How to Raise Invoices

The transaction section of Sonas shows both staff user and customers all charges, discounts, and refunds, along with all associated financial records.

This article will look at when an invoice is created in the transaction section of an event.

Sonas automatically generates invoices when a charge is paid. Customers can access their invoices by logging in to their portal. If you need invoices to be raised before payment — for example, for corporate customers — you can convert charges to invoices manually or use the auto-convert workflow described below. You can also raise a proforma (draft invoice) as a lighter alternative. To see how to make payments, see Adding Payments. 

To set up your company's invoice template, see Templates.

If you cannot see this section or get permission denied messages with any of the actions, please contact your Company Admin in order to get the required permissions.

How to create a Paid Invoice

Apply payment to a charge. 

If the payment is less than the charge, an invoice will be created for the amount paid. A partially paid invoice will not be created. The unpaid amount of a charge will remain as an unpaid charge. 

How to create a Pending Invoice

Start to pay a charge, do not complete the process (must get to step 2). When you return to the transaction section, the charge you were starting to pay is now a pending Invoice, requiring payment. 

How to raise an unpaid Invoice manually

In some situations, you will need an unpaid Invoice and a proforma (draft invoice) won't suffice, such as with a corporate customer. To convert a charge to an invoice, follow these steps:

1. Actions > +Proforma
2. Select the charge(s) and complete the proforma process.
3. Once a proforma, click the invoice icon.

4. Confirm and optionally add a PO number (you can add/edit later)
5. Click OK

How to automatically convert charges to an Invoice

Sonas supports converting charges to invoices automatically a defined number of days before a charge is due. You can set a default for different event types, see Event Types, such as all corporate event charges automatically convert to an invoice 60 days before they are due. Or you can assign specifically to an event, by going Event > General and scrolling down to Config. Charges that fall in the window of conversion will convert from a charge to an invoice at Midnight.

How to view/print/download an Invoice

Both the staff user and the customer can view an Invoice by clicking the blue icon. 

The viewed document can be printed or downloaded as a PDF.

As a staff user: Go to the event's transaction section and click the blue download icon next to the invoice. You can then email the PDF to the customer as an attachment.

As a customer: Customers can log into their portal and download invoices from the Payment Schedule section by clicking the blue download icon next to the invoice.

Note: Invoices are never sent automatically. An invoice is generated once a charge has been paid. The blue download icon will only appear next to invoices that have already been created — you cannot download an invoice for a charge that has not yet been converted to an invoice.

How to send an invoice to a customer who has not yet paid

If the customer has not yet paid and you need to send them a financial document:

1. Create a proforma (draft invoice) via Actions > +Proforma, selecting the relevant charge(s). See How to create and pay Proformas.
2. Download the proforma and send it to the customer.
3. If the customer requires a formal unpaid invoice (e.g. a corporate client), convert the proforma to an invoice by clicking the teal invoice icon next to the proforma, then download and send.

If you have auto-convert enabled and just created the charge, it will automatically convert to an invoice at midnight. Alternatively, you can convert it manually using the steps in the "How to raise an unpaid Invoice manually" section above.

How to cancel an Invoice

See article, How to cancel Invoices.

The viewed document can be printed or downloaded as a PDF.

How to cancel an Invoice

See article, How to cancel Invoices.

Invoices cannot be edited.

Xero Sync and Marking Invoices as Paid

Only financial records (Invoices and Credit Notes) are synced to Xero — charges are not. If you have auto-convert enabled, Sonas will automatically raise invoices as "Payment Pending" when charges come within the conversion window.

If a customer pays outside of the portal (e.g. via bank transfer without reporting it in the portal), Sonas will not know the payment was made. In this case, you need to manually mark the invoice as paid in Sonas using the same process as Adding Payments, and then reconcile the payment in Xero separately. Marking it as paid in Sonas will not affect Xero, and vice versa — marking it as paid in Xero will only update Sonas if the invoice had a payment pending verification (i.e. the customer reported the payment via the portal).

Updated on: 02/06/2026