One-Time Invoice Overview and FAQs

Docket supports two billing workflows:

1. In Advance (via Invoices).
2. In Arrears (via Charges).

Which one you use depends on when you collect payment from your clients.

If you bill clients before or at the time of service, you'll create an invoice directly from the task.

If you bill clients after a service is complete, Docket tracks the costs as charges and you compile those charges into an invoice when you're ready to bill.

Before You Start

Here are a few things to know before you continue:

• Depending on your permissions, you may not be able to perform all of the actions in this article. Please reach out to your Admin if you need additional access.
• The client you're invoicing must already exist in your Docket account.
• A task must already exist so the invoice can be associated with it.
• If order entry and billing are handled by different people/teams, set up a process for who creates invoices and when that happens before anyone starts creating tasks or invoices.
• Restoring a previously deleted invoice DOES NOT auto-sync it with QuickBooks Online (QBO); you'll need to manually re-sync it.
• If you email a restored invoice to a client, the subject line will say "You have an updated invoice" instead of the standard "You have a new invoice".
• A restored invoice will automatically reconnect to the original task(s) it was generated from if they still exist in your Docket account.

Invoice-Related Settings

Before you start creating invoices, it's important to be aware of the global account settings that control certain aspects of invoices in Docket.

We recommend reviewing and configuring the below list of settings if you haven't already:

• Dumpster Managemen: Billing
• Dumpster Management: Billing Issues
• Billing Settings: General
• Billing Settings: Invoice
• Billing Settings: Charge

Create an Invoice for In-Advance Billing

Billing in advance means sending the client an invoice before or at the time of service and collecting payment ahead of time.

You can create a one-time invoice in 4 places in your Docket account:

1. From a task (recommended).
2. From the Summary page.
3. From a client's profile.
4. From the Billing Issues section of the Assets page.

Please Note: You can also create an invoice from anywhere in your account by using the + New button in the top left, but we don't recommend doing this because it won't be associated with a task. 

As a best practice, we strongly recommend creating invoices directly from a task. This connects the rental and billing information in one place which makes reporting, auditing, and tracking down missed payments much easier.

Create an Invoice From a Task

Generating an invoice during task creation keeps your rental and billing information connected which makes it easier to track payments and find tasks with missing invoices later.

TIP: Depending on how you've configured your account settings, the invoice editor may or may not appear whenever a task is created in your account. 

To create a one-time invoice from a task, just follow the instructions below:

1. If the invoice editor appears immediately after creating a task, skip to Step 2.
   
   If the invoice editor doesn't appear immediately after creating a task, you'll need to find the task first. You can do this by looking at the client's profile, the Schedule page, the Dispatch page, or the Summary page.
   
   Once you've found and opened the task, click the "+ Invoice" button in the Billing section.
   
   
2. Review the details at the top of the invoice and adjust them if needed. You may see different options than in the screenshot below depending on your account settings.
   
   TIP: If you use billing templates, Docket will automatically select the template that most closely matches the associated task's details. If you use a pricing matrix, you can ignore the Invoice Template field.
   
   
3. The invoice's different sections will be auto-filled by the associated task's details and your account settings so you'll want to review all the information in each section to confirm it's appearing correctly. 
   
   For example, the Taxes section will automatically display the Tax Group and Tax Rate that apply to this invoice based on the task details, client profile, and account settings.
   
   You can adjust any of these details as needed.
   
   
4. We recommend always reviewing the Line Items section. You can add, edit, delete, and reorder line items as needed.
   
   TIP: If you need to lower the price on a line item, use the Discounts option instead of changing the default rate. This keeps your pricing consistent and makes it easier to see why a client was charged less than normal. To charge more than the default, add a new line item with the additional amount and a brief description.
   
   
5. If this invoice includes extra charges for things like damages or overages, add the relevant details and/or images in the Additional Notes section for your client to see.
   
   
6. You'll also want to check the Automations section at the bottom to confirm whether this invoice will be automatically shared with the client when you save it.
   
   TIP: If billing and order entry are handled by different people/team, we recommend NOT sharing the invoice with your client yet. This gives the billing team a chance to review each invoice before it's sent.
7. Click one of the "Create" buttons at the bottom.
   
   

You'll immediately see the new invoice at the top of the Invoices page in your Docket account and you can manage it however needed.

Create an Invoice From the Summary Page

If you need to find a task in order to create an invoice for it or simply want to do an audit of tasks without invoices, the Summary page is the best place to look.

