Collecting or converting a proforma into an invoice in SamBooks

From a pre-fiscal document already sent to the customer to a real TD06 invoice: two different paths — one also records the collection, the other only generates the invoice — plus how to cancel a collection recorded by mistake.

What this is for

Once the proforma (or fee notice) is in Sent status, SamBooks offers two distinct actions to turn it into an invoice: "Record collection", which in a single click creates the TD06 invoice, records the payment in the journal and closes the due date — built for the most common case, when the customer has already paid — and "Generate invoice", which creates only the TD06 invoice without touching the journal, for when you want to issue it before payment has arrived. Both move the document to Converted status. This guide covers both paths, how to reopen the generated invoice, and how to cancel a collection recorded by mistake. To create and fill in the source document, see Creating a proforma or fee notice.

Before you start

• The document must be in Sent status: if it's still a Draft, first use "Mark as sent" or send it by email from its detail page (see the creation guide).
• "Record collection" requires an already registered financial account (bank or cash): without one, the window flags it and points you to the Banking section.
• You need a role with write permissions — Gestore (manager) or Amministrativo.

Step by step

1. Open the Sent document

From the document's detail page (or the matching icon on its row in the list) you now find two buttons instead of "Edit": "Record collection" and "Generate invoice".

2. Record collection: the one-click path

Press "Record collection". A window opens with a clearly visible warning: "Generates a TD06 invoice and records the collection in the journal. The collection can always be cancelled ("Cancel collection"): the entry is deleted and the due date reopened. The TD06 invoice, instead, is only deleted while it stays a draft: once sent to SDI it can only be voided with a credit note." You fill in three fields: "Collection account" (required, bank or cash — if you don't have one yet, the window tells you and offers a "Go to Banking" shortcut), "Collection date" (required, pre-filled with today) and "Note (optional)" (up to 500 characters, e.g. "customer bank transfer"). Press "Collect and generate invoice".

3. What happens after the collection

In the same step, SamBooks: creates the TD06 invoice (not yet numbered — the progressive number is only assigned when it's sent to SDI, a separate step you do from the invoice's detail page), records the payment in the journal on the chosen account, and closes the linked due date. You're taken straight to the new invoice's detail page; the confirmation message reads "Collection recorded · invoice {year} generated as a draft: the number will be assigned upon issue." If the document total is zero or there's nothing left to settle, SamBooks does not record a collection that did not happen: the whole operation fails with an explicit error and nothing is recorded — neither the invoice nor the journal entry.

4. Alternatively: Generate invoice, without collecting

If you'd rather issue the invoice before receiving payment, press "Generate invoice" (in the list or the detail page's header) — or, from the "Conversion" tab of the document's detail page, the card shown while it's not yet converted opens the same flow behind the "Convert to invoice" button. The window asks you to choose: "Save as draft" — "The invoice stays editable; send it to SDI later from its detail page" — or "Create and send to SDI" — "The invoice is created and transmitted to SDI right away", with a warning that sending is final and irreversible (it can only be corrected afterwards with a credit note). Either way the invoice immediately inherits the fund, withholding and stamp duty from the source document, and the SDI recipient code comes from the customer's record, with no need to retype it. Unlike "Record collection", this path never touches the journal: no payment is recorded, no due date is closed.

5. Open the generated invoice

On the "Conversion" tab of the document's detail page you'll find the generated invoice's card, with the "Open invoice" button: document type, number/year (a dash until it's sent to SDI), total, date and status. From the list or the detail page's header, the same action is instead called "Open linked invoice" — same result, different name depending on where you find it. From there, if you chose "Save as draft", proceed with the actual send: see Sending an invoice to the Exchange System (SDI).

