How invoicing works

Drafts, issued invoices, credit notes and numbering, explained.

Drafts follow the order

Every new order gets a draft invoice. Until it's issued, the draft updates itself whenever the order changes: items, prices, discounts, addresses. Drafts have no number yet.

Issued invoices are locked

When the order reaches the moment you chose in Settings → Orders & invoicing, the invoice gets the next number in your sequence and its content and PDF are frozen. You and your customer always hold the same version, which is what tax authorities expect.

Changes create credit notes

Refunds, edits and cancellations never touch an issued invoice. InvoiceHop creates a credit note for what was removed and, for edits, a new invoice for what was added. They're all linked on the invoice page. The order's payment status in Shopify is never changed.

Numbering without gaps

Invoices and credit notes each have their own prefix and sequence, restarting at 1 every year (for example F-2026-00001 and AV-2026-00001). A number is only used when a document is issued, so the sequence never skips.