Accounts Payable Invoice Memo

[tborgal]

I agree that it would be nice to have an easy to use memo line that can be entered in the "Maintain Open Invoices" window and would print in the memo area on the check and on one of the stubs of a three part check. The stub it prints on should be able to be chosen as a preference option.

[Jeff]

I can't promise anything, but we are looking at how to put the memo line on the invoice rather than the vendor record. The problem is how to handle a check when it pays more than 1 invoice.

How would you expect the program to behave if you have 5 invoices to 1 vendor and they all had a memo line. What would you expect to see on the memo line on the check?

[tborgal]

I was thinking about this as a problem as well even as I put in the request. The problem with most of us end users is that we do not see the complexities of programming some of the features we would like to have. Certainly a list of 5 memos on a check would not be something that could be done.
I end up using the Description field - where the Vendor name is automatically inserted - as a memo line on the check stub. For instance if I have multiple invoices to one vendor I will use this field to place an account number or invoice number to explain what each payment is for. It is just a little limited on how many characters can be entered. I am not sure I fully understand why this field defaults to the vendor name. But if this field were a little larger it would certainly satisfy the needs I have for supplying a memo to the vendor describing what the payment is for on the stub attached to the check rather than on the check itself.

[Zorak]

I am not sure I fully understand why this field defaults to the vendor name.

In the Fund Accounting reports, the vendor name comes through as the transaction description.

Your transactions in Fund Accounting reports by default show the check number and vendor name:

12457 - AT&T

Rather than the check number and the invoice or whatever you use:

12457 - 653214

Changing the description, so that it doesn't show the vendor name, makes it so that the vendor name does not show at all in Fund Accounting, which causes some people confusion.

[tborgal]

Unfortunately this is the only field that prints on the stub along with the amount for the invoice. If you have multiple invoices being printed on one check this is the only field that can be used to explain what each amount is for.

[tborgal]

Zorak,

I see what you mean about the description field and the Accounting Reports. Then maybe the answer for a memo field would be to add this to the Maintain Open Invoices window leaving the Description Field as is and then print the new Memo field on the check stub where the Description Field currently prints. It seem redundant to print the Vendors name on a check stub that is attached to a check with the Vendor name already printed on it. This would satisfy the memo issue with a check that is written for several invoices.

[Jeff]

I've broken this out into its own thread from the wishlist. Hopefully this will make it easier to read.

There are 2 fields in question on an AP invoice. Reference & description.
The description field automatically gets the vendor name when the vendor Id is filled in. The reference field was designed to get an identifier for the invoice you are entering. i.e. invoice number, account number etc.

The reference number is printed on the stub of the check. A check gets printed and then the check is posted to FA. The question now is what gets transfered to Fund Accounting?

When posting from AP to FA one transaction is made for each check. Each check can include multiple invoices. The description on first invoice for a check is copied to the transaction description in FA. The refence fields are listed in the large note area on the transaction like:

Code: Select all

This check paid the following invoice(s):
REFERENCE            03/05/2009          50.00
--------------------------------------------------

I know it is not perfect. This behavior is carried over from before version 9 shipped when AP did not have description lines available on each line of the transaction.

[tborgal]

I use the reference field a little differently than that, however I could use it in the way you describe. How many characters can the field contain and why does it only print in caps.