Creditors invoices are entered into the system as soon as they are received.  Invoices may be marked with a ‘due date’ for payment, and with appropriate general ledger account codes, which are to be fed into the computer during invoice entry.
The computer then becomes the repository of all accounts payable.  It is therefore possible that at any stage the amount of funds required can be established.
Payment of invoices may then be done on a selection basis.  (The usual selection is “specific invoice for a given creditor”).
The layout of cheque forms and remittance advice can be adjusted to suit existing stationery.
The history of paid invoices is stored for as long as required, even for a number of years.

Creditors invoices should be entered on a daily basis. As soon as an accounts payable (Creditors) invoice arrives in the office, it should be entered into the system.

Invoices may be split over any number of Finance Codes. When an invoice is received, a decision must be made regarding its due date for payment. The Due date for payment is an important part of the data-entry of the invoice.  It is this date, which enables a projected cash flow report to be produced.

As soon as a Creditors invoice is entered, the expense is shown in the General Ledger - eg on the Income and Expense Report. Even though the payment for the invoice may be held until an appropriate due date, the expense is shown immediately.