Invoice lines: account codes, items, tax and tracking
Lesson 6 of 12 8 min read
Decide which account each kind of line posts to, whether lines link to Xero Items, how tax is set and how lines are tracked.
Lines are where the money lands in your profit and loss report. Get the account codes and tax right and finance never has to recode an invoice; get them wrong and every invoice needs fixing by hand. This lesson groups the Xero Invoice line settings by the decision each one answers. The same settings appear, with the same meaning, on credit notes and bank transactions.
Which account does each line post to?
An invoice can have product lines, a shipping line, charge and discount adjustments, and extra lines added by the integration. Each can have its own account code.
| lineAccountCodeMap | Maps tags to account codes for line items. The map is checked in order and the first matching tag decides the account. Use it to send different channels, customer groups or product types to different sales accounts. |
|---|---|
| shippingLineAccountCode | The account for shipping lines, so delivery income is recorded separately. |
| adjustmentLineAccountCodeForCharges | The account for charge adjustments, such as fees or surcharges. |
| adjustmentLineAccountCodeForDiscounts | The account for discount adjustments. |
| additionalLineAccountCode | The account for any additional lines the integration adds, such as supplementary items or integration-generated adjustments. |
Start simple
If finance only wants one sales account, you may not need lineAccountCodeMap at all. Add it
when there's a real reporting need, such as separating wholesale from retail revenue.
Should lines link to Xero Items?
Xero can hold a list of Items (its version of products). If your products aren't set up as Items in Xero, or you don't want invoice lines linked to Xero's product records, you can send lines as plain descriptions instead.
| createLinesAsDescriptionsOnly | On: lines are created without an item code, and the SKU is added to the description. Choose on when products aren't Items in Xero, or you don't want Xero tracking them. |
|---|---|
| descriptionLineAccountCode | The account used for description-only lines. If not set, account 200. |
| includeInvoiceNoteAsDescriptionLine | On: the invoice note is added as a description-only line at the end, so memos and special instructions are visible in Xero. |
Check account 200
Supply Lens falls back to account 200 for description-only lines. Don't assume that's right
for your chart of accounts: confirm it with finance, or set descriptionLineAccountCode.
How is tax set?
| setTaxTypeOnLineItems | On: Supply Lens writes the resolved tax type to each line. Off: Xero works out the tax type from its own product setup. Choose on when the source order decides the tax (for example zero-rated exports); off when Xero's Item setup is the authority. |
|---|---|
| excludeTaxOnLines | On: tax is left off every line, so line amounts are recorded net of tax. |
| excludeTaxOnLinesMap | Maps tags to on or off, so tax exclusion can be decided order by order. |
Good to know
If you send description-only lines, Xero has no Item to take a tax type from, so think about
whether setTaxTypeOnLineItems should be on. Agree this with your accountant.
How are lines tracked and supplemented?
| lineTrackingCategories | A list of Xero tracking category settings applied to lines, so revenue can be reported by cost centre, project, channel or region. |
|---|---|
| additionalLineCalculations | A list of rules for adding extra calculated lines, such as computed fees. Each rule says when it applies and how the line is calculated. This is implementer territory; ask Support if you need one. |
If you also use Unleashed
Unleashed's order settings in Supply Lens include shippingLineXeroSalesAccount and
adjustmentXeroSalesAccountMap. Those set the Xero sales account on lines in Unleashed, for
Unleashed's own Xero link to use. They don't configure the Supply Lens Xero Integration. Set
account codes in whichever connection actually posts the invoice.
Hilltop Coffee's lines
Hilltop's products aren't Items in Xero, so the implementer turns on
createLinesAsDescriptionsOnly and sets descriptionLineAccountCode to 200, which finance
confirms is their wholesale sales account. Delivery goes to 260 and retailer discounts to 400. Because the EDI
order decides VAT, setTaxTypeOnLineItems is on. A tracking category splits revenue by region.
Recap
- Products, shipping, charges, discounts and additional lines can each post to their own account.
lineAccountCodeMaproutes lines by tag; the first match wins.- Send description-only lines when products aren't Xero Items; the default account is
200. - Choose whether Supply Lens or Xero decides the tax type, and whether tax is excluded.
- Tracking categories and calculated extra lines are available when reporting needs them.
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