Creating a Progress Bill

Progress bills are known by different names in different firms. Your firm might refer to a progress bill as a retainer bill, a pre-bill, or an interim bill.

You can create a separate progress bill or you can bill progress along with time and expenses. If your firm licenses CCH Axcess™ Tax, you can also create a progress bill when you print a return. If a client has progress amounts available to apply against WIP, the amount available to apply is visible on the billing decisions page so you can apply that progress against the invoice amount.

Note: Progress bills display as negative amounts in Billing views. In Invoice views, progress bills display as a positive amount.

Create a progress bill without billing WIP.

1. Open Dashboard, click Application Links on the navigation panel, and then click Bill WIP under Billing & Invoicing.
2. Select the Clients, Client Billing Groups, or Project tab.

   Note: The Project tab displays only if your firm licenses Workstream.

3. Locate the record you need in the grid.

   You can use the following to help you locate the record you need:

   • Search. Enter a client’s name or ID in the search box. Select the client from the list, and then press Enter.
   • Tab and column filters. Click above the list to change the filters, if needed. For more information about filtering the list, see Using the Billing & Invoicing Filters.
4. Select Actions > Progress Bill next the record you are creating a progress bill for.

   Note: If the client is part of a client billing group, you also must choose whether to charge the progress bill to the principal client or to the selected client.

5. Enter the progress bill amount.
6. Click Create.
7. Edit the invoice information as needed. You can determine the layout and define the content displayed in the invoice. See Editing Invoices for more information.

Create a progress bill while billing time and expenses.

1. Open the Billing Decisions window.
   1. Open Dashboard, click Application Links on the navigation panel, and then click Bill WIP under Billing & Invoicing.
   2. Select the Clients, Client Billing Groups, or Projects tab.
   3. Locate the record you want in the grid and select Actions > Bill.

      Note: You can use search or filters to help you locate the records you need. To use search, enter a client’s or client billing group's name or ID in the Search and bill box. Click the client name if you see it, or press Enter. See Using the Billing & Invoicing Filters for information about filters.

2. Select one or more items in the grid.
3. In the Progress section, enter a progress amount in the Create box, the press Tab on your keyboard.
4. Continue making other billing decisions as needed. See Making Billing Decisions for more information.

Create a progress bill from Tax.

1. Open a tax year 2012 or newer tax return.
2. Do one of the following to display the Progress Bill window:
   • Click Send Invoice on the Manage tab.
   • Select to print, and if your return configuration set has enabled the prompt to send the invoice amount to Practice, you will be automatically reminded to send the invoice to Practice. See Sending Invoice Amounts to CCH Axcess Practice in Tax Help for more information
3. Enter the invoice amount to apply to the client as a progress bill.

Component	Description
Progress bill amount	Displays the invoice amount from Tax.
Sales tax amount	Displays calculated sales tax. You can click to open the Sales Tax grid where you can change the sales tax amount for that invoice. Note: To calculate sales tax, the client must have a tax authority and rate assigned, and that tax rate must have the Invoice WIP, expense and progress amounts option selected.
Charge accounts receivable of	If this client is a member of a billing group and is not the principal client, select whether to apply the progress bill to the principal client or the selected client. Select one of the following clients to send the invoice to: Principle client Client on the billed WIP
Invoice template	Select the invoice template from the list. If you update the invoice template, you will be prompted to update the client's default invoice template. For a description of the default invoice templates, see Invoice Templates Included with Practice.
Invoice number	Displays the next sequential invoice number for your firm. To use another number for the invoice, enter any unused invoice number. Alphabetic characters are allowed in the invoice number.
Invoice review note	If needed, modify the note for the progress invoice. The tax year and return name displays by default.
Edit/Preview the invoice	Select to preview the invoice in Invoice Document Manager. This option is selected by default. You can print and post the invoice from the editor. See Editing Invoices for more information.

4. Click OK.