Invoice admin
Showing a paid deposit on the final invoice: make the remaining amount clear
Make the agreed total, verified deposit received and remaining amount easy to distinguish. Before subtracting a deposit, check whether the issued final invoice already shows only the balance. For a fictional £1,200 job with £300 received and applied to that job, the remainder is £900; subtracting the same £300 again would understate it.
By PayerPing · Published
Check the issued document before writing the explanation
Gather the agreement, deposit record, received-payment evidence and final invoice from your normal accounting records. Confirm that the deposit belongs to this job and has actually been received. A requested deposit, a customer promise and an unmatched transfer are not the same as a verified payment applied to the charge.
Use the payment checking workflow if receipt or allocation is uncertain. Also check any later agreed change, payment or adjustment before using the original project total. If the records disagree, resolve that with your bookkeeper before sending a balance request.
This guide explains already verified figures. It does not determine how to issue a deposit or final invoice, amend accounting records, or treat a deposit for VAT or tax.
Fictional worked example: £1,200 less £300 leaves £900
Sam's agreed job total is £1,200. His records show £300 received on 16 October 2026 and applied to that job. There are no later changes, other payments or adjustments in this example.
| Figure | Amount | Checked against |
|---|---|---|
| Agreed total | £1,200 | Current job agreement |
| Deposit already received and applied | £300 | Payment and accounting records |
| Remaining amount | £900 | £1,200 − £300 |
The summary explains the relationship between the figures; it is not an extra invoice. The customer should be able to connect the £300 receipt to the same job and understand why the payment request is £900.
Do not deduct a deposit from an amount that already excludes it
Read the labels on the actual final invoice. A document may show the £1,200 job total, £300 already paid and £900 remaining. Another existing document may present £900 as the final balance charge. These are reading examples, not recommendations for choosing an invoicing or accounting method.
In either reading example, the checked remaining amount is £900. Taking £300 off that £900 again produces £600 and counts the same payment twice. If a reminder tool asks for the outstanding amount, check what its amount field represents before entering a figure.
Do not recreate the deposit as a new discount or change a document just to make its layout look like this example. If the final invoice does not reflect the accounting record clearly, ask the person responsible for your accounts to resolve the discrepancy.
Copyable email: explain the figures alongside the invoice
Subject: Invoice [number] — deposit and remaining balance Hi [name], To clarify the figures for [job]: • Agreed total: [total] • Deposit received on [verified date] and applied to this job: [deposit] • Remaining amount: [balance] The attached invoice [number] shows [describe its actual total / paid / balance labels]. The amount requested now is [balance], due on [agreed date]. The deposit has already been accounted for in that remaining amount. Please let me know which figure differs from your records if anything is unclear. Thanks, [name / business]
Match the explanation to the issued document using the invoice details checklist. If the customer says another payment has been made, use the already-paid response and verify it before approving a further reminder. Owners check payments and update reminder records manually; PayerPing does not allocate deposits or amend invoices.
Keep reading
- Checking payment before sending an invoice reminder
- Customer says an invoice is already paid: how to respond
- Invoice details checklist: remove payment admin blockers