Prepare the Payment Details Before Recording It

Before you create a Payment in Pams, compare the payment information with the bank confirmation, payment receipt, or remittance advice you received. This prevents a payment from being recorded against the wrong Account or allocated to the wrong Invoice.

Make sure you have the following details ready:

The Amount received, including the correct Currency where it is shown.
The date the payment was received, which you will enter in Paid on.
The payer details for the Paid by field.
The related Account in Pams.
The payment method details, including Payment Method or Payment Method Code, if your Payment form requires them.
The Invoice or outstanding balance the payment is intended to settle.
A supporting document to add through Attachment, such as a remittance advice, bank confirmation, or payment receipt.

If the payer has paid more than one Invoice, identify each Invoice and the amount intended for each one before you begin. This is especially important when the received Amount does not exactly match a single Invoice Amount.

Check that this is an incoming customer payment connected to an Invoices process. A payment connected to a Purchase Invoice or a sub-supplier follows the Payments process described in Managing AP Invoices. Do not create an incoming Payment record for an amount that is actually an adjustment, refund, or another transaction type unless its purpose has been confirmed by the person responsible for Payments.

Create an Incoming Payment Record

In Pams, open Finance > Payments and select the action used to create a new Payment. A new Payment form opens in Draft, which is the editable stage for entering and checking the details.
Select the relevant Account. Choose the Account that received the payment, not simply the Account that appears most recently in the Payments list. Then complete Paid by with the payer shown on the remittance advice, receipt, or bank confirmation. Check that the Account and payer information agree with the Invoice or outstanding balance you plan to allocate.
Enter the received value in Amount. Type the Amount exactly as it appears in the payment source document. Confirm the Currency before saving, particularly when the Account has Invoices in more than one currency.
Enter the payment date in Paid on. Use the date the payment was received or confirmed, rather than the date you happen to enter the Payment in Pams. If applicable, select the correct Payment Method and enter the related Payment Method Code.
Review the form before saving. At this stage, the Payment should identify who paid, how much was received, when it was received, and which Account it relates to. Do not allocate the Payment based only on a similar payer name or Invoice Number.
Click Save to keep the Payment in Draft while you add evidence and review the intended allocation. Use Save and Close only when you are ready to leave the form and return later.

Attach Supporting Documents to the Payment

Open the Payment while it is still in Draft. Attaching documents before you mark the Payment as Done (completed) keeps the payment evidence together with the recorded Amount, payer, and allocation.
Locate Attachment on the Payment record and use it to add the payment evidence. Select the relevant file from the available file location, then wait for it to appear on the Payment record before moving on.
Add documents that show the payment source or its intended use. Useful evidence includes:
- A remittance advice showing the Invoice Number or Invoices being paid.
- A bank confirmation showing the received Amount and payment date.
- A payment receipt that identifies the payer.
- A document explaining a partial payment, combined payment, or overpayment.
Review each attached file directly from the Payment record. Confirm that the document belongs to the same Account, Paid by value, and Amount entered on the form. If the remittance advice refers to several Invoices, make sure the total on the document agrees with the received Amount before you allocate it.
Use Save after adding attachments. Keep the Payment in Draft if you still need to correct the Amount, Paid on, Account, or Paid by details.

Attachments provide a clear payment history when someone later opens the Payment Number, reviews the related Invoice, or checks why an Amount was allocated in a particular way. Keep all payment evidence on the relevant Payment record rather than relying on a separate document location.

Complete the Incoming Payment

Open the Draft Payment and perform a final review of the key fields. Check Account, Paid by, Amount, Currency, Paid on, and Payment Method against the attached payment evidence. Confirm that the Amount is the amount actually received, not the Invoice Amount you expect to collect.
Review the intended Invoice allocation before completion. If the payment covers one Invoice, check that the Invoice Amount and received Amount agree. If it covers several Invoices, make sure you have identified how the Amount will be distributed. If the payment is partial, retain the supporting document that explains the short payment.
Confirm that all required evidence appears under Attachment. A Payment marked Done (completed) should have enough information for another user to understand who paid, what was received, and what the payment is intended to settle.
Select Done (completed) on the Payment record. This marks the incoming Payment as completed after its information has been checked.
Reopen or refresh the Payment record and verify that its status shows Done (completed). Also confirm that the Payment Number, Amount, and Account still display correctly.

Treat Done (completed) as the point at which the Payment becomes the confirmed record of the received funds. Review the payment details carefully before using this action. If a correction is needed later, use the available correction or allocation controls on the existing Payment record rather than entering a second Payment for the same bank receipt.

