Introducing to Self-Billing with Invoice Creation

As we have seen in the previous lessons, SAP Self-Billing Cockpit covers two different processing scenarios due to legal requirements in different countries/regions: Self-Billing with Automatic Posting (SBWAP) and Self-Billing with Invoice Creation (SBINV).

In this unit, you learn about Self-Billing with Invoice Creation. This process is applied in regions or countries/regions where legal authorities request suppliers as part of a self-billing process to create billing documents that are identical with the self-billing documents received from the buyer. In this scenario, the supplier can create the final billing documents only after receiving the self-billing documents from the buyer. SBINV is applied in countries like Spain.

In the following unit, you learn how the process is handled in SAP Self-Billing Cockpit and what configuration steps are required.

This is a high-level process flow for the scenario of Self-Billing with Invoice Creation. You see, on the left-hand side, the processes taking place at buyer side. On the right, you see the steps taking place on supplier side, so potentially, also on your side.

After the buyer has received the goods and posted goods issue, they prepare and send the self-billing invoice - along with the payment to the supplier. In the case of Self-Billing with Invoice Creation, the supplier has not created an invoice in their system yet. Instead, they can create the final billing documents only after they have received self-billing documents from the buyer.

The buyer can send several self-billing documents for one delivery item. SAP Self-Billing Cockpit continues to create billing documents as the buyer sends them, until the delivery quantity is fully billed. One billing document can include items from several deliveries.

After receiving self-billing documents from the buyer, the system determines the corresponding delivery document for reference. Based on the determined reference document, a simulation is done to compare the received data with the expected billing result. Like in the SBWAP process, the user can now handle errors, if necessary, or they can execute the self-billing document in case there are no issues preventing the creation of the invoice.

If no issues are detected and the transmission is executed, SAP Self-Billing Cockpit triggers the creation of an invoice of billing type, CIXS, in the SAP S/4HANA system. If the net value differs from reference net value, but the difference is within tolerance according to the assigned tolerance profile, the invoice is created and there a clearing line is shown in the self-billing document. If the net value differs from the reference net value and it exceeds the tolerance, the invoice is created, a clearing line is shown in the self-billing document, and an open item is created.

In comparison to SBWAP (Self-Billing with Automatic Processing), the system creates the initial invoice with the reception of the self-billing transmission.

If no differences in net value are detected during simulation, the system automatically starts execution in case you have enabled "automatic execution for invoice creation" in the Define Sold-to Party Parameters app - this means that the system triggers the creation of billing documents right away.

If there are differences in net value, the system triggers the creation of billing documents and clearing lines. If the difference exceeds the predefined tolerance limits, the system also creates an open item in the back-end system.

When SAP Self-Billing Cockpit receives a transmission, it determines the correct processing logic based on action codes and header, and on item level.

In Self-Billing with Invoice Creation (SBINV), the following action codes are used:

Header action code, 000, indicates a self-billing invoice that is to be processes with the SBINV process. Relevant action codes on item level to be used with this header action code are:​

• 001 and 091 (indicating goods receipt)​
• 002 and 092 (indicating goods receipt correction)​
• 005 and 095 (indicating transport damages)

Header action code, 001, indicates a self-billing invoice for value-based clearing in the SBINV process. Relevant action codes on item level to be used with this header action code are:​

• 002 and 092 (indicating goods receipt correction)​
• 005 and 095 (indicating transport damages)
• 009 and 099 (indicating value-based clearing invoice with retroactive billing)

While item action codes, 001 to 091, control the creation of the initial invoice, action codes, 002, 005, 092, and 095 trigger the creation of credit or debit memos for quantity corrections. The creation of credit or debit memos for retroactive price changes will be triggered by action codes, 009 and 099.

Verification

During the verification step, the system performs a series of checks on the data (such as currency, UoM, and transmission No.) in the received self-billing documents. Based on the received data, the system determines a reference delivery document in the integrated system. It also determines the reference billing documents in the integrated system if the system receives credit or debit memos in transmissions. The system then imports and displays data from the reference document.

If a self-billing document contains no errors, the system automatically proceeds to simulation. Otherwise, the system stops verification and displays the relevant error messages.

Simulation

After verification is done, the system will run the billing document simulation, which is performed in two steps: Aggregation and Queuing and Comparison.

Within each transmission, the system aggregates data in self-billing documents that have the same reference delivery number and header data into one self-billing document. Within each self-billing document, the system then aggregates items with the same product into one item.

After the aggregation is complete, the system checks across transmissions for self-billing documents that point to the same reference delivery. If there are such self-billing documents, the system triggers a simulation for only one self-billing document and sets others to the pending state.

After this self-billing document is processed or deactivated, the system automatically triggers simulation for the next one in the queue of pending self-billing documents. To identify which self-billing documents are pending for simulation, you can check the reference delivery number of the currently active self-billing document under simulation or execution.

