Payment schedules – overview

You can define payment schedules independently of the payment terms, and you can reuse a payment schedule for several payment terms.

In the Accounts Receivable module, the payment schedules define the amounts and due dates of receivable amounts. Therefore, in Accounts Receivable, payment schedules are referred to as receipt schedules.

A payment schedule consists of a payment schedule header and payment schedule lines. The payment schedule header defines whether the payment amounts are specified as a percentage or through a factor, and the payment period type, which can be Days, Months, or Fiscal Periods.

The payment schedule lines define a part of the invoice amount to be paid within a specific period. The payment schedule lines are independent of each other. You can specify a separate payment method or receipt method for each line. For each schedule line, you can define three discount periods and discount percentages. Payment schedule lines are identified by the invoice number followed by the payment schedule line number.

Invoices with a payment schedule result in an open entry in Accounts Payable or Accounts Receivable for every payment schedule line. The payment schedule lines take the place of the invoice, for example, for credit control, reminder letters, and late payment surcharges, for payment advice and direct debit advice, open entry balances, aging analysis, the various purchase invoice authorization methods, and to write off currency differences.

The due date calculation can be based on the payment terms details or you can use a payment calendar. For details, refer to To use payment calendars

In Invoicing, LN prints the payment schedule on invoices and draft invoices to inform the business partner of the due dates and discount conditions.

You link payment schedules to sales invoices and purchase invoices through the payment terms.

For every line of the payment schedule, LN uses the due date calculation defined for the payment terms to which you link the payment schedule. Several payment schedule lines can have the same due date. If you select invoices for payment or direct debit, LN selects invoices as well as payment schedule lines that must be paid based on their due dates.

The payment schedules functionality is also used to implement the receipts against shipments functionality. If you use receipts against shipments, LN generates a receipt schedule line for each shipment.