There are two types of invoices in ServiceCore:

1. One time invoices.
2. Recurring invoices.

One time invoices are great for billing customers that schedule one-time jobs or rentals, like installations, relocations, and cleanings.

Recurring invoices are great for billing customers that schedule recurring rentals, like a long-term portable or dumpster rental that comes with regular services (jobs).

Recurring invoices are frequently used for construction rentals, long-term rentals, events that last more than a few days, and more.

Please Note: Recurring invoices can be directly associated with recurring rentals, but not recurring jobs. There's a workaround covered below that you can use to create "floating" recurring invoices for recurring jobs, but there won't be a connection between the two.

Before You Start

Here are some things you should know before you continue:

• To see if you have access to this feature in ServiceCore, please check out this article on user permission levels.
• Services (line items) and surcharges must already exist in your ServiceCore account before you can add them to an invoice.
• We strongly recommend associating recurring invoices with the related rental.
• Recurring invoices can only be created for one rental site at a time.
• Recurring invoices can only have jobs and services (line items) for one rental at a time.
• Recurring invoices are NOT automatically sent to your customers.
• Recurring invoice reminders will appear on your ServiceCore dashboard.
• Rental rates added to a rental's overview page will automatically appear on its associated recurring invoice and vice versa.
• Flat Rate services (line items) will NOT be prorated.
• Editing a recurring invoice "template" will NOT change previously created invoices.
• If you're signed up for ServiceCore Pay, you can enable Autopay on recurring invoices.

Create a Recurring Invoice

If you're signed up for ServiceCore Pay, you can enable Autopay on recurring invoices so that each time an invoice is generated the customer's default payment method is automatically charged and a receipt is generated for them. 

If you're not signed up for ServiceCore Pay, you won't see the option to enable Autopay on recurring invoices.

There are 6 ways to create a recurring invoice:

1. From inside a rental at the top OR in the Recurring Invoices section that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   
2. From the main Rentals section that automatically fills in the main details. 
   
   
3. From the main Accounting section under Ready for Invoice > Rentals that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   
4. From a customer's profile under the Rentals section that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   
5. From a customer's profile under the Accounting > Ready for Invoice > Rentals section that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   
6. From anywhere in your account using the + button to start from a blank recurring invoice page.
   
   

Which method you use depends on why you're creating a recurring invoice.

If you're creating a recurring invoice as part of a recurring rental, you'll want to use one of the first five options so that the rental is automatically associated with its recurring invoice.

If you're creating a recurring invoice at the customer level that doesn't need to be tied to a rental, such as in the case of a recurring job, you can use the + button to quickly create a "floating" recurring invoice.

Please Note: Recurring invoices cannot be associated with jobs, so if you want to create a recurring invoice to speed up your billing workflow for a recurring job we strongly suggest you add the recurring job's details to the Internal Memo field when you create the recurring invoice. This will ensure that you know which floating recurring invoice is tied to what recurring job. (How to do this is covered below.)

Create a Recurring Invoice for a Long-Term Rental

ServiceCore uses a concept of recurring invoice "templates" for the first recurring invoice you create. This means that the first recurring invoice you create for a rental is what every future invoice be duplicated from.

You can always edit the line items (rental rates, services, surcharges, discounts, and tax rates) in future invoices to add, adjust, or remove charges, but those charges will be specific to that single invoice; future invoices will revert to what they looked like before that one.

If you want to make a change to the line items on a recurring invoice that will carry through to all future invoices, you'll need to edit the main recurring invoice "template".

Please Note: Editing the recurring invoice "template" will only affect newly created invoices moving forward for the rental. No existing invoices for that rental will reflect the changes.

This also means that you may not want to include one-time charges when you're first creating the recurring invoice. Charges like delivery fees probably shouldn't be included in every single invoice, so you won't want to include that line item. Instead, you'll edit the first invoice to be created after the "template" and add that charge to just that invoice.

TIP: Depending on the one-time fee, you may decide to create a separate, one time invoice for the rental instead that isn't connected to the recurring invoice workflow at all. This is helpful for damage-related charges, relocation fees, etc... 

