> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.nyumbazetu.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Adjustments

> Credit notes, debit notes, voids and write-offs — how to correct a bill without breaking the ledger.

**Finance → Receivables → Invoices → Credit Notes / Debit Notes**

Adjustments change what a resident owes **without money moving**. They are how you correct a bill
after it has been issued, and every one of them posts to the general ledger.

## Choosing the right instrument

| Situation                                        | Instrument      | Effect                                                                  |
| ------------------------------------------------ | --------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| The invoice should never have been issued at all | **Void**        | The invoice is cancelled and its ledger posting is reversed.            |
| The invoice is right, but the amount is too high | **Credit note** | Reduces what is owed.                                                   |
| The invoice is right, but something was left off | **Debit note**  | Increases what is owed.                                                 |
| The invoice is correct and will never be paid    | **Write-off**   | The receivable is removed as bad debt; the invoice remains for history. |
| The resident paid too much and wants it back     | **Refund**      | Money physically returns. See [Refunds](/guides/refunds).               |

<Warning>
  **Void and write-off are not interchangeable.** Voiding says the bill was a mistake — revenue is
  reversed. Writing off says the bill was correct but is uncollectable — revenue stands and a bad-debt
  expense is recognised. Using the wrong one misstates both revenue and bad debt.
</Warning>

## Credit notes

Use a credit note for a discount, a goodwill reduction, a billing error, or to cancel part of a
charge.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the invoice">
    Credit notes are raised against the invoice they correct, so the link is preserved.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create the credit note">
    Use **Create Credit Note** from the invoice, or **Invoices → Credit Notes → Add**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enter the lines">
    Credit the specific service-type lines being reduced, not a single lump sum, so revenue is
    reversed from the correct income accounts.
  </Step>

  <Step title="State the reason">
    The reason appears on the resident's statement and in the audit trail. Write it for someone
    reading it in a year.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save and issue">
    The resident's balance falls and the ledger posts the reversal.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Debit notes

Use a debit note to add a charge to an existing invoice relationship — a missed utility line, an
agreed penalty, a correction in your favour.

The mechanics mirror credit notes: raise it against the invoice, reference the right service type,
give a reason. The resident's balance rises.

<Tip>
  If the extra charge is a recurring or standalone item rather than a correction to a specific
  invoice, issue a **new invoice** instead. Debit notes are for corrections; invoices are for
  billing.
</Tip>

## Write-offs

A write-off is an accounting decision, not a data cleanup.

* The invoice stays. Its payment status becomes `written_off`.
* The receivable is removed and bad debt is recognised.
* The debt stops appearing in aging and stops driving collections.

Write-offs are normally routed for [approval](/guides/approvals), and closing a collections case
with a write-off is an explicitly approved action.

<Warning>
  Never delete an invoice to make a debt disappear. Deletion breaks the statement, the aging report,
  the tax record and the ledger. Void, credit or write off — all three leave a trail.
</Warning>

## Bulk credit notes

Credit notes can be imported through **Admin → Bulk Upload** with the *Credit Notes* type, for
example when reversing a mis-billed run across many leases at once. See
[Bulk upload](/guides/bulk-upload).

## Where adjustments show up

| Surface                      | What you see                                                       |
| ---------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Invoice detail → Adjustments | Every credit and debit note against that invoice.                  |
| Resident statement           | Adjustments as separate dated lines with their reasons.            |
| Debt aging                   | The net effect — an adjusted invoice ages at its adjusted balance. |
| Financial statements         | Revenue reversals, bad-debt expense, and the receivable movement.  |
| Audit log                    | Who raised it, when, and the reason given.                         |

## Tax implications

An adjustment against a tax-bearing invoice changes the tax as well as the net. Tax on this
platform is **exclusive**, so a credit of KES 10,000 against a 16% line credits KES 11,600 in
total.

<Warning>
  The platform has no credit-note-to-KRA path yet. Crediting an invoice that was already accepted by
  eTIMS corrects your books but does **not** correct the KRA filing. Coordinate with whoever owns tax
  compliance before crediting a certified invoice. See [Tax & eTIMS](/guides/tax-and-etims).
</Warning>

## Good practice

* One adjustment, one reason. Bundled corrections are impossible to audit.
* Adjust in the period the error is discovered if the original period is closed — do not reopen a
  closed period to backdate a correction unless your policy requires it. See
  [Accounting periods](/guides/accounting-periods).
* Reconcile credit notes monthly against approvals; a rise in unapproved credits is the classic
  early signal of a control problem.