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Invoices and payments

Invoices and payments show what has been collected, what is still owed, and what needs follow-up. Use them to collect deposits, installments, balances, or full payment without losing track.

Before you create an invoice

Check these account settings first:

  • Go to Settings -> Account to review the account currency and default tax rate. The account currency is fixed when the account is created; the tax rate can be updated.
  • Go to Settings -> Payments to connect Stripe if clients should pay online. You can also continue incomplete Stripe setup, refresh its status, and open the Stripe Dashboard after connection.
  • Go to Settings -> Templates to create the email messages you want to use for billing reminders.

Only teammates with billing access can manage Stripe and billing reminder settings. LYGHTBOX uses Stripe for online payment collection, while payouts, disputes, and Stripe account details remain in the Stripe Dashboard.

You can still record cash, bank transfer, and other offline payments on a project without collecting the money through the public invoice page.

Project payments

Open a project and use its Payments card to set the commercial amount before creating an invoice. The card shows:

  • Project amount and tax.
  • Amount paid.
  • Amount remaining.
  • The selected package.
  • Checkout payments connected to public booking.
  • Recorded manual payments.
  • Refunds.
  • Access to the project’s invoices.

An amount greater than zero is required before Record Payment and Invoices become available. You can enter the amount directly or select a package with a price. Use the card menu to mark payment as not required for work that does not need payment; this changes the project’s payment requirement, not an individual invoice.

Create an invoice

  1. Open the project.
  2. In Payments, select Invoices.
  3. Use Create Invoice and confirm the recipient name and email.
  4. Choose a due date: 14 or 30 days before the project date, or a custom date. If the project has no date, use a custom date.
  5. Review the service line items. LYGHTBOX starts with the project’s package items when available, and you can add, remove, or edit services.
  6. Add an optional flat or percentage discount and confirm the tax rate.
  7. Add a deposit or turn on split payments if needed.
  8. Select Save Draft to keep working or Publish Invoice when the client-facing invoice is ready.

An invoice can include:

  • Line item names and descriptions.
  • Quantity and amount.
  • A flat or percentage discount and note.
  • Tax based on the invoice tax rate.
  • A deposit amount, including quick 25%, 50%, and 75% choices.
  • Two to six installments for the balance after the deposit.

The invoice uses the account currency. Its total comes from the invoice line items, discount, and tax, so review that total even when the project amount was used to open the invoice flow.

Draft, publish, and send

These are separate steps:

  • Draft is internal. You can open or copy a preview link, but payment is disabled and the invoice does not appear in the client portal.
  • Published makes the invoice client-visible and payable from its link. Publishing normally opens the send dialog.
  • Sent means the invoice email has been sent or queued to the client.

In the send dialog, review the recipient, subject, and message before selecting Send. From Existing Invoices, you can also open the public page, copy its link, or send it again. Some invoices created by a booking flow may already have an automatic send scheduled; their record shows the scheduled time and lets you send now or cancel the scheduled send while it is still waiting.

What the client can do

The public invoice page shows the recipient, due date, services, discounts, tax, total, amount paid, refunds, deposit, installment schedule, and payment history. When Stripe is connected, the next available payment action can be:

  • Pay the deposit.
  • Pay the next installment.
  • Pay the remaining balance.
  • Pay the full amount.

Published, sent, partial, paid, overdue, and cancelled invoices can appear in the client’s portal for the related project or booking. A cancelled invoice remains available as a record but cannot collect another payment.

Record offline payments and refunds

Select Record Payment on the project to add a cash, bank transfer, or other payment. Enter the amount, payment date, currency, method, and an optional note. The View Payments tab lets you edit or delete manually recorded payments.

Stripe payments are not edited as manual payments. Use the available Refund action on the project or invoice instead. Refunds are limited to eligible Stripe-collected amounts and are reflected in the project and invoice totals.

Understand invoice status

  • Draft - saved but not ready for client payment.
  • Published - client-visible and awaiting payment.
  • Sent - delivered or queued through the invoice send flow.
  • Partial - some money has been collected, with a balance remaining.
  • Overdue - an unpaid balance has passed its due date.
  • Paid - the invoice balance has been collected.
  • Cancelled - no longer valid for payment.

Installments have their own Draft, Sent, Overdue, Paid, or Cancelled status. The project payment status summarizes the overall project and is not a replacement for checking a particular invoice or installment.

Invoices that have no payment activity can be edited or cancelled. Once an invoice has payment activity, its financial details are kept stable; refund an eligible payment instead of rewriting or cancelling the paid record. A cancelled invoice can be deleted only when it has no payment activity.

Set up billing reminders

Go to Settings -> Payments and turn on Billing reminders. Add rules before or after the due date, choose the timing, and select an email template for each enabled rule. Reminders use the invoice due date and stop applying when the invoice no longer needs collection, such as after payment or cancellation.

As payments come in, LYGHTBOX updates the invoice and related project so the remaining balance and next step stay visible. Payment activity can also drive dashboard attention, project milestones, and automations.