After completing aggregation and queuing, the system compares the following data carried in the self-billing document against their respective reference data and performs tolerance checks on the results:

• Transmitted net value is compared to the reference net value, that is, the net value calculated out by the integrated system.
• Transmitted tax amount is compared to the reference tax amount, that is, the tax amount calculated out by the integrated system.
• Transmitted quantity is compared to the open quantity, that is, the quantity difference between the delivery quantity and the billed quantity.

After the comparison is complete, the simulation results (that is, the results of the comparison and tolerance check) are displayed and used for execution. The net value differences, due to price differences and quantity differences, are also provided for reference.

Manage Self-Billing with Invoice Creation is the main workplace for billing clerks to process SBINV transmission by the customers. With the list page, object page, and history page for self-billing documents, it provides the same intuitive UI as the app for Self-Billing with Automated Posting. However, this app comes with extra functionalities developed to streamline the processing of SBINV transmission.

If the system detects one or more errors in the self-billing document during the verification step, you can view the error messages and correct errors by editing the self-billing documents. However, only a limited number of fields are editable for compliance reasons. The fields that can be edited are shown in the previous image. All changes that are made to the self-billing document are recorded and can be viewed on the change log later on. If the error messages can be resolved through error handling, the simulation for the self-billing document is triggered.

If not all error messages can be solved by editing the values of the fields that can be changed, the self-billing document must be deactivated. This can be done either from the list view in the Manage Self-Billing - Invoice Creation app, or in the detailed view of the self-billing document. Deactivating the transmission changes the self-billing document's status to Inactive and the simulation for the next self-billing document in the queue is triggered.

In Self-Billing with Invoice Creation, it is required to post the invoice with the same values as received by the customer. In the same cases, it is therefore necessary to create the invoice with another tax amount than it was be initially calculated by the SAP S/4HANA back-end system. If the SAP Self-Billing Cockpit determines a Tax Amount Deviation between transmitted tax amount and calculated tax amount during simulation, you can adjust the Customer Tax Code field manually in the self-billing document object page and choose from the tax codes defined in the SAP S/4HANA system. When you save and trigger the simulation again, the system determines the tax rate from the entered tax code and will recalculate the tax amount. In the case where there is no tax amount deviation anymore, the self-billing document can be executed.

To enable this feature, there are three tax condition types in the pricing procedure:

• TTX1 holds the internal VAT rate and amount, as determined in the SAP S/4HANA system. It is flagged as statistical in the pricing procedure and serves to compare the tax amount calculated by the SAP S/4HANA system with the transmitted tax amount.
• TCE1 holds the VAT amount transmitted by the customer. It is flagged as statistical in the pricing procedure.
• TCE2 holds the VAT code, VAT rate, and VAT amount that is actually applied during creation of the billing document. In the case where there was a tax amount deviation that was resolved by changing the field, Customer Tax Code, this condition will hold the VAT tax rate and amount calculated by the SAP S/4HANA system based on the tax code set by the user manually.

To check the results, you can conveniently view the pricing conditions and their respective values in the Pricing Details window. You can open this pop-up window by choosing Pricing Details in the items section of the self-billing document object page.

The logic for external tax handling must be activated per customer by setting the parameter, Posting Tax in Billing to Customer VAT Code, in the Define Sold-to Party Parameters app.

Sometimes, it is required to cancel an invoice that has already been created based on a self-billing transmission received from the customer. With the Manage Self-Billing - Invoice Creation app, you can conveniently cancel a billing document from SAP Self-Billing Cockpit without having to navigate to the SAP S/4HANA system.

To cancel a billing document from SAP Self-Billing Cockpit, you can select the self-billing document for which you want to cancel the billing document in the back-end system and choose Cancel in the list view page. The self-billing invoice in the back-end will then be canceled. You may then reach out to the sender to request a new transmission with valid values to trigger the self-billing process again.

After completing the simulation, the system automatically starts execution if you have enabled automatic execution for invoice creation in the Define Sold-to Party Parameters app.

If there is no difference in net value, the system executes self-billing to trigger the creation of billing documents.

If there are differences in net value, the system executes self-billing to trigger the creation of billing documents and clearing lines. If the difference exceeds the predefined tolerance limits, the system also creates an open line.

The reference numbers that were transmitted by the customer are assigned to the open items in Accounts Receivables. These reference numbers are later used in the payment process, allowing an automated allocation of the payment amounts and the corresponding open items. Thus, the open items can automatically be cleared during posting of incoming payments.​

After associated documents are successfully updated or created, the system receives success confirmations from the integrated system. When the system receives all success confirmations, the overall status changes to Confirmed. You can now display the updated and (if any) created billing documents in the history view.

Otherwise, the system displays the relevant error messages.