Accounts Payable in TouteGestion: Supplier Bill to Controlled Payment
In TouteGestion, a supplier bill starts as a draft obligation rather than an immediate payment. The implemented workflow keeps the supplier bill, its accounting classification, approval, payment preparation, Treasury release and resulting accounting trail connected. Small organisations can use the Standard-mode shortcut, while Segregated mode requires the governed Payment Voucher route.
1. Create the supplier bill as a draft
Select the supplier and enter the supplier's bill number, bill date and due date. Each valid line requires a description, quantity, unit price and posting account. TouteGestion rejects an empty bill and protects the organisation against reusing a bill number that already exists.
2. Classify every line to the account that should receive the cost
The posting account is selected on each bill line. This is the bridge between the supplier document and the general ledger: office supplies, professional services, utilities or another cost should not all become an unexplained Accounts Payable balance. The bill keeps the line description, quantity, unit price and selected account together for later review.
3. Apply supplier discounts before tax
A bill line can have no discount, a percentage discount or a fixed discount. Percentage discounts are limited to 0–100%, and a fixed discount cannot exceed the gross line value. TouteGestion calculates gross amount, supplier discount, net amount and tax separately so a negotiated discount does not disappear inside an edited unit price. An optional discount reason can also be retained.
4. Save first; issue only after review
Save draft bill creates the supplier obligation in Draft status and opens its detail page. The detail screen shows bill date, due date, posting accounts, taxes, gross subtotal, supplier discounts, net subtotal, tax, total, paid/applied amount and balance due. A user with bill-approval authority can then Issue bill. Issuing is the controlled step that posts the bill's accounting effect rather than merely saving data-entry work.
5. Procurement-linked bills expose matching information
Where the bill is linked to procurement, the detail page shows the purchase order, received/GRNI value, supplier gross subtotal, purchase-price variance and procurement match status. The implemented accounting treatment deliberately keeps separately identified supplier discounts apart from purchase-price variance, so procurement variance is not distorted by a negotiated discount.
6. Standard and Segregated organisations pay differently
For an outstanding Issued or Partially paid bill, Standard mode can expose Record direct payment to an authorised AP manager. The user enters payment date, amount, an active bank account, method and reference. This historical shortcut is intentionally unavailable in Segregated mode. When Segregated access control is enabled, the bill must move through a Payment Voucher.
7. A Payment Voucher turns the obligation into a governed payment instruction
The voucher requires a supplier, voucher date, payment account, payment method, narration and at least one positive application to a supplier bill. It can also carry payment reference, deductions and supporting references. Total deductions cannot exceed the gross bill settlement. This lets Finance distinguish the supplier obligation from the instruction that will actually settle it.
8. The controlled payment chain separates AP and Treasury responsibilities
The implemented voucher actions are Prepare → Submit → Approve/Reject → Treasury prepare → Authorize → Release. Preparation, submission, Treasury preparation and release have distinct permission checks, while approval and authorization are enforced through the active workflow/database controls. Rejection requires a reason. This is the route used when an organisation needs maker/checker and independent Treasury control.
9. Release creates the downstream financial effects
Release requires a payment date and can record the final payment reference. The release procedure settles the governed supplier payment and then refreshes the supplier bills and Cash Book; when a journal entry is returned, TouteGestion opens that posted journal. The result is a traceable chain from supplier bill to settlement, cash movement and ledger effect instead of an isolated 'paid' flag.
10. Corrections preserve history
An issued bill can be voided only through the controlled void action and a reason is mandatory. A released supplier payment likewise uses a controlled reversal with a mandatory reason and journal-reversal authority. In Segregated mode, voucher cancellation is not exposed unless a dedicated cancellation authority exists. TouteGestion therefore avoids silently rewriting an approved or released financial event.
Worked example
A supplier sends a bill for 20 maintenance items at 100 each and grants a 10% supplier discount. Finance selects the supplier, records the supplier's bill number and due date, classifies the line to the appropriate maintenance expense account and enters the 10% discount. TouteGestion shows gross 2,000, discount 200, net 1,800, then applies the selected tax treatment. After review, an authorised user issues the bill. In a Segregated organisation, AP prepares a Payment Voucher against the outstanding bill; another authorised actor approves it, Treasury prepares and authorizes the payment, and an independent releaser releases it. The resulting settlement, Cash Book activity and journal remain traceable to the original supplier obligation.
Practical configuration checklist
- correct supplier and unique supplier bill number
- bill date and due date
- posting account on every valid bill line
- quantity and unit price reviewed
- supplier discount and reason captured separately where applicable
- tax treatment reviewed
- draft totals checked before Issue bill
- procurement match/variance reviewed where a PO is linked
- Standard direct payment used only where appropriate
- Payment Voucher used for governed or Segregated payments
- payment application does not exceed the intended supplier obligation
- void/reversal reasons used instead of silent edits
Connect accounting structure, workflow and reporting.
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