Contracts, renewals and recurring invoices

Use a contract for anything that runs over time: subscriptions, annual maintenance (AMC), support plans, retainers, yearly licences. It’s billed in equal shares every period, and renewed or expired at its end.

Create a contract

1. Open an accepted quote and choose Create contract. (Admins can also have contracts created automatically on acceptance.)
2. Choose the start date, the term in months, and how often to bill: one time, monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly.
3. Check the draft. You can set the billing email, whether to send invoices automatically, auto-renew, the renewal notice and any special terms.
4. Choose Activate. Its term and billing are then fixed.

If the quote was e-signed, the signed PDF is copied into the contract’s Files.

How it’s billed

The quote’s products and total are the contract’s value for the whole term, billed in equal shares. For example:

• Activating bills the first period if it has started. After that, each period’s invoice is created on its date.
• When amounts don’t divide evenly, the last invoice bills the exact remainder, so the total always matches the contract.
• Invoices are ordinary invoices: GST, numbering, PDF, customer link, payments and reminders all apply, and each one shows the period it covers.
• By default each invoice is a draft for you to check and send. With Send each invoice automatically on, it’s emailed to the billing email (or the contact).
• Bill next period now invoices the next period early, for a customer who pays in advance.
• The contract’s Billing schedule lists every period, its invoice, and when the next one bills.

Renewal

1. 1Notice periodA set number of days before the end (60 by default).
2. 2Renewal opportunityCreated with the same products, closing on the end date, with a high-priority task for the owner.
3. 3The endAuto-renewing contracts roll into the next contract the day after; others become Expired.

• With Auto-renew on, the next contract starts automatically, with the same products, term and billing, and keeps billing. No renewal opportunity is created.
• Renew creates the next contract as a draft by hand, for example after the renewal opportunity is won with new prices.
• Terminate (with a reason) ends a contract early: no more invoices and no renewal. Invoices already created stay.

Statuses

Where contracts appear

• The Contracts tab in Sales, with an Ending in 90 days filter.
• The Contracts list on the quote, the opportunity and the account.
• Reports: Contracts is a report type (active, ending in the next 90 days, value). Workflow rules can run on contracts.