Something else to keep in mind is the difference between the Rental Rates and Services sections in a recurring invoice. You can use one or both together depending on how you charge customers.

If you have proration turned on in your ServiceCore account, we recommend using the Rental Rates section because any line items you add there will be automatically prorated based on the rental's start date.

Please Note: Flat Rate services (line items) will NOT be prorated, even if you add them to the Rental Rates section.

If you don’t have proration turned on in your ServiceCore account or you don’t want line items to be prorated, you’ll need to add the line items to the Services section instead.

Please Note: In order to add a service (line item) to the Rental Rates section, it must be assigned to the product being rented. Any service (line item) can be added to the Services section, but they won't be prorated. 

You can use both of these sections together if that fits your billing workflows the best, but you must use at least one of these sections in order to set up a recurring invoice "template".

TIP: Use the Rental Rates section for product-related line items, like portable unit rentals. Use the Services section for recurring job-related charges tied to that rental, like cleanings or dump-and-returns.

To create a recurring invoice "template" from a rental, watch the video above or follow the below instructions:

1. Click on "Create Recurring Invoice" from the dropdown menu next to or in the rental depending on where you're starting from. (See above screenshots.)
2. Review the auto-filled fields at the top to see if anything needs to be adjusted.
   
   
3. Set up the billing cadence that applies to this rental under Billing Type.
   
   TIP: The Start Date field will automatically change to fit your 'Arrears' or 'Advanced' selection, but you can edit it, if needed.
   
   
4. Confirm that the Billing Address is accurate and change it, if needed.
   
   TIP: The customer's main address will appear by default in this section if it's been added to their customer profile. If you check the 'Bill To Service Location' box at the top of the recurring invoice page, this section will automatically change to the rental site's address instead. (Look at Step 2's screenshot above.)
   
   
5. If the associated customer has a default payment method saved in their profile, Enable Autopay For Recurring Invoice will be checked by default. You can uncheck the box if you don't want the customer automatically charged.
   
   
6. The rental rates that were initially added to the rental when it was originally created will automatically appear in the Rental Rates section of the recurring invoice. You can click "Edit Rental Rates" to add, remove, or edit the existing rental rates to apply to this particular customer/rental, if needed.
   
   Please Note: Adding, removing, and editing existing rental rates in this recurring invoice page will also add, remove, and edit the rental rates on the rental's overview page, EVEN IF YOU DON'T SAVE THE RECURRING INVOICE.
   
   
   
   TIP: If no rental rates were originally added to the rental, you'll need to click "Add Rental Rates" to select the recurring service charges that should appear on every invoice for this specific rental. The rental rates you add to the recurring invoice will appear on the rental's overview page and vice versa.
   
   
7. If there are any additional services (line items) and/or surcharges that should be included on every future invoice but not prorated, add them to the Services and Surcharges sections of the recurring invoice page.
8. Review the Tax Code field in the Invoice Summary section and adjust it to match this rental, if needed. (The Tax Rate in this customer’s profile will auto-appear if you’ve previously added one.)
   
   
9. Add any necessary notes to the recurring invoice for you/your team and/or your customer.
10. Select how you'd like to notify the customer about their invoice.
    
    Please Note: If 'Email' is selected as the Preferred Communication, a notification will be sent to the email address in the Email field at the top of the recurring invoice page. If 'Print' is selected, you'll receive an email with a PDF that you can print and send to the customer.
11. If the associated customer has a default payment method saved in their profile, Online Payment will be checked by default. 
    
    Please Note: If you uncheck the box, the customer won't be able to pay this invoice online.
12. Click "Save" to save and send the recurring invoice.
    
    

You'll now see the recurring invoice "template" on the rental's overview page under the Recurring Invoices section.

Create a Floating Recurring Invoice for a Recurring Job

Because recurring invoices can only be directly associated with rentals, you may want to create "floating" recurring invoices for recurring jobs.

These recurring invoices won't be directly tied to their recurring jobs, but they can still speed up your billing workflows. 

