When an invoice goes to debt collection, you should no longer pay the supplier. You now owe the debt collection agency the principal plus fees and interest. In the accounts, this means:
The original invoice from the supplier must be closed.
The debt collection agency gets a new claim in the supplier ledger.
Fees and interest are recorded as a cost.
Why can't I record this as a supplier invoice?
On a supplier invoice, you only choose an account on the lines, not a supplier. That means you can't debit the principal to the original supplier there. Use an Advanced voucher instead. There you can choose a supplier directly in the account field.
How to record the debt collection case
Doesn't the debt collection agency have a supplier card yet? Create it under Suppliers first, with the account number and KID from the claim.
The voucher needs three lines:
Line | Debit | Credit | Amount |
Principal | The original supplier |
| The principal |
Fees and interest | Cost account for fees and interest |
| Fees and interest |
Claim from the debt collection agency |
| The debt collection agency | The total amount |
Go to Accounting → New voucher, and choose the voucher type Advanced voucher.
Upload the claim from the debt collection agency as an attachment.
Enter the three lines. Type the name of the supplier or the debt collection agency in the account field, and select it from the list. The line is then posted to account 2400 (accounts payable) and shows on the supplier in the supplier ledger.
Check that Control is 0.00, and click Save and send to ledger.
The screenshots show the app in Norwegian.
Close the old invoice
Go to Accounting → Reports → Supplier Ledger.
Find the original supplier.
Select the old invoice and the debit line with the principal from the debt collection voucher.
When the sum is 0.00, click Close open postings at the bottom of the screen.
If the button says Close open postings with penny difference posting, the selected lines don't add up to exactly zero. Check the amounts before you close them.
Pay the debt collection agency
The claim is now open on the debt collection agency in the Supplier Ledger. If you have a bank integration, you can select the claim and choose Pay with bank account in the menu. Otherwise, pay it in your online bank and record the payment as usual.
Good to know
If you have already paid part of the amount to the original supplier, record only the remaining amount as the principal.
This article is about invoices you owe. To send one of your own customer invoices to debt collection, see How do I send a payment reminder, dunning notice or debt collection?
For ordinary supplier invoices, see Recording a supplier invoice: split costs, accrue, and add a dimension.
When should you contact us?
Contact us if you can't close the old invoice, or if the payment doesn't show correctly. Please provide:
client name
the voucher number of the debt collection voucher and of the original invoice
a screenshot of the supplier ledger