Performing the Invoicing Process Configuration

At the conclusion of this lesson, you will understand how to customize the invoicing process for data selection of source documents and groupings into invoicing units.

The figure illustrates the Invoicing process flow from a technical perspective.

Invoicing is performed in the following steps:

1. Data selection

   During data selection, the system selects the invoicing orders for the invoicing process. You define the data selection criteria for the invoicing process.

2. Creation of invoicing units

   The system groups the selected invoicing orders into invoicing units for each contract account. You can create several invoicing units for each contract account. For each invoicing unit, invoicing in contract accounts receivable and payable creates one invoicing document.

   You define the criteria for creating the invoicing units for the invoicing process.

3. Processing of billing documents

   The system includes the selected billing documents for an invoicing unit in the invoicing document. The billing document items are linked with the items of the invoicing document, and the derivations required for the posting in contract accounts receivable and payable (FI-CA) are performed.

4. Execution of additional functions

   In addition to processing billing documents, in invoicing in contract accounts receivable and payable, you can integrate further FI-CA functions. These include interest calculation, the creation of dunning proposals, or the calculation of charges and discounts. You define which additional functions are executed for each invoicing process.

5. Account maintenance

   Using the account maintenance integrated in invoicing in contract accounts receivable and payable, you can perform clearing between the posting documents entered in invoicing and the open items of the contract account posted before invoicing. You define the criteria for clearing in the clearing control.

6. Update

   The system writes the invoicing documents created for the invoicing unit and the posting documents to the database, and deletes the processed invoicing orders.

7. Print preparation

   Along with the invoicing unit, a correspondence container for invoice printing and an extraction order for the update to BW are created.

The invoicing process flow depends on the following parameters:

• Invoicing process

• Invoicing type

• Invoicing category

This multilevel control enables you to run invoicing according to your requirements. The criteria specified above are determined as follows during the processing of each contract account.

The user specifies the invoicing process explicitly when starting invoicing. The main task of the process is to define which categories of source documents are to be processed. It also defines the process flow for the invoicing functions. There is a differentiation between mandatory and optional invoicing functions.

Each invoicing process proposes an invoicing type. You can override the invoicing type in event 2603. The invoicing type enables you to react individually to the composition and the properties of the invoicing unit. It also defines which optional invoicing functions are performed for each invoicing unit.

At master data level, you can influence the invoicing process flow using the invoicing category, this is transferred from the contract account.

Business example for the creation of two invoicing processes:

Invoicing process and collective invoicing: You want to execute invoicing runs that only process (normal) billing documents, and invoicing runs that only process collective billing documents. Therefore, you define one invoicing process that selects only source documents of the category INVBI, and one invoicing process that selects only collective billing documents.

Source document categories include the following:

• INVBI Billing Documents

  Indicates source documents that are created by any SAP systems or systems from other providers, and that are transferred to invoicing in contract accounts receivable and payable by means of a defined interface.

• VBRK SD Billing Documents

  Indicates source documents created by the Sales and Distribution (SD) component and to be posted or processed into an invoice in invoicing in contract accounts receivable and payable.

• SD SD Documents (FI-CA Sample Document)

  Indicates FI-CA sample documents created by the Sales and Distribution (SD) component and to be posted or processed into an invoice in invoicing in contract accounts receivable and payable.

• COLBI Collective Bill Documents

  Indicates source documents created during invoicing of the individual accounts of a collective bill.

• ACTIT Open Posting Item to Be Activated

  Open item posted before invoicing that has a special clearing restriction and that is to be requested by invoicing.

• SUBIN Single Invoicing Document of an Invoicing List

  Invoicing document that is to be entered in an invoicing list.

• CYCLE Periodic Invoicing

  Invoicing order that was created by scheduling.

• ADHOC Ad-hoc Invoicing

  Invoicing order for the creation of ad-hoc invoicing when there are no source documents to be invoiced.

You can use the source document type to differentiate the source documents of a source document category according to their business significance.

Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Convergent Invoicing → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Define Invoicing Processes.

To select the source categories for a defined invoicing process, choose Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Convergent Invoicing → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Define Invoicing Processes.

In mass processing, this indicator controls the determination of the contract accounts to be invoiced. A contract account only qualifies for invoicing if, among the invoicing orders, there is at least one source document of the source document category with the Main Selection indicator set.

Selection Rule for Source Documents (default setting)

Controls how the system determines the source documents that are to be processed in an invoicing process.

The source documents selected for a contract account are grouped into invoicing units so that they can be invoiced and displayed on an invoice together. The invoicing unit is the basis for invoicing, it can contain the source documents of a maximum of one contract account.

The source documents to be invoiced that are determined for a contract account are processed together in one invoicing unit by default. However, you can control the grouping of the invoicing orders and create the grouping strategy for making up the invoicing unit.

For example, in customizing, you can define whether billing documents from different company codes are to be invoiced separately. You can also define that specific company codes can be invoiced together, or excluded from the current invoicing.

In addition, you can process the grouping proposal to meet your company's requirements in event 2601.

If you run invoicing in dialog using expert mode, in a fourth step, the invoicing units created so far appear for selection in a dialog box. There, you can change the assignment of source documents to invoicing units manually.

The system creates one invoicing document per invoicing unit. The invoicing document documents the posting transactions performed in FI-CA by invoicing. The invoicing document is the basis for invoice printing.

Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Convergent Invoicing → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Maintain Grouping Variants.

In customizing, choose Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Convergent Invoicing → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Define Invoicing Processes.

The grouping characteristic of a grouping variant identifies the field that is used to group the documents to be invoiced into invoicing units.

Grouping characteristics are used in the configuration of grouping variants. You can use any fields from the structure FKKINV_TRIG for invoicing orders. Examples include the following:

• Company Codes

• Division

• Source Document Number (Billing Document Number)

• Contract Reference

• Source Document Category

If necessary, you can define your own fields with the value derivation using a function module defined in the characteristic definition.

Invoicing consists of numerous processing steps. From a business point of view, some of these processing steps form complete business transactions and are known as invoicing functions. In the definition of an invoicing process, you define which invoicing functions are to be performed. This offers several advantages.

The invoicing functions selected make clear which invoicing processing steps are performed in an invoicing process.

At least one mandatory invoicing function has to be assigned to an invoicing process. Otherwise, the correctness and data consistency of the invoicing program cannot be guaranteed.

You can use a multilevel control to activate or deactivate invoicing functions that are not required in all cases.

Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Integration → Invoicing in Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Define Invoicing Processes.

Step 1:

In the definition of an invoicing process, in the Invoicing Functions sub dialog, you have to assign one or more invoicing functions to the invoicing process.

If you start invoicing with an invoicing process, the assignment of the invoicing functions has the following effect:

1. Invoicing functions assigned where the Function Can Be Activated indicator is not selected are performed. The run cannot be prevented in step 2 or 3.

2. Invoicing does not perform invoicing functions that are not explicitly listed in the assignment. This decision also cannot be changed in step 2 and 3.

For invoicing functions where the Function Can Be Activated indicator is set, step 2 or 3 defines whether they are performed.

Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Integration → Invoicing in Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Define Invoicing Types.

Step 2:

In the definition of the invoicing types, in the Invoicing Functions sub dialog, you can assign all invoicing functions that are designated as can be activated/deactivated to the combination of invoicing type and invoicing category. In the assignment, you must also assign the activation status. Invoicing interprets this assignment as follows:

• Functions that can be activated and that are not assigned to the invoicing type are not performed. This decision cannot be changed in step 3.

• Functions that can be activated and have been assigned to the invoicing type with activation status 1 Function active, cannot be deactivated in dialog, are performed. This decision cannot be changed in step 3.

• Functions that can be activated and have been assigned to the invoicing type with activation status 2 Function active, can be deactivated in dialog, are performed. This decision can be changed in step 3.