To find a task on the Summary page and create an invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Summary" from the left-hand menu.
2. Use the Date Range filter to narrow down the time period.
3. Confirm that Invoices is included in the Fields section so the Invoices column appears in your results.
4. Click "Run Review".
   
   
5. Find the task you're looking for in the results. Tasks without an invoice will have a blank Invoices column.
   
   
6. Click on the task to open it.
7. Click to expand the Billing section.
8. Click "+ Invoice" to open the invoice editor.
   
   
9. Create and send the invoice like usual.

We recommend checking the Summary page at least once a day to catch tasks that are missing invoices.

Create an Invoice From a Client's Profile

If you need to find a task in order to create an invoice for it and know which client it was for, you can go straight to their profile and create the invoice there.

To create an invoice from a client's profile, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Clients" in the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the client to open their profile.
   
   
3. Click into the "Tasks" tab at the top of the profile.
4. Find the task you need and click "+ Create Invoice."
   
   
5. Create and send the invoice like usual.

Create an Invoice From a Billing Issue

If you need to create an additional invoice for a client that's incurred an extra fee, like for bin damages or weight overages, you can easily do that from the Assets page.

To create an invoice from a billing issue, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Assets" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click into "Billing Issues".
3. Find the charge you need to make an invoice for and click "+ Create Invoice".
   
   
4. Create and send the invoice like usual.

Create an Invoice for In-Arrears Billing

Billing in arrears means collecting payment after a service is complete. 

Instead of generating an invoice at task creation, Docket tracks the individual costs accrued on the Charges page so that when you're ready to bill you can quickly compile them together into a single invoice.

TIP: Think of the Charges page like an open tab: charges accumulate as services are completed and you close the tab when it's time to send the invoice.

As a best practice, we don't recommend manually creating charges outside of a task. Allowing Docket to auto-create charges associated with a task connects the rental and billing information in one place which makes reporting, auditing, and tracking down missed payments much easier.

Compile Charges into an Invoice

When a client's rental tasks have been fully completed (or it's time to send them their monthly invoice for a long-term rental), it's time to compile the charges into an invoice.,

To do that, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Charges" from the left-hand menu.
2. Search for the client's name in the search bar to filter the list to their charges only. You don't have to do this if you want to create invoices for multiple clients at once.
3. Click on "Actions".
   
   
4. Choose one of the options that appears in the drop-down menu.
   
   If you click "Create Invoice", checkboxes will appear next to each charge for you to select specific charges to compile into an invoice.
   
   Please Note: Charges for different service addresses cannot be compiled together in the same invoice.
   
   
   
   If you click "Bulk Create Invoices", Docket will automatically group all of the charges by client and service address before asking you to approve the invoice(s) to create. 
   
   
5. If you chose "Create Invoice", click "Create Invoice" at the top so Docket can create an invoice with your selected charges.
   
   
   
   If you chose "Bulk Create Invoices", click "Confirm" at the bottom so Docket can create a separate invoice for each client or service address listed.
   
   

The charges will disappear from the Charges page and the newly generated invoice will appear on the Invoices page instead. The Invoice Editor will appear onscreen too where you can edit and send it like usual.

TIP: If you accidentally added a charge that shouldn't have been included or need to start over for another reason, you can delete the invoice and un-apply the charges to it so they reappear on the Charges page.

Manage One-Time Invoices

Once an invoice is created, you can manage it as needed from the Invoices page.

Edit an Invoice

If you need to update an invoice after it's been created, like adjusting a line item, adding an additional charge, or correcting the service address, you can do so directly from the invoice. 

TIP: While most invoice details can be changed as long as the invoice hasn't been paid in full, we strongly recommend not changing an invoice's details once it's been sent to your client to avoid confusion and chargeback liability.

To edit an invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Find the invoice you need to edit and open it.
2. Click on "Edit Invoice" in the top right.
   
   
3. Make your changes and then click "Update Invoice" at the bottom.
   
   

If you've previously sent this invoice to your client via email or text, you'll want to re-send it so they can pay the updated version.

If the associated client has access to their Client Dashboard, the updated version will automatically appear there for them to pay.

Merge Invoices

Merging lets you combine multiple invoices for the same client into a single invoice. This is useful when you've created separate invoices for the same client and want to send one consolidated bill instead.

Please Note: You can only merge open, unpaid invoices. If the invoice you want to merge has already been paid, you'll need to unapply the payment first and then re-apply it to the newly merged invoice. This isn't a good accounting practice though, so we don't advise doing this.

