Billing Run

A billing run is the process of preparing and sending a batch of invoices. Most businesses run billing monthly, but you can run multiple times in a month if needed. The platform guides you through each run using the Next Steps panel, which tracks your progress and shows what to do at every stage.

Accessing billing runs

Open the Billing Run menu from the main navigation. This gives you access to:

Billing Runs / Cycles:view, edit, and manage your billing runs and billing cycle schedules
CDRs:view, upload, and process call data record files
Billing Errors:review errors from CDR processing
Payment Runs:manage Direct Debit and card payment collection runs

If there are pending CDR files that need attention, a warning banner appears at the top of the menu showing the count and status of those files.

Click a billing run from the list to open its detail page. The Next Steps panel appears here, guiding you through the entire billing process.

Billing run fields

Each billing run has four key fields that control how invoices are produced:

Invoice Date:the date shown on invoices
Cutoff Date:the main billing date, and the only one most runs need. It is the last date that charges apply: calls are included when their start date falls before it, and non-call charges when their bill date (or transaction date, where there is no bill date) falls before it. This date is required, so every run has one; if you clear it, the platform resets it to today. Set a future date to have the platform generate upcoming recurring charges early, so they are ready to bill
Transaction Cutoff Date:an optional second date that changes how non-call charges are selected. When set, non-call charges are included by their transaction date (on or before this date) rather than their bill date, bypassing the advance/arrears bill-date mechanism. It has no effect on calls, which always follow the Cutoff Date. Leave it blank unless you have more complex billing arrangements
Due Date:the payment due date printed on invoices (optional)
Invoice Message:an optional override message printed on invoices. Useful for seasonal messages or significant announcements. The default message is usually set per-customer

These fields lock once billing is requested. See Request Bills for more detail.

Billing run field reference

Run Details

This section contains the core configuration for the billing run, including name, status, subrun settings, invoice message, and run completion tracking.

Field	Description
Name	Descriptive name for this billing run
Status	Current status of the billing run
Billing Subrun	Subrun identifier for this billing run in multirun environments
Invoice Message	Message template to use for invoices in this billing run
Invoice Amount	Total amount of all invoices in this billing run

Date Details

This section specifies the key dates for the billing run including invoice date, call cutoff date, optional non-call transaction cutoff date, and payment due date.

Field	Description
Invoice Date	Date to appear on invoices generated in this billing run
Cutoff Date	Call cutoff date for including call charges in this billing run
Transaction Cutoff Date	Optional non-call cutoff date for including charges by transaction date in this billing run
Due Date	Payment due date for invoices in this billing run

System Information

System-generated information and activity tracking for this billing run.

Field	Description
Last Modified	Timestamp of the most recent modification to this billing run
Created	Timestamp when this billing run was created

Billing preview

The Billing Preview tab gives you a live look at which customers will appear in the run and what their projected charges look like. Use it to spot anything unexpected before you request bills.

When it appears

The tab appears on billing runs with a status of Pending or Requested, once a cutoff date is set. You need list access to both Customers and Invoices to see it.

What it shows

The preview grid lists each customer expected in the run. Columns are grouped into two sets:

Base projected totals show the charges the platform expects to produce for this run:

Total
One-Off
Recurring
Calls
Refunds
Late Fees
Interest
Carrier Provided
Manual Billing
Low Usage
Manual
Non-Call

Only charge types that are enabled on your platform appear. If you do not use late fees, for example, that column is hidden.

Previous invoice totals show the same breakdown taken from each customer’s most recent normal invoice in the same billing cycle. This makes it easy to compare projected charges against the last period.

Projected Outcome

The Projected Outcome column shows whether each customer’s invoice will be included or excluded from the run. Possible values include:

Included:the invoice will be produced as normal
Below empty threshold:the invoice total is zero and the customer’s empty invoice setting will suppress it
Below low threshold:the invoice total falls below the customer’s low invoice threshold and will be suppressed
Low usage fee:the invoice total falls below the threshold but a low usage fee will be added instead of suppressing
Thresholds ignored:the customer has threshold settings, but they are set to produce the invoice regardless. This most likely applies to customers on a final bill

Things to keep in mind

Base projected totals reflect charges calculated at the time you view the preview. They do not include amounts added later in the billing process, such as uplift charges or manual fees. Treat the figures as a useful guide rather than a final total.

