There are six invoice line types in Abtrac, and for each, you can set up default styling and formatting to suit your business needs. For : text only invoice lines, text value lines, text and units, percentage invoice lines, percentage claims, or progress claims you can have consistent pre-set styling.
From the Administration >> Settings >> Invoice Line Control Settings screen, you can customise things like column widths, alignments, font sizes, number formatting (including decimals and currency symbols), and labels for your headers and totals.
These settings apply across all invoices that use the corresponding line type(s), helping you create consistent and professional layouts without needing to make the same design changes every time.
What can you customise for invoice lines?
Invoice Line Control Settings allow you to specify:
- Column widths and alignment
- Number formats and decimal places
- Currency symbols (e.g. dollar signs) and percentage symbols
- Font sizing
- Column headers (e.g. changing “Qty” to “Hours”)
- Footer labels and total/subtotal headings
These settings apply globally — any changes made here will update the display for all invoices using the corresponding line style.
There are six invoice line types in Abtrac
Abtrac supports six invoice line formats. Some, like the claim lines, are used exclusively in automatically generated invoices. The others are used both when creating invoices manually line by line, and in automatically generated invoices as well.
- Text & Value
- Text Only
- Percentage
- Progress Claim
- Text & Units
- Progress Percentage Claim
Each line type is suited to different kinds of billing — and each one can be formatted independently from the Administration >> Settings >> Invoice Line Control Settings screen.
Text & Value invoice lines
Text & Value invoice lines are one of the most commonly used line types in Abtrac. These include:
- A text narration (also known as the invoice line description)
- A value or line amount, which is exclusive of GST
This line type is used in both manually created invoices and those generated automatically.
Editing Display Settings for Text & Value Lines
From the Administration >> Settings >> Invoice Line Control Settings screen, you can control the layout and formatting for this line type.
Available display options for Text & Value invoice lines include:
| Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Indent | Set indent width for the line (if used) |
| Narration Prefix | Optional label (e.g. bullet, number, For: etc) shown before the narration |
| Narration | Controls width and font size of the invoice narration(invoice line description) |
| Line Amount | Controls width and font size of the value or invoice line amount field |
| Header Label | Customise the column heading (e.g. “Amount” instead of “Line Amount”). Available for the Prefix, Narration and Line Amount columns. |
| Footer Label | Set label for any subtotals shown in the invoice where text and value lines are grouped. |
| Show Currency Symbol | Toggle dollar sign on/off |
| Show Decimal Places | Display values to the specified decimal precision |
| Show Totals in Footer | Enable if you want this line’s values included in an invoice subtotal group total |
Further styling options are available when grouping text value lines using subtotals.
Read more about Invoice line subtotals here.
Text Only invoice lines
Text Only invoice lines are one of the most commonly used line types in Abtrac. These include:
- A text narration (also known as the invoice line description). You can include a single line of text, or multiple paragraphs
- Text narrations are typically plain text, inbuilt styling options include bolding and italicising.
- Text narrations can include rich text formatting by pasting pre-formatted content (including bullet points, itemised lists etc) from Word documents. Many auto generation options for text only lines include rich text formatting by default.
This line type is used in both manually created invoices and those generated automatically.
Editing Display Settings for Text Only Lines
From the Administration >> Settings >> Invoice Line Control Settings screen, you can control the layout and formatting for this line type.
Available display options for Text Only invoice lines include:
| Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Indent | Set indent width for the line (if used) |
| Narration Prefix | Optional label (e.g. bullet, number, “For:, Re:” etc) shown before the narration |
| Narration | Controls width and font size of the invoice narration(invoice line description) |
| Header Label | Customise the column heading (e.g. “Agreed Services”). Available for the Prefix, and Narration columns. |
| Footer Label | Set label for any subtotals shown in the invoice where text only lines are grouped. |
Percentage invoice lines
Percentage invoice lines are typically used when billing is based on a rate multiplied by a percentage — for example, invoicing a portion of an overall budgeted amount.
This line type includes:
- A narration/description
- A rate
- A percentage unit
- A calculated line amount
Percentage lines are commonly used in manually created invoices
Editing Display Settings for Percentage Lines
From the Administration >> Settings >> Invoice Line Control Settings screen, you can control the layout and formatting for percentage invoice line types.