Please Note: Because "floating" recurring invoices aren't tied to a rental, you won't see the Rental Rates section when creating one and the line items won't be prorated.

ServiceCore uses a concept of recurring invoice "templates" for the first recurring invoice you create. This means that the first recurring invoice you create is what every future invoice be duplicated from.

You can always edit the line items (services, surcharges, discounts, and tax rates) in future invoices to add, adjust, or remove charges, but those charges will be specific to that single invoice; future invoices will revert to what they looked like before that one.

If you want to make a change to the line items on a recurring invoice that will carry through to all future invoices, you'll need to edit the main recurring invoice "template".

This also means that you may not want to include one-time charges when you're first creating the recurring invoice. Charges like delivery fees probably shouldn't be included in every single invoice, so you won't want to include that line item. Instead, you'll edit the first invoice to be created after the "template" and add that charge to just that invoice.

TIP: Depending on the one-time fee, you may decide to create a separate, one time invoice for the recurring job instead that isn't connected to the recurring invoice workflow at all. This is helpful for damage-related charges, relocation fees, etc... 

To create a "floating" recurring invoice, watch the video above or follow the below instructions:

1. Click on the + button in the top right corner.
2. Click on "Create Recurring Invoice" from the dropdown menu.
   
   
3. Select the Customer that this recurring invoice is associated with and the Payment Terms will automatically fill in.
4. It's optional, but we recommend adding the Service Location, especially if this recurring invoice is for a recurring job.
   
   
   
   TIP: When you select a Service Location, you'll see an Associate Rental prompt appear if that customer has any active rentals for that particular location. Click "Cancel" to skip this step since you're not creating this recurring invoice for rental.
   
   
5. Set up the billing cadence that applies to this recurring invoice under Billing Type.
   
   TIP: The Start Date field will automatically change to fit your 'Arrears' or 'Advanced' selection, but you can edit it, if needed.
   
   
6. Confirm that the Billing Address is accurate and change it, if needed.
   
   TIP: The customer's main address will appear by default in this section if it's been added to their customer profile. If you check the 'Bill To Service Location' box at the top of the recurring invoice page, this section will automatically change to the rental site's address instead. (You'll need to select a Service Location first.)
   
   
7. If the associated customer has a default payment method saved in their profile, Enable Autopay For Recurring Invoice will be checked by default. You can uncheck the box if you don't want the customer automatically charged.
   
   
8. Add the necessary charges to the Services section. (These charges WON'T be prorated.)
9. Add any recurring fees to the Surcharges section, if needed.
10. Review the Tax Code field in the Invoice Summary section and adjust it to match this customer/recurring job, if needed.
    
    
11. Add any necessary notes to the recurring invoice for you/your team and/or your customer.
    
    TIP: If this "floating" recurring invoice is connected to a job, we strongly recommend that you add a link to the job's overview page and/or the job's ID in the Internal Memo field.
12. Select how you'd like to notify the customer about their invoice.
    
    Please Note: If 'Email' is selected as the Preferred Communication, a notification will be sent to the email address in the Email field at the top of the recurring invoice page. If 'Print' is selected, you'll receive an email with a PDF that you can print and send to the customer.
13. If the associated customer has a default payment method saved in their profile, Online Payment will be checked by default. 
    
    Please Note: If you uncheck the box, the customer won't be able to pay this invoice online.
14. Click "Save" to save and send the recurring invoice.
    
    

You'll now see the recurring invoice "template" in the customer's profile in the Accounting section under Invoices > Recurring.

Generate First/Next Invoice

After you've created your main recurring invoice, you may need to manually generate the first invoice that will actually be sent to the customer associated with the rental.

Whether or not you need to depends on your billing workflows and preferred timing.

Whatever date you chose as the Start Date for the recurring invoice is the date the first invoice will be generated on. This is also when your chosen interval will begin (28 days from the Start Date, 4 weeks from the Start Date, etc...).

If you set the Start Date as the same day you set up this recurring invoice, the first invoice that'll actually be sent to the customer will automatically be included in your batch billing for the day.