6. Cancelling a collection recorded by mistake

Whether after "Record collection" or after "Generate invoice", on the converted document's detail page you'll find "Cancel collection". The confirmation window explains what happens: "The collection's journal entry is deleted — no opposite-sign entry is posted — and the due date goes back to open. If the TD06 invoice is still a draft it is deleted and the {fee notice} goes back to "sent" (collectable again). If the invoice has already been sent to SDI it stays valid — a credit note is required to void it — but the collection is cancelled anyway." The criterion SamBooks actually uses is narrower than the text suggests: the cancellation is complete — the invoice disappears, the document goes back to Sent — only if the generated invoice has stayed literally a Draft. If it has meanwhile moved to Ready (this happens on its own, as soon as the mandatory data is complete, even if the invoice was never sent to anyone), SamBooks still treats it as if it had already been sent to SDI: any journal payment is cancelled and the due date reopened, but the invoice stays and the document does not go back to "Sent". In that case, before chasing a credit note you don't need, check the invoice's own status from its detail page: if it says "Ready" (not "Sent to SDI" or beyond) you can still delete it from there with "Delete", same as any draft. The same button also undoes a conversion made with "Generate invoice" without any collection, with the same limit: clean only if the invoice has stayed a Draft.

If something isn't working

• I don't see "Record collection" or "Generate invoice": the document is still a Draft. Open it and press "Mark as sent", or send it by email from its detail page.
• The "Record collection" window says I have no financial account: create a bank or cash account from the Banking section (it takes you there directly), then try again.
• I collected the proforma by mistake: open the detail page, press "Cancel collection" and confirm; the payment is always cancelled, but the invoice disappears with it — and the document becomes collectable again — only if it has stayed literally a Draft. If it's already "Ready" or beyond, it stays and needs handling from its own detail page.
• Cancelling the collection says the invoice is "already at SDI" but I never sent it: that happens because SamBooks treats any invoice that is no longer a Draft as "already at SDI" — even a "Ready" one that was never transmitted. Check the invoice's status on its detail page: if it's still "Ready", delete it from there with "Delete"; only if it was truly sent (Sent to SDI or beyond) do you need a credit note.
• Do I have to collect payment to get the invoice?: no, "Generate invoice" creates only the TD06 without recording any payment; use it when the customer will pay later.
• I can no longer find the document among the Sent proformas: if it's converted, search with the Status filter → Converted: from there you always reach the linked invoice via the Conversion tab.

Ask Sam

In chat you can ask for the same result: "collect the fee notice no. 12/2026 on the main bank account, with note 'transfer received today'" or "generate the invoice from proforma no. 8/2026, keep it as a draft". Sam applies exactly the same rules as the form — including refusing to record a collection when there's nothing left to settle — and, if needed, you can also ask "cancel the collection on fee notice no. 12" to undo it.

Frequently asked questions

How do I collect a proforma? From its detail page, when it's in Sent status, press "Record collection": choose the account, the date, and confirm. SamBooks creates the invoice, records the payment and closes the due date in one step.

What's the difference between collecting and generating an invoice from a proforma? "Record collection" creates the invoice AND records the payment in the journal, closing the due date. "Generate invoice" creates only the invoice, without touching the journal: use it when payment will arrive later.

If I collect the proforma, does it also create the journal entry? Yes, that's the whole point: in the same click, the journal entry is created on the chosen account and the linked due date shows as closed.

Can I cancel a collection made by mistake on the proforma? Yes, with "Cancel collection" on the converted document's detail page: the entry is deleted and the due date reopened.

I collected the proforma by mistake, how do I undo it? Use "Cancel collection": the payment is always cancelled; the generated invoice disappears with it — and the document goes back to "Sent" — only if it has stayed a Draft. If it's already "Ready" or beyond, the collection is still cancelled but the invoice stays linked.

Do I have to collect the proforma to turn it into an invoice? No: "Generate invoice" converts it anyway, without recording any collection.

Has the invoice generated from the proforma already been sent to SDI? Depends what you chose: with "Record collection" or with "Save as draft" under "Generate invoice" it stays untransmitted; only explicitly choosing "Create and send to SDI" sends it right away, and from that moment it's irreversible.

Can I choose the bank account to record the proforma's collection on? Yes, the "Record collection" window always asks for it as a required field, among the financial accounts already registered for the company.

Related features

• Creating a proforma or fee notice — how the source document is created and filled in.
• Sending an invoice to the Exchange System (SDI) — the final step for an invoice left as a draft.
• Voiding an invoice with a credit note — how to void an invoice already transmitted to SDI.
• Recording a collection or a payment — the same journal mechanism, applied to any invoice or due date.