Allocate the Payment to Outstanding Amounts

Open the Payment that shows Done (completed). Confirm the Amount, Account, and Paid by values one more time so you are allocating the correct receipt.
Select Adjust Allocation to begin or update the allocation. Use the available Invoice, Account, or outstanding balance options shown for the Payment. Choose only the outstanding amount that belongs to the same payer and Account recorded on the Payment.
When the payment settles one Invoice in full, allocate the full received Amount to that Invoice. Compare the allocated Amount with the Invoice Amount before saving. The Payment should then show that the Invoice has been allocated.
When one payment covers more than one outstanding Invoice, use Adjust Allocation to distribute the received Amount across the eligible Invoices. Enter or confirm the amount assigned to each Invoice, then check that the combined allocations equal the Payment Amount.
When the received Amount is less than an Invoice Amount, allocate only the amount actually received. This leaves the unpaid portion outstanding. Do not increase the Payment Amount to make the Invoice appear fully paid.
When the received Amount is higher than the available Invoice Amount, allocate only the appropriate amount and review the Remaining value or the difference between the Payment Amount and allocated amounts. Keep the remittance advice or bank confirmation in Attachment so the reason for the unmatched amount is clear.
Save the allocation and confirm that the Payment shows Invoice Allocated where applicable. Recheck the remaining amount before closing the record.

Fix Unallocated, Incorrect, or Incomplete Payments

Start by opening the existing Payment record; do not create a second Payment for the same received Amount. Check its current status, then compare Account, Paid by, Amount, Currency, and Paid on with the attached payment evidence.
If the Payment is still in Draft, correct the inaccurate field directly and click Save. For example, update Paid by if the wrong payer was selected, correct Paid on if the bank receipt shows another date, or amend Amount if the entered value does not match the confirmation.
If the Payment cannot be allocated, use Adjust Allocation and check whether the intended Invoice or outstanding balance is available under the correct Account. Verify that the Invoice has not already been settled and that it belongs to the payer recorded in Paid by.
If the allocated total differs from the Payment Amount, determine which situation applies:
- The payment is a partial payment against one Invoice.
- The payment covers several outstanding Invoices.
- The received Amount includes an amount that remains unallocated.
- The payment was entered with an incorrect Amount, Account, payer, or date.
If allocation needs changing, use Adjust Allocation on the existing Payment. Review the result carefully and confirm whether Invoice Allocated and Remaining show the expected values. Do not remove or change an allocation merely to force the Payment Amount to equal an unrelated Invoice Amount.
If payment evidence is missing, add it through Attachment and save the record. If the Payment is already Done (completed), use only the correction options available on that Payment record and retain the original evidence and Payment Number for traceability.

Overview

Incoming Payments in Pams record money received from a payer and connect that receipt to the related Account and outstanding Invoice amount. The Payment record gives your team one place to see the payer, received Amount, Paid on date, Currency, supporting documents, and allocation result.

The normal workflow is:

Create a Payment in Draft.
Complete Account, Paid by, Amount, and Paid on.
Add a remittance advice, bank confirmation, or payment receipt through Attachment.
Review the information and mark the Payment Done (completed).
Use Adjust Allocation to apply the received Amount to the appropriate Invoice or outstanding balance.
Check Invoice Allocated and any Remaining amount after allocation.

This process is part of the customer sales cycle that follows an AR Invoice. If you need to review the invoice before recording the receipt, see Managing AR Invoices. The Payment record should reflect the actual money received, while the allocation explains which outstanding amount that money settles.

Incoming Payments are different from purchase-side payments. Purchase Invoices and payments to sub-suppliers belong to the Payments workflow covered in Managing AP Invoices. Keeping incoming and outgoing payment records separate makes it easier to review receivables, payment history, and outstanding customer balances.

Prerequisites

Have the payment information and related Pams records ready before you create a Payment. This reduces the risk of recording a receipt against the wrong Account or leaving a completed Payment without an allocation.

Prepare the following:

Access to Finance > Payments in Pams.
The correct Account for the received payment.
The payer name needed for Paid by.
The confirmed received Amount and Currency.
The payment date needed for Paid on.
The correct Payment Method or Payment Method Code, where your Payment form uses these fields.
The related AR Invoice or outstanding balance you plan to allocate.
A remittance advice, bank confirmation, payment receipt, or similar evidence ready to add through Attachment.

Before recording the Payment, check that the Invoice is still outstanding and that it belongs to the same Account and payer. If the payer has paid multiple Invoices together, prepare the amount to allocate to each Invoice. If the payment is lower than the Invoice Amount, record the actual received Amount and plan for a partial allocation. If it is higher than the Invoice Amount, retain the evidence explaining the additional amount.

If you are unsure whether the receipt belongs to an AR Invoice, a Principal payment, or a Purchase Invoice, confirm its business purpose before creating the Payment. Recording it in the correct workflow avoids duplicate records and incorrect outstanding balances.

After the incoming Payment has been recorded and allocated, continue with Allocating Direct Cost Transactions to record direct costs against the appropriate work.

Recording Incoming Payments