How additional fees work in Abtrac
In Abtrac, an additional fee can be added onto an invoice.
This margin or additional cost can be applied as a one off to an individual invoice, or the fee can be applied to all invoices for a selected project. Additional fees can also be a default setting for all projects.
This fee is logged as a company disbursement against the project when the invoice is created.
There are two options for additional fees/margins that are applied to invoices.
Additional fees can be set either as
- a percentage value, or
- as a fixed value.
Percentage Additional fees will be created only if there is at least one invoice line with assigned fee available. Whereas the Additional Fixed fee will work even if you have a manually added line without any assigned fee.
Percentage Additional Fee
Selecting the Percentage additional fee option and entering a value will automatically create an office disbursement when an invoice is generated. This disbursement is automatically assigned and appears as a separate invoice line.
The percentage amount is calculated as the entered percentage of the total value of all other fee based invoice lines on the selected invoice (excluding disbursments).
The percentage amount will only be created when there is also an invoice line available with assigned fees.
Fixed Additional Fee
Selecting the Fixed additional fee option and entering a value will automatically create an office disbursement when an invoice is generated. This disbursement is automatically assigned and appears as a separate invoice line. Its amount is equal to the fixed value entered, regardless of the other invoice line amounts on the selected invoice.
Configuring your settings for additional fees
Add a disbursement type to use for admin fees
Ensure you have set up a Disbursement Type with a generic name for the additional charge under Administration >> Maintenance >> Disbursement.
Link your disbursement type to use for additional fees in system settings
Under Administration >> Settings >> System Settings choose the Invoices Tab.
Scroll to the “Saving Invoice lines” section, and choose your Additional fee disbursement type.
Additional fees will not be applied to invoices unless a disbursement type for additional fees is specified in system settings — even if percentage or fixed fee values have been entered elsewhere.
Applying additional fees to all jobs (System Settings)
To set your default additional fees choice when adding new jobs from system settings, under Administration >> Settings >> System Settings choose the Clients and Jobs Tab.
Scroll to the “Defaults when creating a New Job” section, and choose your Additional fee option.
Setting an additional fee for a single project
From Clients, Contacts & Jobs >> Search Clients and Jobs >> click on the relevant job code to go into the Job Details page >> then click on the Job Billing Details tab.
From the Disbursements on Invoices section choose your invoice additional fee option: percentage or fixed fee.
From now on, the value or percentage specified for this job will appear on your new invoices.
Adding an additional fee to any invoice
An additional fee can also be applied to an individual invoice from the invoice management screen.
From Invoices >> Load Invoices >> click on the relevant invoice number to go to the Invoice Management screen.
Select your additional fee option and the amount or percentage value > then choose save.
How do invoice additional fees work?
Additional fees are only applied upon invoice creation
Additional fees are only applied when an invoice is created, and not until the invoice contains invoice lines with line amounts.
The additional fee disbursment and invoice lines are created immediately as part of the auto-generate invoice process, or created once the invoice contains invoice lines with a value.
You can also apply additional fee percentages or values manually, after invoice lines are created.
How additional fees are applied
Whether you’re using a fixed fee or a percentage fee, and whether it’s applied via system settings (for all jobs), specific jobs, or a single invoice, the additional fee process works in the same way:
- The disbursement amount is based on the additional fee set within the invoice management screen for the current invoice (either a fixed value or a percentage of other invoice lines).
- An office disbursement entry is automatically created using the disbursement type specified under System Settings > Invoices.
- An invoice line is also created with its narration set to the disbursement type name.
- The disbursement amount and the invoice line amount are identical.
- The disbursement is automatically assigned to the corresponding invoice line.
Additional fees and automatically generated invoices
When a percentage or fixed value for additional fees exists in the Invoice Management screen, the Additional Fee Settings box appears within the Auto Generate options pop up.
Auto Generate: Keeping Additional Fees Separate
Additional fees can be displayed in their own group on the invoice, separate from other invoice lines. This allows you to apply a unique header and/or footer text specifically for the additional fee section.
Auto Generate: Including Additional Fees with Disbursements
If you tick Include additional fees with disbursements, the additional fee will appear alongside other disbursements on the invoice (if any exist).
When disbursement grouping options are enabled, the additional fee line will be included under the Disbursements header.
Adding additional fees after an invoice is created
If you decide to apply additional fees after an invoice has been created you can apply a percentage or fixed additional fee from the Invoice Management screen > in the Invoice Details section.
Add your addition fee options and choose the + button to update the invoice lines.
You’ll be prompted to confirm changes, choose ok to apply the additional fee lines to the invoice.
Changing the additional fees on an invoice
When editing additional fees on an invoice, it’s important to update both the invoice line and the associated office disbursement, so that the charge on the invoice and the underlying cost match.
Edit the invoice line
To change the additional fee amount:
- Click the pencil icon next to the invoice line to edit it.
- Update the line amount as needed.
Unassign the Associated Disbursement
To keep the cost and charge values aligned, you’ll also need to update the disbursement linked to this line.
- Click the magnifying glass icon to open View Assigned Time and Disbursements.
- Select the disbursement line associated with the additional fee.
- Click Unassign Timesheet Lines.
Once unassigned, the disbursement will return to the Unbilled Items section.
Edit the Disbursement Amount
To update the actual cost value:
- In the Unbilled Items box, click the date link on the disbursement.
- This will open the Office Disbursement sheet.
- Edit the disbursement amount and comments if necessary.
Reassign the Updated Disbursement
After editing:
- Go back to the invoice.
- Reassign the updated disbursement to the correct invoice line.
What if I need to delete additional fees and disbursement entries
If you delete an additional fee invoice line, please remember to also delete the associated office disbursement the application has created for you, by following the steps above.
Abtrac KB# 2118