Understanding Invoice Transaction Integration

An invoice is a formal business document sent by a seller to a buyer regarding a sale. It details the products or services provided, their quantities, agreed prices, and the total amount owed. An invoice serves as legal proof of the transaction. It helps businesses track sales and payments and is vital for accounting, auditing, and tax reporting. Suppliers generate invoices based on the buyer’s purchase order and send them through SAP Business Network to buyers using the SAP ERP or SAP S/4HANA system.

Types of invoices supported in the integration via the Managed Gateway:

• PO-based invoice
• Non-PO-based invoice with accounting information
• Non-PO-based invoice without accounting information
• Header-level credit memos against purchase order-based invoices created on the SAP Business Network and then reconciled in the SAP Ariba Procurement Solution
• Header-level credit memos against non-PO invoices created in the SAP Ariba Procurement Solution

Supported invoices can be categorized as follows:

• Standard invoice
• Service invoice
• Summary invoice
• Direct invoicing of purchase order service items
• ERP-initiated invoice

All discount scenarios are supported at both the header and line level on PO-based invoices, non-PO-based invoices, and credit memos. Since the SAP system cannot send discount information, the discount amount is adjusted in the line amount.

To post non-PO invoices and credit memos to SAP, the IDOC segment ARBCIG_ACCOUNT_DATA is populated with data corresponding to the distribution (accounting information in cXML). You need to implement a user exit to post this information directly to the General Ledger (G/L) account.

Integrating supplier non-PO invoices is supported. You can process this supplier-created non-PO invoice as an FI invoice and a non-PO credit memo as an FI credit memo. You need to enable the INVOICE_PARK_NO_ACC parameter to park the FI invoices or FI credit memos of the following types:

• Without accounting details
• With discounts at the header or line-item level
• With unplanned costs, with or without unplanned tax details at the header level

In Service Invoice, you can receive and process invoices with up to a five-level hierarchy created against purchase orders containing service-type line items from SAP Business Network. Suppliers create service invoices based on approved service sheets. You can also generate invoices against a purchase order with service-type line items, and these invoices can include attachments. You can receive invoices with or without hierarchy, including those with unplanned service lines. The invoices must include at least one level of service child line item in the hierarchy.

Summary invoices for multiple purchase orders are supported. Suppliers can send summary invoices for various purchase orders, including material items and non-material purchase orders, in the standard item category. However, summary invoices for service purchase orders are not supported. Summary invoices created for multiple purchase orders can contain multiple line items from different purchase orders, including complete and partial quantities.

With the support for Direct Invoicing of Service Purchase Orders, suppliers can directly invoice service purchase orders if the service sheets are auto-generated or if the purchase order is created using the simplified procurement capability. The Managed Gateway supports the integration of invoices with service-type line items created by suppliers for service sheets that are auto-generated on SAP Business Network. Auto-generated service sheets for invoices created against purchase orders with service-type items can contain line items with or without child items, and these line items can include taxes.

You can integrate ERP-Initiated Invoices or ERP CC Invoices from the SAP system to the SAP Business Network. Invoices created on an SAP system are called ERP-Initiated Invoices or ERP CC Invoices. These invoices, created in the SAP system, are then transmitted to the SAP Business Network.​

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The following types of ERP-Initiated Invoices or ERP CC Invoices are supported in the integration using the Managed Gateway:​

• Transmission of Invoices created through ERS (Evaluated Receipt Settlement).
• Transmission of Invoices that are created through self-billing.
• Transmission of manually created PO-based Invoices against multiple Purchase Orders (Summary Invoices) with single and multiple line items. The line items can contain material, advanced pricing details, and unplanned delivery cost items.
• Transmission of manually created non-PO Invoices containing Material, GL Account, Contract, Internal Order, WBS Elements, and Cost Center items.
• Transmission of Invoices created through the Invoice plan, containing both periodic and partial items.
• Transmission of Credit Memos for FI and MM Invoices.

This lesson provided a comprehensive look at how invoices are integrated and processed between SAP Business Network and SAP ERP or SAP S/4HANA systems through the Managed Gateway. Invoices are crucial for documenting sales transactions, detailing the products and services provided, their quantities, prices, and the total amount owed.

We explored various types of invoices supported within this integration, including PO-based, non-PO-based, standard, service, and summary invoices. We discussed how credit memos are handled and how discount scenarios are applied on both header and line levels.

The lesson emphasized the importance of accurate accounting data by explaining how non-PO invoices and credit memos interface with the system using the ARBCIG_ACCOUNT_DATA segment. You also learned about implementing user exits to post accounting data directly to the General Ledger.

We also covered the intricacies of service invoices, explaining how they interact with purchase orders containing service-type line items and detailing the hierarchy they can include. Summary invoices across multiple purchase orders were discussed, noting the supported types and exceptions.

Finally, we touched upon ERP-Initiated Invoices or ERP CC Invoices, including their types and transmission methods, such as transmission through Evaluated Receipt Settlement (ERS), self-billing, or manual creation.

For further exploration of invoice integration, prerequisites, and limitations, refer to the SAP Integration Suite, Managed Gateway for Spend Management and SAP Business Network documentation and resources on supported transactions.

This knowledge equips you with the skills to manage and optimize invoice processes efficiently within the SAP ecosystem.