Contents of the Options Form

Specify how your firm prepares client invoices for billing.

Video: See related video below

Global Billing Options

This section displays only if you use multiple companies.

Field	Description
Use Retainers	Use this option to enable the retainer feature, which streamlines the capture of your client’s retainer in your accounting, billing, and reporting systems. You track and apply the retainer to invoices based on your organization’s accounts receivable categories. After the project has other accounts receivable activity, you can track the amounts applied, and the retainer balance, on the Accounts Receivable Ledger report. The retainer is also included in Current Receipts on the Office Earnings report.
Use Retainage	Use this option to enable the retainage feature, which allows you to put a portion of the invoice "on hold." Retainage is a percentage of billings contractually withheld on the invoice, which is billed to the client upon the project’s completion. The Billing application withholds the percentage specified in Billing Terms on the total billings or any combination of the six possible components of an invoice: labor, consultants, expenses, fees, units, or add-ons. After the retainage on the invoice is calculated, Vantagepoint posts and tracks it through Billing, Accounts Receivable, Project Control, and the General Ledger.
Display Invoice Leading Zeros	Set this option to No if you do not want leading zeros in a billing invoice number to display in certain dialog boxes and reports. With fewer digits displayed, invoice numbers may be easier to read.
Store PDF of Final Invoice	Use this setting to enable or disable the Store Final Billing Invoices as PDFs feature. When You Set Store PDF of Final Invoice to Yes With this option set to Yes, invoices, credit memos, voided invoices, and voided credit memos are saved as PDF files. This allows you to preview, reprint, and download exact copies of them by opening the PDF files in the following applications: Hubs > Projects > Invoices Hubs > Firms > AR Review Billing > Interactive Billing Utilities > Files Administration You can also email an invoice or credit memo PDF file in the following applications: Billing > Interactive Billing Hubs > Projects > Draft Invoice Approvals To use this feature, you must have Microsoft's SQL Server's FileStream enabled. A PDF file for each Vantagepoint invoice, credit memo, voided invoice, and voided credit memo is saved to the FileStream database. If you use the Vantagepoint Cloud product, the Deltek Cloud Ops Team maintains FileStream for you. When you set Store PDF of Final Invoice to Yes: Each final accepted billing invoice that you create in Interactive Billing or Batch Billing that you did not download, edit, and then upload back into Vantagepoint is saved as a PDF file. The PDF file for each invoice also contains the Billing Backup report and any attached supporting documents if these were included with the final invoice. Invoices that you download, edit, and then upload back into Vantagepoint in Interactive Billing are saved using the format of the invoice file that you uploaded back into Vantagepoint, such as a Microsoft Word file. Credit memos that you create in Interactive Billing are saved as PDF files. Invoices and credit memos that you void are saved as PDF files if Store PDF of Final Invoice was set to Yes when the original invoice or credit memo was created. A "Voided" watermark displays across each page of the voided invoice and credit memo. The watermark also displays across an invoice's Billing Backup report and supporting documents, if these were included with the final invoice. You can view or print voided invoices and credit memos before or after they are posted. When you delete a billing invoice, credit memo, voided invoice, or voided credit memo, you can no longer preview, reprint, or email the PDF file that was created for it (or other type of file that was create for it if it was an uploaded invoice). The invoice or credit memo is deleted from the FileStream database. The invoice posting data is not deleted from Vantagepoint. When You Set Store PDF of Final Invoice to No The following apply: Reprinted invoices and credit memo invoices are regenerated from the data in the Vantagepoint database instead of a PDF file of an exact copy of the original invoice or credit memo. Final accepted invoices and credit memos that you preview, reprint, or email in the future may not exactly match the originals that you sent to clients. This can happen if you apply certain changes after the original invoice was generated, such as changing the invoice template for a project, adding fields from the Projects hub to the existing invoice template, or changing formatting options on the Format tab in Billing Terms for a project. Voided invoices and voided credit memos are not saved in Vantagepoint and cannot be regenerated from the data in the Vantagepoint database. Turning Store PDF of Final Invoice to Yes and Then No If you previously set this option to Yes and later changed it to No, the PDF files for invoices, voided invoices, credit memos, and voided credit memos and other file types for uploaded invoices that were created when the option was set to Yes remain in Vantagepoint (and the FileStream database). You can continue to preview, reprint, and email them.

