Track a supplier purchase order (approval, sending, receipt, conversion)

Why this matters

When you order before receiving, you need to know what was ordered, what arrived and what is still to be delivered. The purchase order follows this path on a single document, from approval to partial receipt, up to the expense.

Summary

A supplier purchase order is an expense in preparation: you have it approved, you send it to the supplier as a PDF, then you convert it into an expense when the invoice arrives. In Genuka, a purchase order is created from the New Bill form or by asking the assistant; it is then tracked on its page, in Expenses.

Prerequisites

• expenses.view to view purchase orders.
• expenses.create (or expenses.*) to create one, from the form or through the assistant.
• expenses.update to approve, send, receive and convert.
• To send by email: an email address on the supplier's record.

Creating a purchase order

Two paths lead to a purchase order. They follow the same lifecycle (Draft, Approve, Send to supplier, Convert to bill), but they do not handle stock the same way.

From the dashboard

1. Expenses (/bills), then create an expense: the New Bill page (/bills/create) opens.
2. Choose the Expense type, the supplier and the items, as for an expense.
3. In State ("Are you creating a purchase order or simple expense ?"), choose Purchase Order instead of Expense.
4. Fill in the planned payment method, then Add Expense.

The order is created in Draft status, with a purchase order reference. Stock is not updated on creation: the Goods receptions section shows all the quantities still to receive, and Receive goods is what brings them into stock, in one or several goes.

With the assistant

Ask the Genuka assistant, specifying the supplier, the items, the quantities, the prices and the planned payment method. The assistant shows you a summary to confirm before creating it.

With this path, the stock of the ordered items is updated immediately, and the Goods receptions section shows a Direct purchase reception that covers all the quantities.

Statuses

Steps: on the purchase order page

1. Expenses (/bills), open the purchase order.
2. Approve: visible as long as the order is in Draft status. Genuka keeps who approved it and when.
3. Actions menu:
   • Purchase order PDF downloads the document;
   • Send to supplier emails it, PDF attached, and moves it to Sent to supplier. The option only appears if the supplier has an email address.
4. Receive goods, in Goods receptions, when quantities are still to be received: choose the Destination warehouse, enter the quantities actually received, and if needed, in Advanced options, the Batch number and the Production and Expiration dates. Confirm reception brings these quantities into stock. The remainder stays open for a future reception.
5. Convert to bill when the supplier's invoice arrives: the button replaces Approve once the order is approved, and is also in Actions while it is a draft.

What converting to an expense does

• The purchase order becomes an expense, with a new reference. The purchase order's old reference is kept.
• If you keep your books in Genuka, the expense then enters the purchases journal. An order created by the assistant posts no entry before its conversion. An order created from the New Bill form, however, already posts a purchase entry when it is created: after converting it, check the purchases journal so the purchase is not counted twice.
• You can then Add payment on the expense.

Edge cases and common mistakes

• The Receive goods button does not appear. An order created by the assistant has already brought its stock in at creation: the Direct purchase reception covers all the quantities and there is no remainder. Do not make a stock entry again for the same goods. An order created from the form, on the other hand, keeps its quantities to receive until they are received.
• Reception beyond the remainder. Refused: you cannot receive more than the quantity left to receive on a line.
• Cancelling a reception. Cancel this reception takes out of stock what it had brought in, from the batch where it entered. It is refused, with nothing changed, if part of those goods has already left the stock (sold, transferred or declared lost): the message lists the products and the missing quantities. Then record the return to the supplier, or the correction, with a stock adjustment. A Direct purchase reception cannot be cancelled on its own: delete the purchase order.
• Deleting a purchase order. Deletion also takes out of stock everything its receptions had brought in, Direct purchase reception included. It is refused, with nothing changed, if part of those goods has already left the stock.
• Approving an order already sent. Refused.
• Expense payment refused. The amount must be greater than zero and cannot exceed the balance to pay (the message shows that balance). The payment method must be a treasury account of your company.
• Send to supplier does not appear. The supplier has no email address on their record.
• An ordinary expense has no receptions. Receptions only exist for purchase orders; a direct purchase expense brought its stock in when it was created.

FAQ

How do I create a purchase order for my supplier? In New Bill (/bills/create), choose State › Purchase Order. You can also ask the Genuka assistant: "create a purchase order for this supplier with these items". Tracking (approval, sending, receiving, conversion) then happens in Expenses.

Does the purchase order update my stock? It depends on how it was created. Created from the form, it brings stock in at each Receive goods. Created by the assistant, it updates stock as soon as it is created.

How do I download the goods receipt? In Goods receptions, each reception offers Goods receipt PDF.

See also

• Record a purchase of goods that feeds the stock
• Record a stock entry (entry voucher)
• Batches, expiry dates and exit order