---
id: payments
title: "Payments & Settlements"
description: "Record customer receipts, allocate payments against invoices, execute supplier payment runs, and print remittance advice."
category: "Finance"
order: 25
resource: "finance"
action: "read"
routes:
  - "/payments"
tags: ["payments", "receipts", "settlements", "ap", "ar", "remittance", "finance"]
fields:
  payment_number:
    title: "Payment / Receipt Number"
    summary: "Unique transaction identifier (e.g. PMT-2026-00088)."
  payment_type:
    title: "Payment Direction"
    summary: "Customer Receipt (Inbound) or Supplier Payment (Outbound)."
  payment_method:
    title: "Payment Method"
    summary: "Method used: Bank Transfer / EFT, Credit Card, Cash, Cheque."
  bank_account_id:
    title: "Bank Account"
    summary: "Company GL bank account credited or debited."
  total_paid:
    title: "Total Amount"
    summary: "Total monetary settlement value."
related:
  - "balances"
  - "sales-invoices"
  - "supplier-invoices"
  - "reconciliations"
---

# Payments & Settlements

The **Payments** module processes inbound cash receipts from customers and executes outbound payment runs to suppliers, allocating funds against specific invoices.

---

## Payment Lifecycle & Matching

```mermaid
flowchart LR
    A[Receive Bank Transfer / EFT] --> B[Record Payment]
    B --> C{Allocate to Invoices}
    C -- Full Match --> D[Close Invoices & Post Cash Receipt]
    C -- Partial Match --> E[Reduce Invoice Balance & Mark Partially Paid]
    C -- Unallocated --> F[Hold as Credit on Customer Account]
```

### 1. Allocation Rules
- When recording a payment, you can allocate funds across one or more open invoices.
- Any unallocated funds remain on the customer's account as unapplied credit, ready to be applied against future invoices.

---

## Step-by-Step Workflows

### 1. Recording a Customer Payment
1. Go to **Finance** → **Payments** (`/payments`).
2. Click **New Receipt**.
3. Select the **Customer** and the target **Bank Account**.
4. Enter the **Payment Date**, **Payment Method**, and **Amount Received**.
5. In the open invoices table, check the invoices being settled (or click **Auto-Allocate Oldest First**).
6. Click **Post Payment**.

### 2. Creating a Supplier Payment Run
1. In the payments desk, select **Supplier Payment Run**.
2. Filter open vendor bills due for payment.
3. Select the invoices to pay and click **Generate Batch EFT / ABA File**.
4. Upload the file to your bank portal and click **Mark as Paid**.

---

## Field Reference

| Field | Description |
| :--- | :--- |
| **Payment Number** | Unique payment reference. |
| **Payer / Payee** | Customer or Supplier account. |
| **Bank Account** | Company bank account involved. |
| **Payment Method** | EFT, Wire, Credit Card, Cheque. |
| **Allocated Amount** | Total applied to open bills. |