<Company Name>

If you track multiple companies in Vantagepoint, the name of the company that you are logged in to displays as the section heading. Enter company-specific invoice settings in this section.

Field	Description
Invoice Numbering	Select a method for automatically assigning numbers to invoices and credit memos that you create in Interactive Billing and Batch Billing. The options are: Companywide: Use this method if you want one invoice numbering system applied across all projects. You enter the starting (next) invoice number in the Next Invoice Number field on this form. Project: Use this method if you want to assign a separate invoice numbering system for each project. You enter the starting (next) invoice number on the Summary pane of the Billing Terms form for each project.
Allow Changes to Next Invoice Number	Set this option to Yes if you want to allow users to change the invoice number that will be assigned to the next invoice or credit memo before they accept the final invoice or credit memo. When you set this option to Yes, users can change the next invoice number in the following locations: In the Next Invoice Number field in the Summary pane of Billing Terms for a project, if you set the Invoice Numbering option to Project. In the Specific Number field on the Assign Invoice Number dialog box in Interactive Billing (Other Actions > Assign Invoice Number), if you set the Invoice Numbering option to Companywide. In addition, a user must have the following security setting applied for their role: The Allow Final Processing checkbox must be selected in the Billing Security section on the Accounting tab in Settings > Security > Roles.
Next Invoice Number	This field is displays when you set the Invoice Numbering option to Companywide. Enter the next (starting) invoice number to use. This number prefills in the Next Compamy Invoice Number field on the Billing Session Options dialog box in Interactive Billing or Batch Billing when you create an invoice. You cannot change the number in the Next Compamy Invoice Number field.
Use Invoice Approvals	Use this option to enable or disable the Invoice Approval feature. This toggle enables or disables the following: The Invoice Approvals and Approval Process fields display on the Summary pane of the Billing Terms form in Hubs > Projects > Billing Terms. You can override the default invoice approval settings in the Default Terms form through these fields. The Invoice Approvals and Approval Process fields display on the Summary pane of the Default Terms form in Settings > Billing > Default Terms. You can enter the default invoice approval settings to use for new projects through these fields, but can still be overridden on a project-by-project basis in a project's billing terms. For projects that are set up before the Invoice Approval feature is enabled, you enter invoice approval settings in a project’s billing terms. You can also use the use Search and Replace utility to enter the appropriate approval process for a group of projects. If your firm uses multiple companies, you enable invoice approvals for each company. When you select Yes for this option, the Use Markup on Draft Invoices option displays in this section.
Default Invoice Approval Process	Select the invoice approval process to use for projects that require invoice approvals when the Approval Process field on the Summary pane in the Billing Terms form in Hubs > Projects > Billing Terms for a project is not defined. Although this default approval process is used when no approval process is entered for a project in Billing Terms, it does not prefill in the Approval Process field in a project's billing terms. The default approval process that you enter on the Summary pane of the Default Terms form in Settings > Billing > Default Terms prefills in the billing terms for new projects that you create.
