Skip to content
BizBinder
Early access open Get early access

Popular in the binder

Can’t find it? Tell us what you were after →

Invoicing

Credit Note

The short answer

A credit note reduces or cancels what a client owes on one invoice. Use it for an overcharge, a returned item, or work that never happened. It leaves the original invoice as it was.

What it means

Once you send an invoice, do not quietly change the number on it. That breaks your own invoice history and looks odd to anyone who checks their books against yours. A credit note fixes the mistake cleanly. It names the original invoice, states the amount you credit and gives the reason.

Depending on whether the client has already paid, a credit note can wipe out an amount entirely. It can also offset part of a future invoice, or lead to a refund. In every case the original invoice stays exactly as you issued it. The credit note records what changed afterwards.

For example

You invoiced $600 for a job but overcharged $50 for materials you did not use. You do not edit the invoice. You issue a $50 credit note that names the invoice number. The client can apply it to their next invoice or ask for the $50 back.

The mistake to avoid

Editing the original invoice PDF to a lower number instead of issuing a credit note. That leaves no record of the old number or why it changed.

See also

Invoice vs. ReceiptPart PaymentVoid InvoiceOverpayment

Where this shows up

Guide

What to put on an invoice so you actually get paid

The fields that matter, the ones people forget, and payment-terms wording that heads off a late payment.

 Guide

Fixing a sent invoice — correct the mistake without rewriting the record

BizBinder locks an invoice once you send it. You cannot edit the number and reissue it. The locked record keeps your invoice history honest. This guide sorts five kinds of mistake and shows the fix for each. They are a wrong detail, an overcharge, an undercharge, a duplicate sent twice, and a client who paid too much.

 Free tool

Free Invoice Generator

Fill in your business and client details and add line items. A clean invoice builds as you type. Then download it as a PDF.

 Templates

Invoice correction scripts, for fixing a mistake on a client invoice

Six messages for when a sent invoice needs fixing. Send a quick correction note, a credit note for an overcharge, and a second invoice for an undercharge. Tell a client which of two duplicates to pay. Ask what to do with an overpayment. Reply when a client flags the invoice as wrong. Fill in your details once at the top of this page, and every script below updates.

Want this in one place?

BizBinder keeps quotes, jobs, invoices, and follow-ups in one binder.

A human reads every one. No newsletter, ever.

Filed

You are on the list.

A person reads every request. You will hear from us within one business day.

  1. 01 A person reads your note — not a queue.
  2. 02 You get an invite as spots open.
  3. 03 Your admin starts filing itself.

The free library is open while you wait. Nothing in it needs an account.

Open the free library →