---
title: "Invoicing Essentials Checklist"
slug: "invoicing-essentials-checklist"
description: "A checklist of everything that needs to be in place to invoice customers correctly in Aspire, from property setup to completing an invoice batch."
tags: ["Area - Invoicing"]
updated: 2026-11-13T19:11:24Z
published: 2026-11-13T19:11:24Z
canonical: "guide.youraspire.com/invoicing-essentials-checklist"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://guide.youraspire.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Invoicing Essentials Checklist

## Overview

Accurate invoices depend on details set long before you open the Invoicing module. Use this checklist, or cheat sheet, to check everything that needs to be in place, from property setup to completing an invoice batch, so your customers are invoiced correctly the first time.

### Things to know

- Most invoicing problems start upstream. A missing billing contact, payment terms, or tax jurisdiction on the property stops an item from being invoiced.
- Invoices aren't considered sent until you complete the invoice batch. Invoice emails don't go out until then either.
- Don't change prices on invoices in a batch unless the invoice is T&M. For all other invoice types, use change orders. Manual price changes affect your end-of-month numbers.
- Removing an invoice from a batch, or deleting the batch, doesn't delete the work. The items return to the Invoicing Assistant so you can invoice them later.

## Reference table

Work through each stage in order. Each table lists what to check and why it matters.

![Five-step Aspire invoicing checklist covers properties, opportunities, work tickets, assistant review, and batch completion.](https://cdn.document360.io/5942a8d7-f3b1-4919-bdfa-d477d8498fe3/Images/Documentation/invoicing-essentials-workflow.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-15T01%3A07%3A13Z&se=2026-11-15T02%3A07%3A13Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=XZcQumoXiJFmI7dX3gIBVq52AsycHH2EwWoSJie9EOU%3D)

### 1. Property setup

| Item | What to check | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Billing Contact | A billing contact is assigned to the property. | The billing contact is the person responsible for paying the invoice. If **Require billing company** is turned on in **Administration > Configuration**, the billing contact must also belong to a company. |
| Payment Terms | Payment terms are selected. | Required. You can't create an invoice for the property without payment terms. |
| Tax Jurisdiction | A tax jurisdiction is selected. | Required, even for tax-exempt properties. Use a tax-exempt jurisdiction for those properties. |
| Email Invoice contact | At least one property contact has **Email Invoice** selected and a valid email address. | Invoices are emailed only to contacts marked as email invoice contacts. |
| Paperless Invoices (email) | The checkbox matches how the customer wants to receive invoices. | When selected, the invoice is only emailed and isn't included in the printable invoices when you complete a batch. |
| Separate Invoice | The checkbox matches how the customer wants to be billed. | When selected, Aspire creates a separate invoice for each item you select for the property in the Invoicing Assistant. |

### 2. Opportunity setup

| Item | What to check | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Invoice Type | The opportunity, and any service that overrides it, uses the correct invoice type. | The invoice type controls when an item appears in the Invoicing Assistant and how the customer is billed. |
| Billing address | A billing address is on the opportunity. | Items without a billing address display as **Address Required** and can't be invoiced. |
| Payment schedule | For Fixed Price on Payment Schedule work orders, payment amounts add up to the total contract amount. | Invoices become available when each percent-complete threshold is reached. |
| Schedule of values | For Fixed Price Open Billing work orders, a schedule of values is set up on the opportunity. | You can't create a Fixed Price Open Billing invoice without one. |

### 3. Work tickets

| Item | What to check | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Work ticket status | Work tickets are **Complete**. | Per Service and Contract T&M items are available to invoice as each ticket is completed. Fixed Price on Completion and T&M on Completion work orders are available only after every ticket is complete. |
| Approval | Tickets in **Pending Approval** status are reviewed and approved. | Services marked **Requires Approval** can't be invoiced until the ticket is approved. |
| Time and materials | Crew time and materials are allocated to the ticket. | T&M invoices bill the actual time and materials recorded on the work ticket. |

### 4. Invoicing Assistant

| Item | What to check | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| As of Date | The date matches the billing period you're invoicing. | The Invoicing Assistant only shows items that are billable as of that date. If an expected item is missing, check this date and your quick filters. |
| Status | Every item you want to invoice is **Ready** or **Overdue**. | Items with a status that needs action don't have a checkbox. See the status key below. |
| Fixed Price Open Billing items | Each Fixed Price Open Billing item is invoiced separately from the row. | These items don’t display a checkbox, so they aren’t included when you select items and generate a batch. |