To merge invoices, just follow the instructions below:

1. Open the client's profile.
2. Click "Merge Invoices" in the Billing section.
   
   
3. Use the checkboxes next to each invoice to select the ones you want to combine.
4. Click "Merge Invoices" to combine them.
   
   

The merged invoices will be automatically voided and the newly combined invoice will appear at the top of the client's Billing section.

TIP: If invoices were merged incorrectly or accidentally, you'll need to void the combined invoice and unvoid the individual invoices so you can manage them separately again. There isn't a way to unmerge invoices.

Void an Invoice

Voiding an invoice marks it as canceled without removing it from your records. Use this when a client was charged incorrectly or a service was canceled and you want to keep an audit trail of what happened.

To void an invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Open the invoice and click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
2. Click "Void" from the menu that appears.
   
   
3. Enter the reason for voiding this invoice. Depending on your account settings, you may be required to do this before being allowed to void the invoice.
4. Click "Confirm Void Invoice".
   
   

The invoice will now show as voided in both your Docket account and in the client's Dashboard.

Please Note: Voiding a previously paid invoice doesn't automatically refund the payment back to the client.

Unvoid an Invoice

If you voided an invoice by mistake, you can unvoid it to reopen it as an outstanding balance for the associated client.

To unvoid an invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Open the voided invoice and click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
2. Click "Unvoid" from the menu that appears.
   
   
3. Click "Confirm Unvoid" on the prompt that appears.
   
   

The invoice will reopen in both your Docket account and your client's Dashboard, and their outstanding balance will reflect the additional amount.

Delete an Invoice

Deleting an invoice removes it completely from both your Docket account and the client's Dashboard. 

TIP: We strongly recommend never deleting invoices and instead voiding them so your business has a paper trail in case of an audit or chargeback.

If you need to completely delete an invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Open the invoice and click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
2. Click "Delete" from the menu that appears.
   
   
3. Enter the reason for deleting this invoice. Depending on your account settings, you may be required to do this before being allowed to delete the invoice.
4. If the invoice was made by compiling charges together, decide whether you want to unapply those charges and send them back to the Charges page. We always suggest unapplying charges so you can create a new invoice and get paid!
5. Click "Confirm Delete".
   
   

The invoice will disappear from both your Docket account and the associated client's Dashboard.

Restore a Deleted Invoice

If an invoice was deleted by mistake, you can recover it from the Reports section in your Docket account.

There are a few things to keep in mind when restoring a deleted invoice:

• Restoring an invoice DOES NOT auto-sync it with QuickBooks Online (QBO); you'll need to manually re-sync it.
• If you email a restored invoice to a client, the subject line will say "You have an updated invoice" instead of the standard "You have a new invoice".
• A restored invoice will automatically reconnect to the original task(s) it was generated from if they still exist in your Docket account.

To do that, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Reports (Legacy)" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the "Deleted Invoices" report.
   
   
3. Use Date Range filters to narrow down the search for when the invoice was deleted.
4. Click "Run Report" at the top.
   
   
5. Find the invoice you need to restore and click on it to open it.
6. Click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
7. Click "Activate" from the menu that appears.
   
   
8. Click "Confirm Activate" to restore the invoice.
   
   

The invoice will reappear in your Docket account, but it WON'T be automatically shared with your client via email/text or on their Client Dashboard. You'll need to manually send it to them for payment. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

These FAQs address common questions and quick clarifications to help you use this feature with confidence.

How Do I Add Taxes to an Invoice?

Your tax codes live in your Billing Settings and each code defines a tax rate scoped to a state, county, or city. 

If you have the Default Apply Taxes setting turned on in your account, the applicable tax code is automatically selected based on the service address.

If you don't have that setting enabled, you'll need to manually select the correct Tax Group in the Taxes section when creating invoices.

Why Are Taxes Applying to Line Items Even Though I Disabled Them in My Account Settings?

Taxes on invoices are driven by two things working together: the tax codes configured in your account settings and each line item's Taxable setting.

Each line item on the invoice has its own Taxable setting that overrides the account setting. 

If you enable taxes for a line item, that amount is subject to whatever tax code applies to the invoice. If you disable taxes, no tax is applied to that amount.

Please Note: Line item taxes will also override any client-specific tax settings you may have set up in their profile.

Can I Reassign an Invoice to a Different Client?

No. Once an invoice has been created, there's no way to change which client it's associated with. You'll need to delete the invoice and recreate it for the correct client.

If you have any questions, please reach out to our Support team through the chat widget on the bottom of this page or by sending an email to support@yourdocket.com!