Recurring Invoices Overview and FAQs

If your business provides recurring services like weekly exchanges or dump-and-returns on long-term dumpster rentals, recurring invoices automate the billing for each of those services.

A recurring invoice works like a template. You configure it once and Docket automatically generates a matching invoice each time the payment for a service is due.

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 recurring task must already exist so the recurring 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.
• You CANNOT restore a deleted recurring invoice template.

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 a Recurring Invoice

You can create a recurring invoice in 2 places in your Docket account:

1. From a recurring task (recommended).
2. From the Summary page.

Please Note: You can also create a recurring 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 recurring 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 a Recurring Invoice From a Recurring Task

Creating a recurring 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.

To create a recurring invoice from a task, just follow the instructions below:

1. When creating a new recurring task, such as an Exchange or Dump and Return, click into the Billing section.
2. Toggle on (blue) the Create Recurring Invoice option.
   
   
3. The Name field will default to the service address, but you can change this if needed.
4. The Start Date controls when this task will happen for the first time. This is also when the first recurring invoice for this recurring service will be generated.
   
   
5. Set the frequency and Recurring Invoice End Date to match your task's schedule.
   
   
   
   If you select 'Never Ends' as your End Date, Docket will continue generating invoices on the schedule you set up until you end the recurring invoice manually. Docket DOESN'T end a recurring invoice when its recurring task ends. Each of those items runs on its own, separate schedule.
   
   If you select "Custom" as your frequency, additional options will appear so you can configure a specific schedule.
   
   
6. Select the Payment Terms that applies to this client.
7. Decide if you want to share the invoice automatically with your client once the task is created.
   
   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.
8. Decide if you want Docket to auto-charge the client's saved payment method whenever a new recurring invoice is created from this template.
   
   Please Note: You'll only be able to use this option if the associated client has a payment method already saved in their profile.
   
   
9. Click "Add Line Item".
   
   
10. If you're using a pricing matrix that has matching rates for the type of task you're creating, those rates will automatically appear for you to review.
    
    If you're using billing templates, you'll need to select the correct billing template from this drop-down.
    
    TIP: You can always change the billing template after the recurring invoice is created.
    
    
11. Click "Add" to save the recurring invoice's pricing.
    
    
12. You'll now see the recurring invoice's details and can continue filling out the rest of the task's information.
    
    

When you click "Create" at the bottom of the task, both the task and its recurring invoice template will be created.

You can review the recurring invoice template on the Recurring page of your account.

The first individual invoice will appear on the main Invoices tab when Docket generates it on your chosen Start Date.

Create a Recurring Invoice From the Summary Page

If you need to find a recurring task in order to create a recurring 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 a recurring 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 "+ Recurring Invoice" to open the invoice editor.
   
   
9. Create the recurring invoice like usual.

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

Manage Recurring Invoices

Once a recurring invoice template is set up, you can manage both the template and the individual invoices that it generates as needed.

Please Note: You cannot void or merge recurring invoice templates, but you're able to void or merge the individual invoices generated from a recurring invoice template. Click here to learn more about managing individual invoices.

The Recurring page lists all your recurring invoice templates. Any edits you make to a template here will apply to all future invoices generated from that template.

The Invoices page is where individual invoices appear as they're generated and invoices that are part of a recurring template display a recurring icon. 

Edits made to individual invoices here only apply to that single invoice and do not update the template.

Edit a Recurring Invoice

If you need to update the billing details on a recurring invoice, like the pricing, payment terms, or line items, you can easily edit it from the Recurring page. 

Any changes you make to the template apply to all future invoices generated from it and do not affect invoices that have already been created.

TIP: You're also able to edit an individual invoice that's generated from a recurring invoice template. Click here to learn how to do that.

To edit a recurring invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Recurring" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the invoice template you need to edit.
3. Click into the "Invoice" section.
4. Make your changes and then click "Update Invoice" at the bottom.
   
   

All the future invoices generated from this template will now carry the changes you made.

Pause a Recurring Invoice

If you need to temporarily stop a recurring invoice from generating, but don't want to end it completely, you can pause the template. This is useful when a client's service/billing needs to be paused and you plan to resume services/billing later.

To pause a recurring invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Recurring" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the invoice template you need to pause.
3. Click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
4. Click "Pause Billing" from the menu that appears.
   
   
5. Click "OK" on the prompt that appears.
   
   
6. Click "Update Invoice" at the bottom. If you don't do this, your billing pause won't save!
   
   

Moving forward, no new invoices will be generated from this template until you resume billing. 

You'll also see a Paused label for the recurring invoice template.

Resume a Recurring Invoice

When a client's service and billing starts back up after a pause, resuming the recurring invoice template picks up the billing schedule where it left off so you don't have to set it up from scratch again.

To resume a recurring invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Recurring" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the paused invoice template you need to resume.
3. Click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
4. Click "Resume Billing" from the menu that appears.
   
   
5. Click "OK" on the prompt that appears.
   
   
6. Click "Update Invoice" at the bottom. If you don't do this, your billing resume won't save!
   
   

New invoices will now be generated from this template on the schedule it's set up with.

End a Recurring Invoice

When a long-term rental wraps up or a client's recurring service ends, you'll want to stop the recurring invoice from continuing to generate new invoices.

Ending the template stops all future invoices from being created without affecting any invoices that have already been generated.

To end a recurring invoice, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Recurring" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the invoice template you need to end.
3. Click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
4. Click "Mark as Complete" from the menu that appears.
   
   
5. Click "OK" on the prompt that appears.
   
   
6. Click "Update Invoice" at the bottom. If you don't do this, your billing end won't save!
   
   

New invoices will no longer be generated from this template.

Delete a Recurring Invoice

Deleting a recurring invoice template removes it completely from both your Docket account and the client's Dashboard. There is NO WAY to restore a deleted recurring invoice template.

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

If you need to completely delete a recurring invoice template, just follow the instructions below:

1. Click on "Recurring" from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on the invoice template you want to delete.
3. Click on "Actions" in the top right corner.
4. Click "Delete" from the menu that appears.
   
   
5. Click "Delete" on the prompt that appears.
   
   

The recurring invoice template will disappear from your Docket account, but the previously generated individual invoices will remain. 

Please Note: There's NO WAY to restore a deleted recurring invoice template, so make sure you really want to lose it.

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 a Recurring Invoice Template?

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 recurring 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 in a recurring invoice template, that amount is subject to whatever tax code applies to the future invoices generated. 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 a Recurring Invoice Template to a Different Client?

No. Once a recurring invoice template has been created, there's no way to change which client it's associated with. You'll need to delete 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!