Customer Transactions
Customer transactions are the financial documents at the heart of accounts receivable — invoices, credit memos, and debit memos. FAR models these using a header/line pattern: a transaction header carries document-level details, while transaction lines hold the individual line items.
Transaction headers
A Transaction Header represents a single financial document. Each header records:
- Transaction code — an auto-generated, human-readable identifier
- Transaction type — defaults to
INVOICE; also supports credit and debit memos - Transaction status — defaults to
DRAFT, progressing through the document lifecycle - Transaction date — when the document was issued
- Transaction currency — the currency for all amounts on the document
Party references
Each transaction distinguishes two parties:
- Sold-to — the customer being billed, referenced by customer ID, customer site ID, and contact point ID
- Ship-to — the party receiving goods or services, referenced by party ID, party site ID, and contact point ID
The sold-to and ship-to can be the same customer or different parties, supporting scenarios like drop-shipping or third-party billing.
Payment information
Transaction headers also carry:
- Payment term — defines when the transaction amount is due
- Payment method — how the customer will pay
- Customer PO number — the customer's purchase order reference
- Customer reference — any additional reference the customer provides
- Salesperson — the person responsible for the sale
Transaction lines
Transaction Lines hold the individual items on a financial document. Each line records:
| Field | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Line number | Auto-generated sequence within the transaction |
| Line status | Tracks the line's lifecycle independently of the header |
| Item ID | Optional reference to an inventory item |
| Item description | Free-text description of the goods or services |
| Line reference | Optional reference for the line item |
| Quantity | Number of units |
| Unit of measure | How the quantity is measured |
| Unit list price | Standard price per unit |
| Unit transaction price | Actual price per unit on this transaction (may differ from list) |
| Extended list price | List price × quantity |
| Extended transaction price | Transaction price × quantity |
Authorisation
Transaction headers and lines follow the standard authorisation pattern. Access to a customer implicitly provides access to that customer's transactions.
Further reading
- Customers — the customer records that transactions are raised against
- Customer Sites and Site Uses — how bill-to and ship-to addresses are determined
- Cash Receipts and Receipt Schedules — how payments are applied against transactions