Roll change orders into invoices

Approved change orders attach to the job. When you generate the next invoice, they appear as separate line items so the customer sees the full breakdown. This is the cleanest billing pattern in construction — no surprises at closeout, no 'where did this number come from' conversations.

How it works

On the new-invoice screen, the job's approved change orders auto-populate as line items prefixed with CO-{number}. You can include or exclude any of them per invoice — useful if you're holding one for a separate billing cycle or if the work for that CO hasn't completed yet.

Each CO line item carries the original change order description, so the customer reading the invoice can match it to the document they signed. The audit trail link is also embedded — they can click the CO number to see the signed change order if they need to.

Partial billing

If you're doing progress billing, you might invoice a change order across multiple invoices. Edit the line amount on each invoice; the change order tracks how much has been billed so far. The CO record shows: original amount, billed-to-date, remaining. When billed-to-date = original, the CO is fully billed and stops showing up on new invoices.

Best practices for CO + invoice cadence

• Bill change orders on the next regular invoice, not a separate invoice. Customers prefer one consolidated bill.
• If a CO is signed mid-month, hold it for the next progress invoice — don't fire a one-CO invoice immediately. Smooths the customer's cash flow and yours.
• Substantial COs (more than 20% of the original contract) might warrant their own invoice with a request for payment before the work proceeds. Use judgment.
• Never bill a CO that hasn't been signed. Even if the work is done, the customer can refuse to pay. Get the signature first.

What's not yet supported

Change orders cannot currently be marked 'paid' independently of the parent invoice — they're billed via the invoice they appear on. Customer payment splits to the right buckets automatically based on the invoice's line items.

If you need to issue a standalone invoice for just a change order (rare but happens), generate a normal invoice and add only the CO line item. The CO is then tied to that invoice for tracking.