4. The document chain

Up to three documents come before the invoice. They are structurally the same document at different stages and are written in the same editor:

QUOTATION  ──►  ORDER CONFIRMATION  ──►  DELIVERY NOTE  ──►  INVOICE
   A-           AB-                       LS-                 2026-

You do not have to walk the whole chain. Any document can be the first, and you can jump straight to the invoice at any time.

Module: Quotations in the sidebar. Included from the Professional plan.

Creating a document

1. Quotations → + New, choose the document type.
2. Pick a customer — or type the name and address directly.
3. Take line items from the catalog or enter them freely. Every line carries a quantity, a unit, a unit price and a VAT rate.
4. Optional: valid until (quotation), delivery date (delivery note), notes, signature.
5. Save. The document receives its number from the range of its own type and the status Draft.

What each status means

Important

Converted is final. Once an order confirmation has grown out of a quotation, that quotation can no longer be changed or deleted. That is exactly what makes the chain hold up as evidence: the predecessor stays precisely as it looked at the moment of conversion.

Converting

The Convert action sits on the document's row. The editor opens with all line items and customer details of the predecessor; you can still change something and then save. Three things happen:

• the new document gets its own number from its own number range,
• predecessor and successor are linked to each other,
• the predecessor is set to Converted.

A document can be converted exactly once.

Sending

E-mail on the row sends the document with the archived PDF attached. A draft moves to Sent. A delivery note shows no amount.

Tracking the shipment

On a delivery note, the Shipment action opens a dialog for dispatch details:

• Carrier — DHL, DPD, GLS, Hermes, UPS or Other
• Tracking number
• Notify customer — sends a "your delivery is on its way" e-mail with the carrier's public tracking link

A tracking link then appears in the list. For DHL the platform can poll the status itself and set the delivery note to Delivered as soon as the parcel arrives.

Note

Shipment details are operational data, not document content. They can therefore still be entered on a delivery note that has already been converted — goods are often dispatched after the invoice.

From document to invoice

The Convert to invoice action opens the invoice editor with all the data. On saving, the invoice takes its number from the invoice number range, the source document is frozen as Converted and from then on shows the number of the invoice it became.