Bound vendor invoice intake for a virtual assistant

Open one intake record per invoice

Create a record with the vendor, invoice number, invoice date, amount, currency, purchase order or contract reference, and the receiving business owner. Attach the original invoice file and record how it arrived. A forwarded copy is not the original when the original is available.

Check for duplicates before doing anything else. Compare the vendor, invoice number, amount, and date against recent records. If a duplicate is possible, mark it and route the question rather than processing both. Duplicate payment is a common and expensive failure.

Validate against the approved source

Compare the invoice with the purchase order, contract, or approved rate card. Record the matched fields and the differences. If the invoice includes items that are not on the order, mark the variance and route it to the business owner; do not assume the extra item was approved.

Check the math, tax treatment, and currency. Use the company's approved tax and conversion rules. If a rule is missing or ambiguous, stop and ask. An assistant should not invent a tax rate or choose a conversion date that makes the invoice balance.

Treat bank-detail changes as a separate control

Never update a vendor's bank details from an email alone. Require the company's approved verification step, which may include a call to a known contact, a signed form, or a portal confirmation. Record who verified the change and when.

If a vendor asks to change bank details on an open invoice, stop the payment path and route the request to the finance owner. Preserve the request, the old details, and the new details. A sense of urgency in the message is a reason for more verification, not less.

Keep approval and payment separate from intake

The assistant may prepare the packet and route it to the approver. The assistant may not approve the invoice, release a payment, or tell the vendor that payment has been scheduled unless the company has explicitly authorized that communication.

Record the approver's decision, the approved amount, and any conditions. If the approved amount differs from the invoice, keep both values and route the difference. Do not edit the invoice to match the approval; the discrepancy may be the evidence the owner needs.

Use consistent states and reason codes

Define a small set of intake states: received, duplicate suspected, missing reference, variance, bank change pending, approved for payment, rejected, and closed. Each state should have a next action and an owner. Avoid vague states such as in review that can hide an item for weeks.

Use reason codes that point to the actual problem: missing purchase order, amount mismatch, unverified bank change, tax question, or vendor identity conflict. A code should route the case to a team that can resolve it, not just label it as an exception.

Close with payment and vendor confirmation evidence

After payment, verify that the amount, currency, and vendor match the approved packet. Record the payment reference and date. If the payment fails or is returned, reopen the record rather than creating a new one without the history.

Confirm the vendor's receipt only through the approved channel and only when the company has authorized that contact. Close the record when the payment, approval, and vendor reference reconcile. Report open items by age and reason so the finance owner can see what is waiting.

Questions and operating boundary

Source

ftc.gov provides authoritative background and does not endorse this service.