Use Markup on Draft Invoices	This field displays only if you set Use Invoice Approvals in this section to Yes. When You Set Use Markup on Draft Invoices to Yes Set this option to Yes if you want to give billing invoice approvers the ability to enter annotations and comments directly on a draft invoice that is displayed as a PDF file in Vantagepoint. This is helpful when you don't give approvers the ability to make changes to invoices (changes to the fee percent or the billing status for labor, expense, and unit transaction detail). In this scenario, approvers can mark up the draft invoice PDF to show a biller the invoice changes they want the biller to make before the biller accepts and sends the final invoice to the client. The biller can also enter annotations and comments on the invoice. For example, a biller can add replies to an approver's specific markup and can indicate that they applied the approver's specific edits. The draft invoice PDF file that you can mark up: Is created when you do either of the following: Submit standard billing invoices for approval in Billing > Interactive Billing and Billing > Batch Billing. Submit invoices for approval in Interactive Billing that have been downloaded, edited, and then uploaded back into Vantagepoint as a PDF file in Interactive Billing. If you submit these downloaded and uploaded invoices back into Vantagepoint as a PDF type file in Batch Billing (instead of Interactive Billing, no PDF file is created for marking up. Draft invoice PDF files for markup are not created for invoices that have been uploaded back into Vantagepoint as a file type other than PDF. You can view these invoices on the Invoice Preview tab in Draft Invoice Approvals. Includes the draft invoice plus any supporting documents and the Billing Backup report, if these are selected for inclusion with a project's invoice per the project's billing terms (on the Billing Backup tab in Billing Terms). You can make annotations on any part of the PDF, including supporting documents and the Billing Backup report. In Batch Billing, the Billing Backup option, in the Override Billing Terms section of the Invoice Creation tab, also affects whether or not the Billing Backup report will be included in the PDF. Is available for marking up with annotations and comments on the Draft Preview tab in Hubs > Projects > Draft Invoice Approvals and Billing > Interactive Billing. Viewing Markup Entered on Draft Invoices for Final Accepted Invoices On the Invoice History tab in Interactive Billing and Draft Invoice Approvals, you can view annotations and comments entered for the draft invoices for final accepted invoices. In the invoice grid, click the icon in the Draft Invoice field. Multiple Companies If your enterprise tracks multiple companies in Vantagepoint, you enable this feature for each company. Files Administration Utility When you turn on the Use Markup on Draft Invoices feature: In Utilities > Files Administration, an administrator can view, print, or save draft invoice PDF files to another location. For more information, see View Draft Invoice PDF Files in Files Administration. Vantagepoint uses Microsoft's SQL Server's FileStream and stores the draft invoice PDF files in the Vantagepoint FileStream database. IMPORTANT Information About Turning On This Feature When you turn on the Use Markup on Draft Invoice feature, any draft invoices currently in the approval process will continue without using a draft invoice PDF for marking up. The feature applies only for draft invoices going forward. IMPORTANT Information About Turning Off This Feature If you want to turn off this feature after it has been turned on and PDF files for draft invoices have been created: Deltek recommends that you do the following before turning the feature off: For any outstanding draft invoices, complete any annotations and comments and final accept the approved draft invoices. If you don't do this, any markup associated with draft invoices currently in the approval process will be lost. The PDF files for the draft invoices that were created while Use Markup for Draft Invoices was turned on are deleted when the feature is turned off. You can access markup comments for past draft invoices that are associated with final invoices using the draft invoice icon on the Invoice History tab in Interactive Billing. When You Set Use Markup on Draft Invoices to No Using markup on draft invoices may not be necessary when you give approvers the ability to make their own changes to invoices (changes to fee percent or the billing status for labor, expense, and unit transaction detail). In this scenario, approvers don't need to show a biller what