How recurrence and retainers keep periods separate
A recurring schedule creates a draft once per occurrence. A retainer tracks its own fee, included time and approved usage for a named service period.
Watch the walkthrough
Who acts: Authorized billing editor; Finance reviews issuance
Go straight to the steps
Playback and accessibility
Use Play or Pause, move back or forward 10 seconds, or restart from the title screen. Tab to a button, then press Enter or Space. Action captions are included in the video, and the complete written steps follow below.
Download the action captionsGo straight to the written stepsFollow the steps.
Choose the source invoice and calendar settings
Open Recurring invoices and create or select a schedule. Review its source invoice, timezone, frequency, anchor day and start or end date. Monthly dates clamp to the final day of a short month.
Open recurring schedulesChoose issuance and work generation separately
Leave auto-issue off unless authorized for an unchanged agreement. Opt in to new-period work separately; creating a recurring draft alone does not generate tasks. Save the reviewed schedule rather than assuming a previous period’s approval covers changed terms.
Review a historical period without creating it
The recording checks the historical-period review and shows Create period draft enabling, but does not submit. In production, explicitly create or skip the appropriate missed occurrence; never send a burst of old invoices. Each schedule and period creates a draft once. Pausing preserves prior documents and work.
Select a service month for retainer review
The recording changes the service month without opening or billing it. In your workspace, use Open calendar-month period, then review included allowance, approved usage and the One-period rollover cap; zero disables rollover. Beyond-agreement overages require commercial approval before billing.
Review retainers
What changes when you finish
Each named service period keeps its own draft and work history. Missed periods and overages receive review instead of automatic charges or unapproved scope.
Review the next occurrence
Choose a timezone, frequency, anchor day and start or end date. Monthly dates clamp to the last day of short months. Missed occurrences go to a review queue rather than sending a burst of old invoices. Auto-issue requires explicit authorization of an unchanged agreement.
Generate new-period work deliberately
Work generation for a new service period is a separate opt-in. Unfinished previous-period work stays in its own period, and pausing a schedule does not erase issued documents or delivery history.
Approve usage and proposed overages
Retainers default to no rollover. Optional carryover lasts one period with an entered cap no greater than the base allowance and expiring-first use. Extra work beyond the agreement needs commercial approval before it becomes billable.