Mark Invoices as Sent in Xero

A guide for printIQ users

What is this feature?

Mark Invoices as Sent in Xero is a setting on the Xero Integration that flags each invoice as Sent in Xero whenever printIQ sends it to a customer. With the flag set, Xero treats the invoice as delivered and switches on its built-in automatic payment reminders. Without it, Xero never recognises the invoice as sent and the reminders never fire, even when the customer has already received the invoice from printIQ.

Why would I use it?

• Xero's automatic payment reminders fire for overdue invoices, so your finance team chases fewer customers by hand.
• Customers stop receiving Xero reminders for invoices they have already paid, because the Sent status matches reality.
• Your Xero invoice list reflects what has actually been sent from printIQ, which makes reconciliation and audit checks faster.
• You can switch the behaviour on or off per environment without a code change, so each printIQ site controls its own rollout.

How does it work?

The feature runs as part of the existing Xero Integration. It does not run on its own schedule. Two paths set the Sent flag in Xero.

When printIQ exports an invoice to Xero and the printIQ invoice is already in Sent status, the integration includes SentToContact = true in the export payload. The flag is set as part of the same call that creates the Xero invoice.

When a printIQ invoice changes to Sent status after it has already been exported, the integration calls Xero a second time and updates the matching Xero invoice to set SentToContact = true. This update only runs if the Xero invoice is in Approved or Authorised status.

For the auto-invoicing option "export and email", the invoice is exported to Xero first as unsent, then the Sent flag is set immediately afterwards when the email goes out.

What qualifies?

An invoice will have its Sent flag set in Xero if all of the following are true:

• The Enable Sent Status Sync setting is switched on in ExternalSystemAdmin.
• The matching Xero invoice exists and is in Approved or Authorised status.
• The printIQ invoice is in Sent status, either at the moment of export or as a later status change.
• The Xero invoice is not in Draft status. printIQ skips Draft invoices because Xero rejects the flag on them.

What happens after the flag is set?

1. The Xero invoice shows as Sent: The invoice's SentToContact field flips to true in Xero. The Sent indicator appears on the invoice list and on the invoice itself.
2. Xero's automatic reminders become eligible: Once the invoice is past due, Xero's invoice reminder rules begin sending reminders to the customer on your behalf, based on the reminder schedule set up in Xero.
3. Subsequent status changes do not unset the flag: If you later change the printIQ invoice back to Approved from Sent, the Xero Sent flag stays in place. printIQ does not clear it.

What about previously sent invoices?

Invoices that were exported and marked as Sent in Xero before this feature was switched on stay as they are. printIQ does not retroactively update older invoices. If you change one of these invoices back to Approved status in printIQ, the Xero Sent flag is not cleared.

What about Draft Xero invoices?

Xero rejects the Sent flag on Draft invoices through its own API. printIQ checks the Xero invoice status before any update and skips the call if the invoice is in Draft. No error is raised, the update is simply not attempted.

What about failures to set the flag?

If the Xero API call to set the Sent flag fails, the invoice itself is still exported successfully. The failure is logged and surfaced to support and admin users so the integration issue can be diagnosed. The printIQ invoice keeps its Sent status regardless.

Settings to know about

Mark Invoices as Sent in Xero did not run. What should I check?

Is the Enable Sent Status Sync setting switched on?

Open ExternalSystemAdmin and check the Xero Integration configuration. If the setting is off, printIQ makes no changes to the Sent flag in Xero, even when an invoice moves to Sent status.

Is the Xero invoice in Approved or Authorised status?

printIQ will not set the Sent flag on Draft Xero invoices. Check the Xero invoice and approve it if needed, then move the printIQ invoice through to Sent again.

Did the printIQ invoice actually move to Sent status?

The flag is only set when the printIQ invoice is in Sent status, either at export or later. An invoice that stays in Approved or earlier will not trigger the update.

Are there any Xero Integration errors logged?

Check the Xero Integration error and log view. A failed update to the Sent flag is logged there with the invoice details so support or admin users can investigate.

Still not seeing the expected behaviour after checking the above?

Reach out to your system administrator or the printIQ support team for a closer look at the configuration.