invoice changes to make since they are making the changes to the invoice themselves. When you don't use markup, approvers and billers can still add comments for draft invoices, but the comments are not made directly on the invoice PDF. Instead, they enter comments in a separate comments pane and dialog box as follows: In Draft Invoice Approvals: An Invoice Preview tab displays instead of the Draft Preview tab. On the Invoice Preview tab, you view the invoice and enter any comments for it in a separate Draft Invoice Comments pane on the tab. The comments that you enter here are viewable on the Draft Invoice Comments dialog box that you access in both Draft Invoice Approvals and Interactive Billing by clicking More in the Draft Invoice Comments field in the Draft Invoice Information section of the General tab. You can also enter comments directly in the Draft Invoice Comments dialog box at any time. In Interactive Billing: No Invoice Preview tab or Draft Preview tab displays. Click the Print action on the Interactive Billing form to preview a draft invoice. To enter draft comments for the invoice, click More in the Draft Invoice Comments field in the Draft Invoice Information section of the General tab. Draft Invoice Comments Dialog Box Whether or not you use the markup on draft invoice feature, you can enter comments on the Draft Invoice Comments dialog box that opens automatically when you submit and approve invoices in Interactive Billing and when you approve or reject invoices in Draft Invoice Approvals. You can also access this dialog box at any time for viewing, editing, or entering comments by clicking More in the Draft Invoice Comments field in the Draft Invoice Information section of the General tab in Interactive Billing or Draft Invoice Approvals. The same Draft Invoice Comments dialog box opens from either application and contains the same comments that were entered in either application.
Print Invoice Number on Draft Invoice	Use this option to specify whether or not you want assigned invoice numbers to print on draft invoices in Interactive or Batch Billing. The invoice number that you enter in the Assign Invoice Number form in Interactive Billing prints on the first page of the invoice, in the header on subsequent invoice pages, and on the Billing Backup report when you generate draft invoices. <Draft> also prints below the assigned invoice number on the first page of the invoice. In Interactive Billing, the assigned invoice number also displays when you select Invoice, Edit to edit an invoice in a third-party software application. For an invoice edited outside of Vantagepoint, you must manually delete <Draft> before printing final invoices.
Use Pre-Invoices	Use this option to enable or disable the Pre-Invoices feature for the active company. This feature allows you to produce a "request for payment" invoice that is not recorded in the general ledger. When you select this checkbox, the following are enabled: A Pre-Invoice tab displays in the Billing Terms form in Hubs > Projects > Billing Terms. Use it to toggle between generating pre-invoices and regular invoices for a project in Interactive Billing and Batch Billing and to enter other pre-invoice settings for a project. A Pre-Invoice item displays in the Section Order grid of the Sections tab in Settings > Billing > Invoice Template Editor. This allows you to add a pre-invoice section to an invoice template and select other options for the section. A Pre-Invoice column displays in the grid for cash receipts entry in Transaction Center > Transaction Entry > Cash Receipts, to allow you to apply cash receipts to a pre-invoice. A Pre-Invoice column displays on the Invoice History tab in the Interactive Billing form in Billing > Interactive Billing. These allow you to preview pre-invoices and manually cancel unpaid pre-invoices. An Include Pre-Invoices checkbox displays on the Options tab for the AR Aged report.
Pre-Invoice Receipt Offset	This field is enabled when you select the Enable Pre-Invoices. Enter or select the general ledger account to credit when cash receipts are posted to pre-invoices. This account must be set up as a balance sheet account or an Other Charges account (type of account). This account is typically a liability account.

