. In this way, you get the Purchase order rows to the Purchase invoice.

Question: Why is consolidated invoicing not recommended if the vendor does not send e-invoices?
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Answer: The function for replacing Purchase order rows removes all row data of the Purchase invoice and replaces them with the rows of the selected Purchase order. It is not possible to replace rows for several Purchase orders on the same invoice. For this reason, you must require one invoice per Purchase order or move to e-invoicing.

Keywords: Purchase order, allocating, Purchase invoice, delivery

This article has been translated using an AI-based translation tool. The contents or wording of these instructions may differ from those in other instructions or in the software.