Available display options for Percentage invoice lines include:
| Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Indent | Set indent width for the line (if used) |
| Narration | Controls width and font size of the invoice narration(invoice line description) |
| Units | The percentage applied (e.g. 25%) – you adjust column width and font size |
| Units description | Describes what the percentage is applied to (e.g. “of Contract Value”), not commonly used for percentage lines – you can set width and font size |
| Rate | Controls width and font size of the rate used for calculation |
| Line Amount | Controls width and font size of the value or invoice line amount field |
| Header Label | Customise the column heading (e.g. “%” instead of “Percent”). Available for the Narration, Units, Units Description, Rate and Line Amount columns. |
| Footer Label | Set label for any subtotals shown in the invoice where percentage lines are grouped, only available for the narration row. |
| Show Currency Symbol | Toggle dollar sign on/off, for rates and line amounts |
| Show %ge Symbol | Available for the units column only |
| Show Decimal Places | Display values to the specified decimal precision, for units, rates, and line amounts |
| Show Totals in Footer | Enable if you want this line’s values included in an invoice subtotal group total, available for units and line amount. |
Text & Unit invoice lines
Text & Units invoice lines are used when you want to show a quantity and rate alongside your narration — commonly used for billing time, materials, or disbursements. For example:
8 hours @ $200/hr
25 units of something at $12.50 per unit
This line type includes:
- A narration/description
- A unit quantity
- An optional unit description (e.g. Hours, Licences, Visits)
- A rate
- A calculated line amount
Text & Units lines are commonly used in both manually created and automatically generated invoices.
Editing Display Settings for Text & Units Lines
From the Administration >> Settings >> Invoice Line Control Settings screen, you can control the layout and formatting for text and units invoice line types.
Available display options for Text and Units invoice lines include:
| Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Indent | Set indent width for the line (if used) |
| Narration Prefix | Optional label (e.g. bullet, number, “For:, Re:” etc) shown before the narration |
| Narration | Controls width and font size of the invoice narration(invoice line description) |
| Units | Displays the quantity for the line (e.g. “5”) — you can adjust column width and font size |
| Units description | Describes the unit type (e.g. “Hours”, “Qty”) has editable width and font size |
| Rate | Controls width and font size of the rate used for calculation (e.g. $200/hr) |
| Line Amount | Controls width and font size of the calculated total for the line amount (Units x Rate) |
| Header Label | Override the column heading (e.g. “Qty” instead of “Units”). Available for Narration Prefix, Narration, Units, Units Description, Rate, and Line Amount columns. |
| Footer Label | Set label for any subtotals shown in the invoice where text & units lines are grouped, only available for the narration row. |
| Show Currency Symbol | Toggle dollar sign on/off, for rates and line amounts |
| Show Decimal Places | Display values to the specified decimal precision, for units, rates, and line amounts |
| Show Totals in Footer | Enable if you want this line’s values included in an invoice subtotal group total, available for units and line amount. |
Further styling options are available when grouping text value lines using subtotals.
Read more about Invoice line subtotals here.
Progress Claim Lines
Progress Claim invoice lines are used to bill work based on task progress or agreed amounts, when you want to show the budget values, and remaining budget alongside current charges.
This line type typically includes:
- A narration/description (usually the task or stage name)
- A fee estimate from the budget
- A previously claimed amount
- A calculated current claim amount
For example:
- Agreed Fee $3,000.00
- Previously Billed $1,000.00
- Fee this invoice $2,000.00
Progress Claim invoice lines are not created manually, you would only usually use this line type when generating invoices automatically.
Read more about Progress Claim invoices here
There are six columns of progress claim data you can include with this line type, although most invoices only show three or four. These are the fields specific to Progress Claim by Amount invoices:
- Task Fee Value – the agreed fee or estimate for the task, pulled from the stage budget
- % Complete – the percentage of the task that has been billed, including the current invoice
- Fee To Date – the total amount invoiced to date, including this invoice
- Remaining Fee to Date – the remaining amount still to claim, including the current invoice
- Previously Invoiced – total value from earlier invoices (excluding this claim)
- Prev Remaining Fee – amount still to be claimed, based on invoices before this claim
These last four columns work as pairs:
- Fee to Date and Remaining Fee to Date show totals including the current claim
- Previously Invoiced and Prev Remaining Fee show totals excluding the current claim
Editing Display Settings for Progress Claim Lines
You can choose which of these six progress claim columns to display using the Invoice Line Control Settings screen. Navigate to Administration > Settings > Invoice Line Control Settings, then select Progress Claim from the invoice line type dropdown.
Available display options for Progress Claim lines include:
| Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Indent | Controls indenting for the line (if used) |
| Narration Prefix | Optional label shown before the narration (e.g. bullet or number) |
| Narration | The task name or description for the line. You can adjust width, font size, and footer label (used for subtotals, if applicable) |
| Task Fee Value | The agreed fee for the task. Header label is customisable (e.g. “Agreed Fee”) |
| % Complete | The percentage billed to date. Header can be renamed (e.g. “% Billed”) |
| Fee To Date | The total value billed for this task to date, calculated from % Complete × Task Fee. Header label is editable (e.g. “Invoiced”) |
| Remaining Fee to Date | The remaining fee based on the current claim. Header label can be customised (e.g. “Remaining”) |
| Previously Invoiced | Shows how much has been invoiced in prior Progress Claims. Header label can be changed (e.g. “Previous invoices before this claim”) |
| Prev Remaining Fee | The amount that was left to claim before this invoice. Header label can be renamed (e.g. “Amount remaining before this claim”) |
| Line Amount | The current amount being claimed in this invoice. Header label is editable (e.g. “Current Claim”) |
| Header Label | Available for all columns – change the wording that appears on the invoice |
| Footer Label | Only available for the Narration row – used if showing totals or subtotals for grouped Progress Claim lines |
| Show Currency Symbol | Enabled by default for currency values (e.g. Task Fee, Fee to Date, Line Amount) |
| Show Decimal Places | Set how many decimal places to display for numeric columns |
| Show % Symbol | Available for the % Complete column only |
| Show Totals in Footer | Used for subtotaling Line Amounts when lines are grouped (applies to Narration and Line Amount rows only) |
| Move Up / Move Down | Reorder how columns appear in the final invoice layout |
Progress Percentage Claim Lines
Progress Percentage invoice lines are used when the value to bill this month is calculated from a percentage figure entered by the project manager — and that percentage can be arbitrary, not necessarily linked to the actual percentage of work completed.
