What a debit note is
When a supplier gives you a credit — you sent goods back, they overcharged, a rebate was agreed — they send you a credit note. On your side it is recorded as a debit note: it reduces what you owe on a bill you already approved. The bill itself is not changed; the debit note is applied to it.
Enter a debit note
- Open Purchases › Debit Notes and press New debit note.
- Choose the Supplier — the same one as the bill.
- Enter the Issue date and the Supplier's document number from their credit note. Put the bill's number in Reference.
- Add a line for what is being credited, on the same Account and VAT treatment the bill line used.
- Press Save draft, or Review and approve, check the dates and each line’s Chart of Accounts selection in the summary, then confirm approval to post it.
What approving posts
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| 2100 Accounts Payable | Debit note total | |
| Account on each line | Line amount before VAT | |
| 1400 Input VAT (Recoverable) | VAT on the lines |
The cost falls, the VAT you can recover falls with it, and you owe the supplier less.
Apply it to a bill
- Open the approved debit note from the list.
- Press Apply to a bill.
- Choose one of that supplier's bills awaiting payment, check the Amount and Date, and press Apply.
Applying posts nothing more. The bill's outstanding amount falls, and Applied to lists what the debit note was used against. To undo, press × beside that line.
Getting it wrong
- A draft is wrong — Edit draft, or Delete draft if it should not exist at all.
- An approved debit note is wrong — remove its applications, then Void it with a reason and enter a correct one. An approved one is never deleted.
- The supplier refunds you in cash instead of reducing a bill — record the money received in Receipts & Payments; applying a debit note to a cash refund is not supported yet.