The Next Steps panel

When you open a billing run, the Next Steps panel appears on the detail page. It shows what to do next, with a confirmation button for each step. Steps turn green as you complete them, and the panel adapts based on the run’s current status.

Pre-billing steps

Before you request bills, the panel walks you through these checks:

Set dates:the panel alerts you if the invoice date or cutoff date is missing. Set these before anything else. If you need a separate cutoff for non-call charges, set the optional Transaction Cutoff Date as well.
Check payments:a table compares unallocated payments against the previous run, broken down by payment type. If you use Xero, it warns you if payments haven’t been fetched recently. Click Confirm Payments when you’re satisfied. See Enter Payments.
Check CDRs:shows a carrier-by-carrier comparison of CDR files and line counts against the previous period. You can check for new files by email or FTP directly from the panel. If any CDRs are missing or still being processed, the panel offers options to ignore them or process them first. Click Confirm CDRs Processed when done. See Supply Files.
Check billing errors:appears after CDRs are confirmed. Links to the billing errors page where you can review and resolve issues. Click Confirm Errors Checked when done. See Billing Errors.

Two preparation steps can be run on demand from the run’s Actions menu at this stage:
- Apply Discount Plans:re-applies discount plans to unsent invoices so the Billing Preview shows discounted call values. This can take a while on large runs. It is also available from the CDR Processing page.
- Update Call Transactions:refreshes call charge transactions on unsent invoices.
Both jobs run in the background across all unsent invoices platform-wide, not just the run in view, and are logged against the run. They otherwise run automatically each day.
Check fixed fee errors:only appears if your platform uses wholesale fixed-fee processing. Works the same way as billing errors. Click Confirm Fixed Fee Errors Checked when done.
Pre-billing report:request and review the pre-billing report. Click Confirm Pre-Billing Report Checked when done. See Pre-Billing Report.
Request bills:once all steps are confirmed, the panel shows “Billing run is ready!” with a Request Bills button. See Request Bills.

Expert Mode users can skip the pre-billing checks and request bills directly from the Actions menu.

Post-billing steps

After invoice production completes, the panel shows the remaining steps:

Post-billing report:confirm you’ve reviewed the post-billing report. See Post-Billing Report.
Bill production progress:while PDFs are being generated, shows how many are ready. This resolves automatically once all bills are produced.

While a run is in progress, the page refreshes its own progress rather than needing you to reload it. It reports invoice creation first, then switches to prepared PDF bills once the final invoice total is known, updating as each phase finishes.

Send to Xero:if you use Xero, shows how many customers and invoices still need sending. See Xero Integration.
Email bills:shows how many bills need emailing to customers. See Email Bills.
Print bills:shows how many bills need printing into bundles.
Manual Direct Debit Collection Required:shows how many customer accounts have bills that automatic collection cannot attempt, with a link to prepare a Direct Debit run for them. If you use auto-collection (recommended), this step resolves on its own. See Payment Runs.
Collect by Card:shows invoices that need manual card collection. If you use auto-collection (recommended), this step resolves on its own. See Payment Runs.

When all steps are done, the panel shows Run Complete.

Billing run status

Each billing run progresses through a series of statuses as it moves from setup to completion.

New runs start as Pending. Depending on your workflow, a run may move to Ready or Approved if your organisation uses sign-off steps before billing. The pre-billing report runs automatically when a run is marked Ready or Approved.

When you request bills, the run moves to Requested. Once invoice production begins, it moves to Running, and when all invoices are produced it moves to Completed. From there, the post-billing steps in the Next Steps panel guide you through sending and collecting.

In this section

Enter Customers: check customer setup before billing
Enter Payments: review and confirm payments
Supply Files: upload and process CDR files
Billing Errors: review and resolve billing errors
Pre-Billing Report: check the pre-billing report
Request Bills: trigger invoice production
Post-Billing Report: review the post-billing report
Email Bills: send invoices to customers by email
Payment Runs: collect payments by Direct Debit or card

Spending too long producing invoices or chasing billing errors every month? see how SAFE Billing Platform automates the entire billing cycle