• Functions that can be activated and have been assigned to the invoicing type with activation status 3 Function not active, can be activated in dialog, are not performed. This decision can be changed in step 3.

Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Integration → Invoicing in Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Invoicing → Invoicing Processes → Define Invoicing Types.

Business example of use of the invoicing type:

Use different invoicing types for periodic invoicing and final invoicing if there are differences in invoice print design or process control.

You differentiate between billing documents that belong to a normal, periodic billing and billing documents that have arisen due to the end of a contract (final billing documents). Interest can only be calculated on cash security deposits and cleared against the invoice receivable for the invoicing of final billing documents.

1. You define a standard invoicing type and assign it to the invoicing processes. You define a further final billing invoicing type.

2. In event 2603, you check whether final billing documents are processed. If the answer is yes, set the Final Billing invoicing type.

3. In event 2622, you define that interest is only calculated on cash security deposits for the final billing invoicing type.

4. In posting area 2630 (account maintenance), you permit the clearing of cash security deposits for the final billing invoicing type only.

The successful processing of an invoicing unit in an invoicing process leads to the creation of an invoicing document. The invoicing document stores information required for printing an invoice, and is therefore the basis for invoicing printing that, due to this data retention, can be decoupled and performed as a downstream process. The invoicing document also documents the invoicing process, retains data for subsequent processes, such as invoicing reversal, and saves data for display and evaluation.

In particular, the invoicing document provides information about the following:

• The invoice data provided to the customer (for example, invoice number, invoice due date, invoice amount).

• How the invoice for a contract account arose (for example, invoicing process, invoicing type and category, time of creation).

• The processing mode in which invoicing was performed (simulated, posted, reversed).

• Which source documents were processed in an invoicing unit and were therefore grouped to one invoice.

• How the individual source documents were processed in the invoicing process for the invoice display and in accounting.

• Which further invoicing items were displayed on the invoice and processed in accounting (for example, tax items, items from additional information).

• Which posting documents were created or processed in an invoice and what their business meaning is from the perspective of the invoicing document.

You cannot delete real (not simulated) invoicing documents. If the content of a billing document is not correct, it can be reversed. During the reversal, a reversal invoicing document is created. The posting documents created during invoicing are reversed within the program with a document reversal from FI-CA. You can invoice the source documents again.

Invoicing documents are simulation documents if the invoicing process that creates them was started in simulation mode. Simulation documents have no influence on the subsequent update run of the invoicing process. Specifically, when you create simulation documents there are no postings in FI-CA. Simulations are used for checking and testing purposes. You cannot reverse the simulation documents.

Document types and number ranges:

The invoicing document number is the key that uniquely identifies an invoicing document per client.

The invoicing document numbers are numerical and are determined internally. External number assignment is not supported. Within a number range, the numbering of invoicing documents is sequential and has no gaps.

For the document number assignment of the invoicing documents, perform the following activities in customizing for Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Convergent Invoicing → Invoicing → Documents → Invoicing Documents.

The same concept is used for the FI-CA document type: Customizing of FI-CA Document Type.

For the document number assignment of the invoicing documents, perform the following activities in the customizing for Financial Accounting (New) → Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Convergent Invoicing → Invoicing → Documents → Posting Documents.

Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable → Integration → Invoicing in Contract Accounts Receivable and Payable Invoicing → Document Account Assignment → Invoicing Documents.

The assignment of document types to invoicing processes depends on the invoicing process, invoicing type, and invoicing category.

Invoicing functions in an invoicing process can create one or more posting documents.

The invoicing function Invoicing Billing Documents derives postings in FI-CA from the billing data. These postings are saved in the form of posting documents.

In FI-CA, the system stores a posting document under a unique document number. The document consists of header data, items for contract accounts, and items for G/L accounts.

You can summarize the main and sub-transaction from invoicing items to business partner sub-ledger items, to have a better overview in the account balance.