Collecting from a customer

Where to start

There are five ways in, and they all lead to the same screen, «Nueva solicitud» (New request):

• The «Cobrar» (Collect) button on the Home screen.
• The «Cobrarle» (Collect from them) button on the customer page. You go in with the customer already filled in, without searching the list.
• The «Cobrarle» button on the «¡Visita enviada!» (Visit sent!) screen, below «Ir al inicio» (Go to Home). It’s for the customer whose visit you just closed: if they paid you right there, you record it without going to look for them.
• The «Cobranza» (Collections) tab at the bottom, «Pagos» (Payments) sub-tab, and the + button to the right of the search box.
• An invoice’s «Subir pago» (Upload payment) button, in Collections › Invoices. That way you go in with the customer already filled in.

The walkthrough

1. Who you’re collecting from

   If you came in through «Cobrar» or the +, the app asks you first. Search for the customer by name or RIF (tax ID). Right at the top you’ll see their name and RIF, so you can confirm it’s the right one.

2. «Cómo te pagaron» (How you were paid)

   Tap the field and a list opens with the banks and cash accounts. Bolívar banks come first and dollar ones after. There’s a search box at the top: type part of the bank’s name and the list gets shorter.

3. «Monto que recibiste» (Amount you received)

   Enter what the customer gave you, in the currency of the bank you picked. Below it, the app shows you the day’s exchange rate so you know what it’s worth.

4. «Referencia / Nº depósito» (Reference / Deposit no.)

   It’s required — it has an asterisk. It’s the number Finance uses to find the payment at the bank. You can’t send without it.

5. The receipt

   Tap «Adjuntar Comprobantes» (Attach receipts) and take the photo, or choose the screenshot the customer sent you. It’s the proof of payment.

6. Additional photos

   If there was more than one transfer, tap «Agregar» (Add) under «Fotos adicionales» (Additional photos). You can add up to three. They go to the request’s conversation, where Finance sees them.

7. Which invoices it applies to

   Further down is «Facturas pendientes» (Open invoices). Check the invoices that payment settles and split the amount among them. At the end, the app shows you «Total asignado» (Total allocated) and «Restante» (Remaining).

If you leave the amount blank, the app fills it in

On an invoice with withholding (see below), you don’t need to fill in «Monto que recibiste» first. If you leave it blank and tap «Cobrar el total» (Collect the total) or «Retiene: cobrar» (Withholds: collect), the app enters that amount for you. From then on, as long as the amount is the one it entered, it’s always the sum of everything you allocated across the invoices: you check another one, uncheck one, correct an invoice’s amount, and the amount received adds itself up again. That way what you received and what you allocated can’t say different things.

• If the bank is in bolívars, the sum is converted to bolívars at the rate you see on the form.
• If you typed the amount yourself, the app doesn’t touch it. You read it off the receipt, and that takes precedence.
• If you later switch to a bank in another currency, the amount you had typed is cleared and the app tells you — «Cambiaste a un diario en bolívares: escribe de nuevo el monto que recibiste.» (“You switched to a bolívar journal: enter the amount you received again.”) — because that number was in the other currency.
• The «Auto» button splits what you received across the invoices in the usual order, keeps whatever you already typed on an invoice and unchecks the ones that end up with nothing.

When the customer withholds VAT

Some customers withhold VAT: they pay you less than the invoice says and give you a withholding certificate. Until that document reaches the office, the invoice keeps showing the full balance.

On those invoices, the app no longer fills in the amount on its own. The «Monto a pagar» (Amount to pay) field opens empty, with the math above it so you can follow it with your finger — invoice balance, minus the withholding still to apply, equals the expected balance — and two buttons below:

The button doesn’t lock you in: if they paid you a different amount, type it by hand. And if you haven’t filled in «Monto que recibiste» yet, the button fills it with its figure — you don’t have to scroll up to type it.

Any overpayment stays as customer credit

If you received more than you applied to the invoices, the app tells you before you send, on the «Restante» (Remaining) line:

Los $19,00 que sobran no van contra ninguna factura: le quedan al cliente a favor para su próxima compra. (“The extra $19.00 doesn’t go against any invoice: it stays as credit for the customer’s next purchase.”)

That money isn’t lost. Tell the customer right then, when it’s useful.

You can collect without signal

If there’s no internet, the button at the bottom changes to «Guardar cobranza sin señal» (Save collection offline). The request is saved on your phone, photo and all, and goes out by itself when the network comes back. Don’t enter it again.

Meanwhile you’ll see it in Cobranza › Pagos (Collections › Payments) as «Por enviar» (To send).

Tracking your request

All your collections are in Cobranza › Pagos (Collections › Payments). Each one shows its status on the right:

The chips at the top let you filter: «Todas» · «En revisión» · «Devueltas» · «Canceladas» · «Aprobadas» (All · Under review · Returned · Canceled · Approved).

Correcting a request

You can correct a request that is «Enviada» (Sent) or «Devuelta» (Returned). Tap the request to open it and use «Corregir y reenviar» (Correct and resend). On a returned one, the button also appears in the list, because it’s something you have pending.