Invoices
Full invoice lifecycle management with line items, PDF preview, and payment tracking.
Creating an invoice
Invoices can be created in two ways:
| Manually | From the item detail view, Payments tab |
| From a proposal | Click "Convert to Invoice" on an accepted proposal, or enable auto-creation in the proposal template |
Manual creation
- Open an item's detail view
- Go to the Payments tab
- Click "Create Invoice"
- Set a title, currency, and optionally a due date and template
- Add line items from your product catalog
- Add client notes and terms & conditions
When an invoice is created with tracked products, stock is automatically decremented. See Inventory for details.
Discounts and taxes
Invoices support discounts and taxes at both the line level and the document level.
Each line item can have its own discount percent and its own list of named taxes. The line discount is applied first, then the line taxes are calculated on the discounted amount.
A document-level discount and one or more document-level taxes can also be set for the whole invoice. These apply on top of the line totals. The document discount is taken first, then the document taxes are calculated on what remains.
The invoice template controls which level is used:
| Enable discount | Turn discounts on for invoices created from this template |
| Per-item discount | When on, each line carries its own discount. When off, a single discount applies to the whole invoice |
| Enable tax | Turn taxes on |
| Per-item tax | When on, each line carries its own taxes. When off, a single list of taxes applies to the whole invoice |
The totals panel shows the subtotal, any discounts, each tax broken out by name, and the final total. The same breakdown is saved with the invoice and used on the PDF, so the numbers on the invoice will not change if you reopen it later.
Amounts are shown in the invoice's currency at that currency's standard precision (two decimal places for most currencies, no decimals for currencies like JPY, three decimals for currencies like BHD).
PDF preview
Click "Preview" on an invoice to generate and view the PDF in a new browser tab. Template variables like {contact_name} and {contact_email} are resolved from the item's linked contact.
Sending invoices
| Send by email | The contact receives a link to view the invoice |
| Copy link | Share the public invoice URL directly |
Public invoice page
Each invoice has a public viewing page. Recipients can view the full invoice with line items, totals, and payment terms without needing a Slate account.
Recording payments
Track payments against invoices:
| Unpaid | No payments have been recorded |
| Partially Paid | Some amount received, balance remains |
| Paid | Full amount has been received |
Record partial or full payments with amount and date. View complete payment history per invoice.
Payments must be recorded in the same currency as the invoice. Each payment is checked against the remaining balance, so the invoice cannot be accidentally over-paid even if two payments are recorded at the same moment.
Deleting invoices
Only draft invoices can be deleted. Invoices that have been sent, viewed, or paid cannot be deleted. When a draft invoice is deleted, stock is automatically restored for any tracked products.
Compliance & retention
Invoices are retained for 10 years to meet tax and legal compliance requirements. Associated files (PDFs, signed documents) follow the same 10-year retention period. Expired records are purged automatically.