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Sayl

Finance, GST & Accounting · Purchases

Vendor Advances

Record money paid to a supplier before their bill arrives, and let Sayl take it off their next bill automatically.

Try it in the live demoFinance → Purchases → Vendor Advances

What it is for

A vendor advance is money you pay a supplier before you have their bill - a booking amount or a deposit. Sayl keeps it as Advances to Vendors (money the supplier owes you back in goods or services) and takes it off the vendor's next bill automatically.

How it works

  • When you open the vendor's next bill, unused advances are applied oldest first. The bill shows an 'Advance applied' payment line, and only the rest is left to pay.
  • TDS on the bill still works as usual: a ₹11,800 bill with ₹200 TDS and a ₹5,000 advance leaves exactly ₹6,600 to pay.
  • Turn off 'Apply automatically' to keep an advance for a particular bill and apply it by hand from that bill. Money that will not be used can be marked as refunded to you.

Step by step

Every screenshot is from the live demo. The highlighted button is the one to click - nothing here is saved in the demo, so you can follow along freely.

  1. 1

    Where to start

    In the guides menu on the left, open Purchases and click Vendor Advances. In Sayl the page is under Finance → Purchases → Vendor Advances. Switch the filter to All to see advances that are already used.

    Vendor Advances - Where to start
  2. 2

    Record the advance

    Click Record advance. Choose the vendor, enter the amount paid, the date, how you paid and which bank account it came from, and the UTR or reference. Leave Apply automatically on. Click Record advance.

    Vendor Advances - Record the advance
  3. 3

    Open the vendor's next bill

    Create the bill and open it as usual (see the Bills guide). The advance is applied at once. In the bill's Payments you see 'Advance applied (VADV-…)', the TDS deducted if any, and the balance left to pay.

    Vendor Advances - Open the vendor's next bill
    Bill ₹11,800: advance ₹5,000 + TDS ₹200 applied automatically; the remaining ₹6,600 paid by bank transfer.
  4. 4

    Check the advance

    Click the advance on this page: Applied to lists the bill and the amount used, and Unused drops to zero once it is fully used.

    Vendor Advances - Check the advance
  5. 5

    Refund or cancel

    Refund unused records money the vendor paid back to you. Cancel advance removes one entered by mistake; remove it from any bill first.

Key fields

Amount paid
What you paid the vendor in advance.
Paid from
The bank or cash account the money left.
Apply automatically
On: used by the vendor's next bill. Off: held for a bill you choose.

Tips

  • Advances are applied when a bill is opened, not when it is saved as a draft - check the draft's total before you open it.