The Relations module in BillingNow centralizes all your business partners whether they are clients, suppliers, or both.
This unified space allows you to create, edit, filter, export, and delete relations that are reused across Invoices, Estimates, Credit Notes, Bills, and Payments.
With this module, you can:
- 🧾 Manage clients
- 💼 Manage suppliers
- 🔁 Maintain consistent contact, currency, and payment terms
- 📤 Export relations for reporting or accounting
- 🔍 Filter and search relations efficiently
📂 Relations Dashboard
Navigate to Sidebar → Relations
The dashboard displays all existing relations with their key information.
📊 Columns Overview
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Full name of the client or supplier |
| Primary contact email | |
| Type | Client, Supplier, or Both |
| Payment Term | Default payment delay (days) |
| Created At | Date the relation was created |
| Actions | Edit or Delete |
🟢 Edit – Update relation information
🔴 Delete – Permanently remove the relation
🔍 Filtering & Search
Click Filter to search and refine relations.
Available Filters
| Filter | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Search by name |
| Filter by email | |
| Type | Client, Supplier, Both |
| Payment Term | Payment delay |
| Created At | Creation date |
Filtering helps quickly find suppliers when creating Bills or clients when creating Invoices.
📤 Export Relations
Click Export in the top-right corner.
Available formats:
- Export as CSV
- Export as Excel
Exports respect active filters.
➕ Creating a New Relation
Click Create Relation to add a new partner.
Step 1: Select Relation Type
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Client | Used in Invoices & Estimates |
| Supplier | Used in Bills |
| Both | Used in all modules |
Step 2: Choose Entity Type
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Individual | Personal contact |
| Organization | Company or legal entity |
🧾 Relation Information Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Organization Name | Company name (organization only) |
| Organization Tax ID | Optional tax identification |
| Prefix | Mr., Mrs., Dr., etc. |
| First / Last Name | Contact person |
| Email Address | Used for document sending |
| Address Line 1 / 2 | Street & additional info |
| ZIP / City / State / Country | Location details |
| Currency | Default transaction currency |
| Payment Term (Days) | Default due delay |
| Notes | Internal notes |
Currency and payment terms defined here are automatically applied to new documents.
Click Create Relation to save.
✏️ Editing a Relation
To edit a relation:
- Click Edit
- Update any field
- Click Update Relation
Changes affect future documents only.
🗑️ Deleting a Relation
To delete a relation:
- Click Delete
- Confirm deletion in the warning modal
This action is irreversible.
The relation and all its links will be permanently removed.
🔗 Relation Detail Page
From the Relations Dashboard, click on a relation name to open its detail page.
The Relation Detail Page gives you a complete 360° view of a client or supplier, including documents, payments, bank accounts, projects, and activity history all in one place.
🧾 Relation Details Section
At the top of the page, the Relation Details card displays the core configuration of the relation:
- Address
- Currency
- Payment Terms
- Tax ID (if provided)
These values are inherited automatically by all documents created for this relation.
⚡ Quick Actions
The available actions in the top-right corner adapt automatically based on the relation type.
🔵 Client
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Edit | Update relation information |
| Add Invoice | Create a new invoice |
| More (⋮) | Access additional actions such as delete |
🟣 Supplier
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Edit | Update relation information |
| Add Bill | Create a new bill |
| More (⋮) | Delete relation |
🟢 Both (Client & Supplier)
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Edit | Update relation information |
| Add Invoice | Create a new invoice |
| Add Bill | Create a new bill |
| More (⋮) | Delete relation |
➕ Create Documents from a Relation
From the detail page, documents are created with the relation automatically preselected:
-
Clients
- Invoice
- Estimate
- Credit Note
-
Suppliers
- Bill
- Payment
-
Both
- All document types
This prevents mistakes and ensures correct linkage.
🔁 Relation Activities
The Relation Activities section lists all documents linked to the relation.
The available tabs depend on the relation type:
Client
- Invoice
- Estimate
- Credit Note
- Payment
Supplier
- Bill
- Payment
Both
- Invoice
- Estimate
- Credit Note
- Bill
- Payment
Available Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Document type |
| Number | Document reference |
| Status | Sent, Paid, Debited, Expired |
| Date | Document or payment date |
| Total | Document amount |
Use filters and tabs to quickly identify outstanding invoices, unpaid bills, or expired estimates.
🕒 Activity Timeline
The Activity Timeline shows a chronological log of all events:
- Invoice created
- Bill created
- Payment received
- Credit note created
- Estimate created
- Relation created
This provides a full audit trail.
🏦 Bank Accounts
Each relation can store one or more bank accounts.
You can:
- Add a bank account
- Set a default bank account
- Store IBAN, currency, and country
Bank accounts are reused automatically for invoices, bills, and payments.
📁 Projects
If the relation is linked to projects, they appear in the Projects section.
This allows you to:
- Associate documents with projects
- Track ongoing engagements
🗑️ Delete Relation from Detail Page
Relations can also be deleted from the detail page:
- Click More (⋮)
- Select Delete
- Confirm the warning modal
This action is irreversible.
🔁 Usage Across Billingnow
Relations are reused automatically in:
- 🧾 Invoices
- 📑 Estimates
- 💳 Credit Notes
- 🧾 Bills
- 💰 Payments
This ensures data consistency across the platform.
💡 Best Practices
✔ Keep emails and payment terms updated
✔ Use Both when an entity acts as client and supplier
✔ Define currency early
✔ Use notes for internal accounting context
✔ Periodically clean unused or duplicate relations
✅ Summary
This documentation reflects the latest Relations module behavior, including:
- Dynamic views per relation type
- Context-aware actions
- Unified activity tracking
- Secure deletion workflow
- Full document lifecycle visibility