Invoice: Accounting Assignments and AI Rules

Accounting assignment means that an invoice is allocated for bookkeeping. This can include account, cost center, accounting area, tax, booking text, amount, and currency.

Invoice can propose accounting assignments automatically. These suggestions support accounting teams, but they still need business review.

What an Accounting Row Contains

An invoice can have one or more accounting rows.

Field	Meaning
Account	General ledger or booking account.
Cost center	Organizational or operational cost center.
Accounting area	Department, area, or accounting unit.
Tax/VAT	Tax type, tax code, or rate.
Booking text	Description for accounting, ERP, or traceability.
Amount	Net, tax, or gross amount depending on configuration.
Currency	Invoice or booking currency.
Additional dimensions	Project, asset, cost object, or customer-specific fields.

Visible and mandatory fields depend on client, ERP, profile, and configuration.

How Invoice Finds Suggestions

Invoice checks several possible sources. It does not blindly merge all values; it looks for a suitable source and creates a proposal from it.

Typical order:

1. Accounting data provided by import or interface.
2. AI rules for IBAN, QR-IBAN, or reference.
3. Recognized order or purchase order.
4. Existing accounting data on the invoice object.
5. Order or purchase order recognized in invoice text.
6. Accounting reference printed on the invoice.
7. Template from creditor or bank master data.
8. Similar previous invoices.
9. Simple creditor payment connection.
10. No accounting assignment found.

The exact order can be extended or adjusted per installation.

AI Rules

AI rules help assign recurring invoices automatically or semi-automatically. A rule can match by IBAN, QR-IBAN, supplier, reference, text, or similar previous invoices.

An AI rule can provide:

• one or more accounting rows,
• account,
• cost center,
• accounting area,
• tax information,
• booking text,
• amount split,
• responsible reviewers or approvers.

When an AI rule is used, the feed contains a message such as:

Accounting assignment created by AI rule

A message that says "check" means the proposal was created but still requires business review.

Orders and Purchase Orders

If an invoice contains an order or purchase-order number, Invoice can search for the matching object.

When a match is found, the system can:

• relate the invoice to the order,
• copy accounting data,
• derive responsibilities,
• show differences.

An order in another client is usually not linked automatically.

Accounting References

Some invoices contain an accounting reference, such as an internal reference or cost-center code.

Depending on the format, the system may derive:

• first reviewer,
• account,
• cost center,
• accounting area,
• additional accounting dimensions.

If the reference is incomplete, Invoice may only copy part of the data. Accounting must then complete the missing values.

Templates

Accounting templates are standard assignments stored in master data. They can be linked to creditors, addresses, or bank connections.

A template typically only matches when values such as client, creditor, currency, type, and payment connection fit the invoice.

One template can create one or more accounting rows.

Similar Invoices

If no direct source is found, Invoice can search for similar previous invoices. This is a fallback.

Similar invoices are useful when a supplier regularly sends invoices with the same accounting pattern. The proposal still needs review because amount, cost center, or accounting area can differ.

Manual Correction

Users with the required permission can add or correct accounting rows manually.

Typical corrections:

• change account,
• add cost center,
• correct tax,
• split amount,
• adjust booking text,
• set accounting area,
• complete mandatory fields.

Manual accounting rows should not be overwritten automatically without a clear process.

Mandatory Fields and Validation

An invoice can only move forward, be approved, or be exported when required accounting fields are valid.

Typical validation issues:

Problem	Example
Missing account	No accounting row or empty account.
Missing cost center	Cost center is mandatory for this client or account.
Missing tax	VAT code is required for ERP export.
Amount mismatch	Sum of accounting rows does not match invoice amount.
Missing client	Invoice is not assigned to an accounting client.
Missing accounting area	Area is required for workflow or export.
Missing currency	Invoice or booking currency is not set.

Feed and Traceability

The feed documents why an accounting proposal was created.

Typical entries:

• Accounting assignment created by AI rule.
• Accounting assignment created from order.
• Accounting assignment created from purchase order.
• Accounting reference found on invoice.
• Accounting assignment created from template.
• Accounting assignment created from similar invoice.
• Accounting assignment created from creditor payment connection.
• No accounting assignment found.

The feed is important when users need to understand why an invoice was proposed in a certain way.

What Users Should Check

Before approval or export:

• Was the right supplier recognized?
• Are amount and currency correct?
• Are all accounting rows complete?
• Are account and cost center correct?
• Is the tax/VAT code plausible?
• Is the accounting area correct?
• Does the assignment match the invoice content?
• Are there warnings in the feed or error area?

If unsure, users should comment, return, or forward the invoice to accounting.