If you set the Start Date as any other date, the first invoice won’t be generated until then.

If you bill in arrears that should be fine, but if you bill in advance you’ll need to manually generate the first invoice.

TIP: If you ever need to generate a rental's next recurring invoice outside of the batch billing process, you can follow the same steps below.

There are 2 ways to generate the first/next invoice from a recurring invoice "template":

1. From inside a Rental in the Recurring Invoices section that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   
2. From inside a recurring invoice "template" in three different spots that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   
3. From a customer's profile under the Accounting > Invoices > Recurring section that automatically fills in the main details.
   
   

To create a one time invoice for a job, just follow the below instructions:

1. Click on "Create Next Invoice" from the dropdown menu next to or in the rental depending on where you're starting from. (See above screenshots.)
2. Review the auto-filled fields at the top to see if anything needs to be adjusted.
   
   
3. Confirm that the Billing Address is accurate and change it, if needed.
   
   TIP: The customer's main address will appear by default in this section if it's been added to their customer profile. If you check the 'Bill To Service Location' box at the top of the invoice page, this section will automatically change to the rental site's address instead. (Look at Step 2's screenshot above.)
   
   
4. The rental rates that were initially added to the rental when it was originally created will automatically appear in the Rental Rates section of the invoice. You can click "Edit Rental Rates" to add, remove, or edit the existing rental rates to apply to this particular customer/rental, if needed.
   
   Please Note: Adding, removing, and editing existing rental rates in this invoice page will also add, remove, and edit the rental rates on the rental's overview page, EVEN IF YOU DON'T SAVE THE INVOICE.
   
   
   
   TIP: If no rental rates were originally added to the rental, you'll need to click "Add Rental Rates" and add them. The rental rates you add to the invoice will appear on the rental's overview page and vice versa.
   
   
5. Jobs that were associated with the rental will automatically be added to this invoice. Any services (line items) added to those jobs will also appear in the Services section. (These won't be prorated.)
   
   TIP: We recommend adding delivery fees and other one-time charges to the job(s) associated with the rental so that they're automatically pulled into the next invoice under the Services section as line items. You won't want to add one-time charges to the recurring invoice "template" because they'll show up on every future invoice and you'll have to manually remove the charges. 
6. If there are any additional surcharges that should be included but not prorated, add them to the Surcharges sections.
7. Review the Tax Code field in the Invoice Summary section and adjust it to match this rental, if needed. (The Tax Rate in this customer’s profile will auto-appear if you’ve previously added one.)
   
   
8. Add any necessary notes to the invoice for you/your team and/or your customer.
9. Add any related attachments to the invoice for your customer to review.
   
   Please Note: Each attachment must be less than 6MB. To learn more about attachments, click here.
10. Select how you'd like to notify the customer about their invoice.
    
    Please Note: If 'Email' is selected as the Preferred Communication, a notification will be sent to the email address in the Email field at the top of the invoice page. If 'Print' is selected, you'll receive an email with a PDF that you can print and send to the customer.
11. If the associated customer has a default payment method saved in their profile, Online Payment will be checked by default. 
    
    Please Note: If you uncheck the box, the customer won't be able to pay this invoice online.
12. Click "Save" to save and view the invoice.
    
    

You'll now be able to send the invoice to your customer for advance payment.

End a Recurring Invoice

After a rental ends and you've created the final invoice, you'll need to delete the recurring invoice "template" associated with the rental to prevent additional invoices from being generated automatically during batch billing.

To delete a recurring invoice, watch the video above or follow the below instructions:

1. From the rental overview page, scroll down to the Recurring Invoices section.
2. Click the three vertical dots to the right of the recurring invoice template.

3. Click on “Delete Recurring Invoice” from the drop-down menu.

   
   
    

4. In the window that appears, click “Confirm Delete.”

   
   

You'll now no longer see a recurring invoice "template" in that section and no additional invoices will be generated for the rental. You'll still all the previously created invoices, however.

If you have any questions, please reach out to our Support team through the chat widget on the bottom of this page or by sending an email to support@servicecore.com!