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Credit Memos

Credit memos record a credit you owe a customer — for returned goods, a billing error, a service issue, or goodwill — and let you apply that credit against their invoices. Each memo tracks a reason, an issue date, and how much has been applied versus what's remaining, so partial applications across several invoices stay clean. They're the audit-friendly alternative to silently editing an invoice.

Key capabilities

  • Draft → issue → apply lifecycle, with partial applications tracked per memo
  • Eight standard reasons (returned goods, damaged goods, service issue, pricing error, billing adjustment, goodwill, duplicate charge, other)
  • Optional link to an original invoice, plus a customer-level credit (no invoice required)
  • Apply across multiple invoices until the credit is exhausted; applied/remaining amounts always reconcile
  • Applying a credit reduces the invoice's balance due — partial keeps it open, full marks it paid
  • Inventory restock on issue for line items tied to product variants (none for service credits)
  • Auto-generated memo numbers (e.g. CM-0001) and optional internal notes
  • Void draft or issued memos (with a required reason); applied memos can't be voided
  • Customer credit summary showing total available credit and the memos behind it
  • AI suggestions that flag likely credit situations from customer patterns
  • List filters by status and customer, with search by memo number

How it works

A memo is drafted, then issued (which restocks inventory where applicable). Once issued, you apply it to invoices; each application reduces both the memo's remaining balance and the invoice's balance due.

flowchart LR
  draft["Draft"] --> issued["Issued"]
  issued -->|"apply part"| partial["Partially applied"]
  issued -->|"apply full"| applied["Applied"]
  partial -->|"apply remainder"| applied["Applied"]
  draft -->|"cancel"| void["Void"]
  issued -->|"cancel"| void["Void"]

How to use it

  1. Open Credit Memos (/books/credit-memos) and click New, or start from an invoice.
  2. Select the Customer, enter the amount, pick a Reason, and optionally link the original invoice.
  3. Save the draft, then Issue it to make it available for application.
  4. Click Apply to Invoice, search for the target invoice, and enter the Amount to Apply.
  5. Repeat against other open invoices until the remaining balance reaches zero.
  6. Use the status filters (All, Draft, Issued, Applied, Void) to track where each memo stands.

Pro tips

  • A credit memo doesn't reverse the original invoice — to cancel an invoice entirely, void the invoice instead.
  • Apply available credit before sending the next invoice so the customer sees the net amount due.
  • Issue restocks inventory only for line items tied to a product variant; service refunds and billing adjustments restock nothing.
  • You can't void a memo once any amount is applied — unapply isn't supported, so confirm the invoice and amount before applying.
  • Application is capped twice: it can't exceed the memo's remaining balance or the invoice's remaining balance, so an over-application is rejected with a clear message.
  • Issue a customer-level credit (no invoice link) when you owe goodwill that isn't tied to a specific invoice; apply it later wherever it fits.

In-depth guide

Lifecycle & state transitions

  • Draft — editable and deletable.
  • Issue — moves it to issued and triggers inventory restock for variant line items.
  • Apply part of the balance — moves it to partially_applied.
  • Apply the full remaining balance — moves it to applied and stamps the applied date.
  • Void — draft or issued memos can be voided with a reason; once applied, a memo is locked.
  • Delete — only drafts can be deleted.

Applying credit to invoices

  • Each application records the memo, invoice, amount, timestamp, and applying user.
  • The amount is validated against both the memo's remaining balance and the invoice's current balance due.
  • After applying, the invoice's balance recalculates: within a small penny tolerance of zero it's marked fully paid; otherwise it becomes partially_paid.
  • Because an invoice's balance due subtracts credit applications, credits and recorded payments work together on the same invoice.

Accounting & inventory

  • Credit memo applications reduce the receivable carried on the linked invoice, lowering what's collectible without deleting the original invoice's revenue posting.
  • On issue, memos with variant-linked line items push units back into inventory via an idempotent restock (re-issuing won't double-count), and an inventory activity entry records the restock.

AI & automation

  • The suggest action reviews customer patterns and proposes likely credit memos, so common situations (such as duplicate charges or service issues) can be turned into memos quickly.
  • Suggestions are advisory — you still create, issue, and apply the memo yourself.

Limits & edge cases

  • The credit amount must be greater than zero.
  • Updates are restricted to draft memos; issued or applied memos are immutable except for voiding (when still voidable).
  • The customer credit summary aggregates issued/partially-applied memos with remaining balance, giving a single available-credit figure per customer.
  • Lists can be filtered to memos with a remaining balance.

Start free and handle refunds the clean way.