### 5. Invoice batch

| Item | What to check | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Each invoice | Billing contact, invoice notes, payment terms, and amounts are correct. | Once you complete the batch, invoices are delivered to your customers. |
| Prices | Price changes on non-T&M invoices are made with change orders, not on the invoice. | Manual price changes in a batch affect your end-of-month numbers. |
| Draft print | Print the batch for a final review if needed. | Invoices printed from a batch that isn't complete display a Draft watermark. |
| Complete Batch | Complete the batch when every invoice is ready. | Completing the batch sends invoice emails and opens a print window for invoices that aren't paperless. |

## Additional details

### Invoicing Assistant status key

| Status | What it means | How to fix it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ready | Ready to be invoiced. | No action needed. |
| Overdue | Ready to be invoiced, and should have been invoiced by now. The timing is set on the **Invoicing** tab in **Administration > Configuration**. | Invoice it as soon as possible. |
| Future Invoice | Can be invoiced ahead of schedule. Applies to Fixed Price Open Billing and Fixed Payment invoice types. | Select the row to invoice it now, or wait until it's ready. |
| Work Remaining | More work must be done before this can be invoiced. Applies only to Fixed Price on Payment Schedule work orders. | Complete more of the job to reach the next payment threshold. |
| Address Required | Required information for the billing contact is missing. | Select the row to open the billing info on the opportunity. You may also need to update the billing contact on the property. |
| Terms Required | The property doesn't have payment terms. | Select the row to add payment terms to the property. |
| Tax Jurisdiction Missing | The property doesn't have a tax jurisdiction. | Select the row to add a tax jurisdiction to the property. |
| Missing Billing Company | The billing contact isn't assigned to a company. Only displays when **Require billing company** is turned on. | Assign the billing contact to a company. |
| Processing | The item was selected for an invoice batch, and the batch is being generated. | No action needed. When the batch is ready, the item moves from the Invoicing Assistant to the Invoice Batches tab. |
| Failed | Invoice generation failed because of an unexpected issue. | Generate the batch again. |

### Required permissions

| Permission | What it allows |
| --- | --- |
| *View Invoice* | Access the Invoicing Assistant, Invoice Batches, Invoices, and Log Event tabs. |
| *Create Invoice* | Generate invoices from the Invoicing Assistant. Must be added even for System and Branch Administrators. |
| *Edit Invoice* | Edit pending invoices and complete invoice batches. |
| *Edit Billing* | Edit billing fields on properties, such as billing contact, payment terms, tax jurisdiction, and invoice delivery settings. |

### Print or save this checklist

Keep a copy near your desk or share it with your team. You can export a formatted PDF directly from the knowledge base, or print the article from your browser.

#### Export a PDF

1. At the top of this article, select the **Export PDF** icon, next to the **More** icon (⋯).
2. Open the downloaded PDF to view, print, or share it.

> [!NOTE]
> **Note:** If you don't see the **Export PDF** icon, use the print option below and save the article as a PDF instead.

#### Print or save from your browser

1. At the top of this article, select the **More** icon (⋯).
2. Select **Print**.
3. In the print window, choose your printer. To save a copy instead, choose **Save as PDF** as the destination.
4. Select **Print** or **Save**.

> [!TIP]
> **Tip:** If the tables or graphic are cut off, change the layout to **Landscape** in the print window.

## Related articles

- [Understanding the Invoicing Assistant](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/understanding-the-invoicing-assistant)
- [Using an Invoice Batch](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/using-an-invoice-batch)
- [Creating a New Property](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/creating-a-new-property)
- [Approving Work Tickets](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/approving-work-tickets)
- [Generate and Edit T&M Invoices](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/generate-and-edit-t-and-m-invoices)
- [When Customers Aren't Receiving Invoices: A Troubleshooting Guide](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/when-customers-arent-receiving-invoices-a-troubleshooting-guide)
- [Defining Role Permissions in Aspire](https://guide.youraspire.com/docs/defining-role-permissions-in-aspire)