# Create a credit note

Crediting a repair invoice the customer should not have to pay, in full or in part.

The best way to raise a credit note is from the invoice it corrects. That way the lines, the customer and the amounts come across on their own, and the two documents stay connected.

> **Before you start:**
>
> The invoice you are correcting, and a clear idea of whether you are crediting the whole thing or one line of it.

## Highlights

- **Start on the invoice**, using Create Credit Note in its menu.
- **Credit only what is wrong.** A single bad line does not need the whole bill reversed.
- **Two save buttons**: keep it as a draft, or open it and make the credit usable.
- **A draft credits nothing.** Only an open note carries a usable balance.
- **The subject field explains why**, which matters more here than on any other document.

## From the invoice

- **Open the invoice that was wrong**

  Go to **Invoices** and select it.
- **Select the three dot menu, then Create Credit Note**

  The form opens carrying the invoice's customer and lines.
- **Remove or reduce the lines you are not crediting**

  Crediting one bad part means deleting the rest of the rows, not reducing them all.
- **Write what it is for in the subject**

  *Gearbox rework, no charge* is worth ten times more than a blank field when somebody reviews this in six months.
- **Select Save and Convert to Open**

  The note now carries a usable balance. **Save as Draft** parks it instead, crediting nothing until you open it later.

![The Create Credit Note screen with a breadcrumb reading Sales, Credit Notes, Create. Customer Details holds a required Customer picker. Credit Note Details holds a required Credit Note Number prefilled CN-00020, a Reference Number, a required Credit Note Date of 07/09/2026, a Salesperson set to Ironvale Admin, and a Subject field reading What this credit note is for. Item Details holds a Rate List picker and a Warehouse set to Rotherham Central Warehouse above a table with Item, Manufacturer, Variant, Lead Time, Qty, Rate, Tax and Amount columns. A Notes to Customer box reads Thank you for your business. The footer holds Attachments, Cancel, Save as Draft and Save and Convert to Open.](https://www.sorviai.com/help/repairs/sales/credit-note-create.png)

*The credit note form. The right-hand save button is the one that makes the credit real.*

> **Warning:**
>
> **A draft credit note is not a credit**
>
> Saving as a draft records your intention and nothing more: the customer's balance does not move, and the note cannot be applied to anything. If you meant to credit them, use **Save and Convert to Open**.

> **Tip:**
>
> **Credit the line, not the invoice**
>
> Reversing an entire bill because one part was wrong makes the accounts harder to read and the customer's statement harder to follow. Keep the credit note to the value that was actually wrong.