This line type is typically used when:
- A specific portion of the total fee is agreed for billing in a given period, regardless of actual task completion.
- Progress is better represented by staged billing or cashflow arrangements rather than measured work.
Each line will typically show:
- A narration/description (often the task or stage name)
- The agreed fee for the task or stage
- The percentage of build costs the agreed fee is based upon
- The agreed billing percentage for this invoice
- A calculated claim amount based on that percentage
- Optionally, previously billed amounts and remaining amounts to claim
For example:
Agreed Fee $20,000.00
This month’s agreed percentage 15%
Fee this invoice $3,000.00
Progress Percentage invoice lines are not created manually — they are usually generated automatically when invoicing from a budget using this claim type.
You can’t edit Progress Percentage Claim invoice line amounts directly — they’re worked out automatically from the Task budget’s % complete.
There are seven columns of progress percentage claim data you can include with this line type, although most invoices only show three or four. These are the fields specific to Progress Percentage Claim invoices:
- Task %ge – the task percentage from the stage budget (used when calculating task fee values based on percentage of the work value/construction value e.g. Work Value = $2.29M, Contract Documentation = 0.07% of $2.29M)
- Task Fee Value – the agreed fee or estimate for the task, pulled from the stage budget
- % Complete – the percentage of the task that has been billed, including the current invoice
- Fee To Date – the total amount invoiced to date, including this invoice
- Remaining Fee to Date – the remaining amount still to claim, including the current invoice
- Previously Invoiced – total value from earlier invoices (excluding this claim)
- Prev Remaining Fee – amount still to be claimed, based on invoices before this claim
These last four columns work as pairs:
- Fee to Date and Remaining Fee to Date show totals including the current claim
- Previously Invoiced and Prev Remaining Fee show totals excluding the current claim
Editing Display Settings for Percentage Claim Lines
You can choose which of these seven progress claim columns to display using the Invoice Line Control Settings screen. Navigate to Administration > Settings > Invoice Line Control Settings, then select Progress Percentage Claim from the invoice line type dropdown.
Available display options for Progress Percentage Claim lines
| Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Indent | Controls indenting for the line (if used) |
| Narration Prefix | Optional label shown before the narration (e.g. bullet or number) |
| Narration | The task name or description for the line. You can adjust width, font size, and footer label (used for subtotals, if applicable) |
| Task % | the percentage of the work value (or construction value) that was used to determine the fee value for each individual task |
| Task Fee Value | The agreed fee for the task. Header label is customisable (e.g. “Agreed Fee”) |
| % Complete | The percentage billed to date. Header can be renamed (e.g. “% Billed”) |
| Fee To Date | The total value billed for this task to date. Header label is editable (e.g. “Invoiced”) |
| Remaining Fee to Date | The remaining fee based on the current claim. Header label can be customised (e.g. “Remaining”) |
| Previously Invoiced | Shows how much has been invoiced in prior Progress Claims. Header label can be changed (e.g. “Previous invoices before this claim”) |
| Prev Remaining Fee | The amount that was left to claim before this invoice. Header label can be renamed (e.g. “Amount remaining before this claim”) |
| Line Amount | The current amount being claimed in this invoice. Calculated from % Complete × Task Fee. Header label is editable (e.g. “Current Claim”) |
| Header Label | Available for all columns – change the wording that appears on the invoice |
| Footer Label | Only available for the Narration row – used if showing totals or subtotals for grouped Progress Claim lines |
| Show Currency Symbol | Enabled by default for currency values (e.g. Task Fee, Fee to Date, Line Amount) |
| Show Decimal Places | Set how many decimal places to display for numeric columns |
| Show % Symbol | Available for the Task%, and % Complete column only |
| Show Totals in Footer | Used for subtotaling Line Amounts when lines are grouped (applies to Narration and Line Amount rows only) |
| Move Up / Move Down | Reorder how columns appear in the final invoice layout |
Subtotals and Grouping for Invoice lines
In Abtrac you can also manage the way your invoice lines are displayed by grouping related lines together and showing subtotals on an individual invoice.
From Invoice Management > Invoice Lines, Narratives and Amounts > use the ‘Manage Subtotal Groups’ button to control how invoice line types are grouped for a single invoice.
Read more about subtotals and grouping on invoices here
Abtrac KB# 1009