About Entering Optional Fields on Invoices

If you have set up system-wide optional fields on the Optional Fields screen in Common Services, you can define optional fields for the A/P Invoice Entry screen.

You define optional fields for invoices and invoice details using the A/P Optional Fields Screen in the A/P Setup menu. For more information, see A/P Optional Fields Screen.

When you enter a new invoice, debit note, or credit note, Accounts Payable displays any invoice optional fields that are marked for automatic insertion, along with their default values.

The Optional Fields column on the Document tab detail-entry table of the Invoice Entry screen shows whether a selected document uses optional fields.

Note: The program sets this indicator. You cannot select or clear it. If you delete all the optional fields associated with the document, the program resets the Optional Fields indicator.

Assigning Optional Fields to Documents

You can view or change the optional fields assigned to an invoice, debit note, or credit note, as follows:

• To view or assign optional fields to a document, you use the Optional Fields tab on the Invoice Entry screen. More...

  The program displays invoice optional fields that are set up for automatic insertion, and displays their default values, as follows:

  • If you assigned to the vendor the same optional fields as you defined for invoices, the program displays the optional field values from the vendor record as defaults for the invoice.
  • If you assigned to the remit-to location used on an invoice the same optional fields as you defined for invoices, the program displays the values from the remit-to location record as defaults for the invoice.
  • If you assigned the same optional fields to the vendor record and the remit-to location record, the program displays the values from the remit-to location record.
  • If an optional field that is defined for invoices is not assigned either to the vendor or the remit-to location, the program displays the value specified for the optional invoice field.

  Note: You can add or delete optional fields for invoices. However, you can add only optional fields that you have defined for invoices using the Optional Fields screen using the A/P Setup menu.

• To view or assign optional fields for a document detail, you use a separate Optional Fields screen. In the detail-entry table of the Document tab, select the detail, and then click the Optional Fields column to open the Detail Optional Fields screen.

  When you first enter a document detail, the program sets the optional field value to Yes if at least one invoice detail optional field is set for automatic insertion in invoice details.

  Note: Accounts Payable sets this indicator—you cannot select or clear it. If you delete all the optional fields associated with the detail, the program resets the Optional Fields indicator.

  You can add or delete optional fields for invoice details. However, you can add only optional fields that you have defined for invoice details using the Optional Fields screen in the A/P Setup menu.

You can change the value that appears for an optional field, as follows:

• If the optional field is validated, you must specify a value that you have defined for the optional field. You can leave the value blank only if the optional field allows blanks.
• If the optional field is not validated, you can either select an value that you defined for the optional field, or you can enter any value that is consistent with the type of optional field and that does not exceed the length specified for the field.

Optional Fields for Job‑Related Details

On a job‑related invoice, if the detail optional fields are identical to the optional fields used for the contract project in Project and Job Costing, Accounts Payable uses the optional field values from the project as default values for the details.

If an optional field you assign to an invoice detail is not used in the contract project, the default value from the optional field record appears.

If the optional fields match the optional fields defined for Project and Job Costing billings, the optional field information is passed to Project and Job Costing when you post the invoice.

Optional Fields for Retainage Document Details

On retainage documents, the optional fields and values specified on the original documents are used as defaults for the related retainage invoices, retainage credit notes, and retainage debit notes, whether you enter the retainage documents manually or create them using Create Retainage Batch.

Updating General Ledger

Accounts Payable transfers optional field information to General Ledger when you create transactions for General Ledger if:

• You specified in the optional field setup record that optional field information will be passed to the General Ledger account.
• You defined the same optional fields for invoices and invoice details as you defined for transaction details in the General Ledger account record.

The General Ledger accounts can include:

• Payables Control
• Recoverable Tax
• Expense Tax
• Purchase Discount
• Prepayment
• Retainage
• Realized Exchange Gain
• Realized Exchange Loss
• Rounding