Interactive Billing Session Options

Field	Description
Default to Show Non-billables	Specify whether or not to include all non-billable transactions by default on the Labor and Expenses detail tabs in Interactive Billing. Vantagepoint does not display these items on the invoice. By default, the detail tabs will show all expense/unit charges (units billed as expenses) posted to reimbursable expense accounts and labor charges posted to any labor code except the non-billable labor code. This feature is useful to find items that may have been posted to the wrong account or labor code. If you select this option, the following transactions appear on the detail tabs in Interactive Billing: Any labor posted to the non-billable labor code on the Labor detail tab. Any expenses posted to direct expense accounts on the Expenses detail tab. Typically, this feature can be used with fee jobs. By displaying non-billable transactions, you can better estimate the fee amount or the fee percent complete. This option may also help you catch any item that was incorrectly posted for a non-fee project. Deltek recommends enabling this feature.
Allow Changes to Show Non-billables	Select this checkbox if you want users to have the ability to change the Show non-billables on detail tabs option on the Billing Session Options dialog box during Interactive Billing.
Default to Disable Upset Limits	Use this option to specify that you want Vantagepoint to calculate final invoices by default in Interactive and/or Batch Billing without applying any upset limits. This feature is useful if you are using upset limits to budget your projects, but do not bill them in this way.
Allow Changes to Disable Upset Limits	Use this option to specify that you want users to have the ability to change the Disable Upset Limits option on the Billing Session Options dialog box. Use the Disable Upset Limits option if you want to calculate final invoices in Interactive and/or Batch Billing without applying upset limits. This feature is useful if you are using upset limits to budget your projects, but are not required to bill them in this way.
Default Time Frames	From the drop-down list, select the default time frame settings to use for each session in Interactive Billing. Previous Setting Entered by User: Select this option to remember and prefill the Billing Session Options dialog box with your previously selected time frame settings for the next invoice session. This option is beneficial if you have multiple billing cycles within a month and do not need to update the time frame fields whenever you navigate to Interactive Billing. If you are a new user and have not yet defined the settings on the Billing Session Options dialog box, Vantagepoint sets the time frame fields based on the accounting period that you are working in (the active period). Active Period Selected: Select this option to apply time frame settings based on the accounting period that you are working in (the active period). This option is beneficial if it is common for you to bill once a month based on the current fiscal period time frame. The default time frame setting that you select in this field does not affect draft invoices that are in the approvals process. The time frame values associated with draft invoices are stored and cannot be changed when there is a draft invoice in the approvals process.

Batch Billing Options

Field	Description
Print Invoices with only AR	Select this option to print an invoice if there are outstanding accounts receivable on file for the project (and no billable detail), and one or more of the Print AR options in the project’s billing terms is selected. This feature is used only with Batch Billing (both draft and final).

Detailed Transactions

Field	Description
Release Holds Automatically	Use this option to specify that you want all Held (H) detail items for a project to be changed automatically to Billable (B) when you accept an invoice.
Non-billable Labor Code	Enter the labor code (for example, A009) or labor code mask (for example, ___9) or use the lookup to specify a labor code that you want Vantagepoint to treat as non-billable. If employees enter this labor code combination on their timesheets, the billing rate for the timesheet line item is 0.
Enable Effective Dates for Labor Billing Rates	Use this field to establish multiple billing rates that each apply based on a different effective date. This is helpful if you have escalating billing rates that span multiple years for projects. Select Yes to add an Effective Date field to the following billing rate tables in Settings > Rate Tables: Billing Labor Rate Tables, Billing Labor Category Tables, and Billing Labor Override Tables. When you select this checkbox, the following apply: You enter a date in the Effective Date column in the billing rate tables, although an entry in the field is not required. You use effective dates in conjunction with the Date Based Rates feature. Revenue Generation honors effective dates for billing labor rate tables, labor category tables, and labor code tables when calculating rates and extensions. The Refresh Billing Extensions utility in Utilities > Updates > Refresh Billing Extensions honors the effective dates for billing labor rate tables, labor category tables, and labor code tables when recalculating billing extensions for transactions. The Use Rate Tables with Effective Dates option becomes available on the Rates tab of Resource Planning Settings. After you enable this feature and create rate tables with effective dates, you cannot turn off effective dates for rate tables until you delete all effective dates from existing rate tables. However, it is probably rare that this feature will ever be turned off once turned on.
Include Add-ons When Reporting at Billing Rates	Select Yes to include add-on fee charges when billing extensions are calculated for project reports at billing rates. This setting lets you include add-ons in the billing extension calculation in postings and in the Refresh Billing Extensions utility.
Save	Click this button to save changes on the form.

Video

Title	Description
Set Up Billing	Learn how to set up Billing, including selecting options for preparing and formatting client invoices and tracking revenue and taxes.