Table of Contents

  1. Introduction

  2. Why Payment Tracking Matters in ERP Systems

  3. Overview of Dolibarr’s Payment Architecture

  4. Setting Up Modules for Payment Tracking

  5. Creating and Managing Customer Invoices

  6. Linking Payments to Invoices

  7. Using the Bank Module for Reconciliation

  8. Monitoring Partial Payments and Payment Schedules

  9. Automated Reminders and Follow-ups

  10. Integrating Online Payment Gateways

  11. Handling Overpayments and Credit Notes

  12. Payment Validation and User Roles

  13. Real-Time Dashboards and Reporting Tools

  14. Using Tags and Notes for Payment History

  15. Managing Payments Across Multicompany Setups

  16. Common Errors and How to Avoid Them

  17. Security and Audit Trails in Payment Records

  18. Best Practices for Reliable Payment Tracking

  19. Case Study: Streamlining Customer Payment Processes with Dolibarr

  20. Conclusion and Strategic Recommendations

1. Introduction

Managing incoming payments is one of the most critical financial processes for any business. Late or missed payments can directly affect cash flow, vendor relations, and profitability. Dolibarr ERP & CRM offers a comprehensive toolset for tracking, reconciling, and reporting customer payments. This guide outlines the most reliable method for tracking customer payments in Dolibarr.

2. Why Payment Tracking Matters in ERP Systems

  • Improves cash flow visibility

  • Ensures proper reconciliation of accounts

  • Prevents revenue leakage

  • Enables follow-up actions like reminders or legal processes

  • Facilitates audits and financial reporting

3. Overview of Dolibarr’s Payment Architecture

Dolibarr handles payments using a tightly integrated set of modules:

  • Invoices

  • Payments

  • Bank Accounts

  • Accounting (if enabled)

Customer payments are typically linked to validated invoices and associated with specific bank entries.

4. Setting Up Modules for Payment Tracking

Required modules:

  • Invoices

  • Bank/Cash

  • Payments

Optional modules:

  • Accounting

  • Notifications

  • Projects (for linking invoices to tasks or milestones)

Ensure these modules are activated in "Home > Setup > Modules".

5. Creating and Managing Customer Invoices

To track payments effectively, start with clean invoice management:

  • Navigate to "Sales > Customer Invoices > New Invoice"

  • Fill in customer, items, tax, payment terms

  • Validate the invoice

Only validated invoices can be paid or linked to payments.

6. Linking Payments to Invoices

Once a customer makes a payment:

  • Go to "Sales > Payments > New Payment"

  • Select the customer and invoice(s) being paid

  • Enter payment amount, date, and method (bank, cash, cheque)

  • Confirm and validate

This updates the invoice status and creates a payment record.

7. Using the Bank Module for Reconciliation

To ensure accurate accounting:

  • Navigate to "Bank/Cash > Bank Entries"

  • Import or manually create bank transactions

  • Link bank entries to Dolibarr payments via reconciliation tools

  • Match incoming payments to customer records

This confirms actual cash flow against declared payments.

8. Monitoring Partial Payments and Payment Schedules

Dolibarr allows:

  • Partial payment entries

  • Scheduled payments via linked projects or subscriptions

  • Alerts when payments are overdue or pending

Track the remaining amount directly from the invoice status panel.

9. Automated Reminders and Follow-ups

Enable automatic dunning (reminders):

  • Go to "Setup > Email Templates"

  • Define reminders for unpaid invoices

  • Use the Agenda or Notification module to automate sending

  • Track contact history per invoice

Manual follow-ups can be logged in the invoice comments.

10. Integrating Online Payment Gateways

Dolibarr supports plugins for:

  • PayPal

  • Stripe

  • Stancer

  • Other regional providers

Once integrated:

  • Add payment links to invoice PDFs or emails

  • Automatically register payments once received

This simplifies the process and improves collection rates.

11. Handling Overpayments and Credit Notes

If a customer overpays:

  • Register the full payment

  • Create a credit note for the overpaid amount

  • Apply the credit to future invoices or refund

This keeps the accounting records clean and customer-friendly.

12. Payment Validation and User Roles

Control who can:

  • Validate payments

  • Edit or delete payment entries

  • Assign payments to bank accounts

Use "Users & Permissions" to restrict access to sensitive payment features.

13. Real-Time Dashboards and Reporting Tools

Use built-in dashboards to:

  • View outstanding balances

  • Track aging invoices

  • Monitor daily, monthly, and yearly cash inflows

Custom reports can be created using the Reporting module or external tools like Dolibarr connectors with Excel or Power BI.

14. Using Tags and Notes for Payment History

Track payment context:

  • Add notes per payment (e.g., check number, payment terms discussed)

  • Use tags or labels for categorization (e.g., "Advance", "Final", "Wire Transfer")

This improves traceability, especially for dispute resolution.

15. Managing Payments Across Multicompany Setups

In multicompany mode:

  • Payments must be registered under the correct entity

  • Bank accounts and invoice sequences are separate

  • SuperAdmin roles can view and consolidate payment data across companies

Always validate the context before recording payments.

16. Common Errors and How to Avoid Them

  • Unlinked Payments: always assign payments to specific invoices

  • Double Entries: avoid registering the same payment in both bank and Dolibarr manually

  • Deleted Payments: avoid deleting validated payments unless correcting an error

Reconciliation helps catch these errors early.

17. Security and Audit Trails in Payment Records

Dolibarr logs:

  • Payment creation, validation, deletion

  • Invoice status changes

  • User actions (if the Audit module is enabled)

Ensure logs are reviewed during audits or financial reviews.

18. Best Practices for Reliable Payment Tracking

  • Always validate invoices before recording payments

  • Regularly reconcile with bank statements

  • Enable alerts for overdue or unmatched payments

  • Use permission control to limit who handles payments

  • Document any manual adjustments with detailed notes

19. Case Study: Streamlining Customer Payment Processes with Dolibarr

A consulting firm using Dolibarr streamlined its billing and collection processes by:

  • Creating recurring invoices for monthly retainers

  • Enabling Stripe integration for automatic online payments

  • Scheduling weekly reconciliation sessions

  • Using tags to classify payments (e.g., international, domestic)

They reduced unpaid invoice rates by 35% in six months.

20. Conclusion and Strategic Recommendations

Customer payment tracking in Dolibarr is both powerful and customizable. By fully leveraging invoice validation, payment linking, bank reconciliation, and reporting tools, businesses can achieve high levels of financial accuracy and operational efficiency.

The most reliable method is to integrate all aspects: start with validated invoices, link accurate payment entries, reconcile with bank data, and monitor through reports. With the right processes and user discipline, Dolibarr becomes a central hub for reliable, scalable payment tracking.