Glossary

Definitions of key terms used in SettleWise.

Terms

Aging Report

A report that groups outstanding invoices by how long they've been overdue (e.g., 0–30 days, 31–60 days, 61–90 days, 90+ days). Used to identify collection priorities.

Moving an invoice's remaining balance from one customer to another. The system writes off the source invoice (via credit memo) and creates a new invoice for the target customer, maintaining bidirectional traceability.

Cash Sale

A transaction where an invoice is created and paid in a single step. Used for walk-in customers or immediate payments.

Credit Balance

The total available credit a customer has. Displayed on the customer profile and available for application to new invoices.

Credit Intent

A flag on a manual payment indicating that the customer's available credits should be applied during validation. Credits are consumed oldest first, before the cash amount.

Credit Memo

A document that records value owed to a customer. Created when issuing refunds, rollovers, write-offs, or balance transfers. Credit memos maintain bidirectional links to source and destination invoices.

Customer

A person or business you invoice. Customer profiles store contact information, payment history, credit balances, and notes.

Deposit

An initial payment, typically the first phase of a two-phase payment. Secures a booking or reservation.

Due Date

The date by which payment is expected. Invoices become overdue when unpaid past this date.

FIFO Allocation

First In, First Out — the default payment allocation strategy. Payments are distributed to invoices sorted by due date (oldest first), filling each invoice completely before moving to the next.

Invoice

A bill sent to a customer for services, deposits, or other charges. Tracks payment status from creation through full payment.

Manual Allocation

Overriding the default FIFO allocation to specify exact payment amounts per invoice. Used when a customer tells you how to split a payment across multiple invoices.

Manual Resolution

The process of handling a payment that couldn't be matched automatically. Involves assigning a customer, selecting invoices, and confirming — all in one atomic operation.

Notification

A real-time alert about account activity (payment received, invoice paid, overdue invoice, etc.). Notifications have priority levels (urgent, high, normal, low) and appear in the notification center.

Overpayment

A payment that exceeds the invoice balance. The excess amount is automatically converted to customer credit.

Overdue

An invoice status indicating payment was not received by the due date. Triggers overdue reminders when enabled.

Partial Payment

A payment that covers only part of an invoice balance. The invoice status changes to "Partial" and the remaining balance updates automatically.

Payment

A record of money received from a customer. Payments are allocated to one or more invoices.

Payment Link

A secure, time-limited URL sent to a customer so they can pay an invoice online via Stripe. Links expire after 72 hours, are one-time use, and support two-phase invoices.

Payment Allocation

Matching payments to specific invoices. One payment can be allocated across multiple invoices, and one invoice can receive multiple payments.

Payment Reconciliation

The process of matching payments to invoices. Payments can be confirmed, rejected, or left unmatched for investigation.

Payout

A business expense recorded in SettleWise — vendor payments, bills, utilities, payroll, etc. Payouts deduct from register balances and sync to QuickBooks as Purchase expenses.

Phase

One stage of a two-phase payment. Phase 1 is typically the deposit; Phase 2 is the final payment.

QuickBooks Sync

Automatic synchronization of data between SettleWise and QuickBooks Online. Syncs customers, invoices, payments, and credit memos in real time.

Reconciliation

The process of matching payments to invoices and verifying that all financial records are accurate and consistent.

Refund

Returning payment to a customer, typically for cancellations. The money is sent back and no credit is created.

Register

A financial account (bank account, cash drawer, or digital wallet) where payments are received. Used to track where money is deposited.

Required Actions

A payment status indicating that the payment needs manual intervention — the sender is unknown, the amount doesn't match, or there are multiple possible matches. See Manual Resolution.

Rollover

Converting a customer deposit into credit for future use instead of refunding. The invoice status changes to "Rolled Over" and a credit memo is created.

Smart Allocation

The system's automatic invoice matching and allocation engine. Detects customer-specified allocations from email content (e.g., "for invoice 1234: $500") and pre-populates the payment detail panel.

Snapshot

A frozen, point-in-time report. The data is saved permanently at creation time and won't change even if the underlying records are updated.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

TOTP-based security feature that requires a time-based code from an authenticator app in addition to your password when signing in.

Two-Phase Payment

An invoice split into two payment stages: a deposit (Phase 1) and a final payment (Phase 2). Each phase has its own due date and payment tracking.

Write-off

Closing an unpaid balance without payment or credit. Used when an amount is deemed uncollectable.

FAQ - Frequently asked questions