Unlinking Invoices and Payments from Xero in Actionstep

Modified on Mon, 15 Sep at 10:21 AM

There may be times when you need to unlink invoices and payments between Xero and Actionstep. For example, if the record in Xero is updated first, then the change Actionstep tried to make might be blocked by Xero. In this case, you may need to unlink the invoice/payment before it can be saved in Actionstep.

NOTE: This article covers unlinking payments and invoices from Xero, but you can unlink other transactions, like bank transactions and credit notes. To do this, go to either of the following places to select the kind of transaction you want and then follow the instructions outlined below for selecting the specific transaction:

• Go to Admin > Accounting > Xero: Sales Invoices / Payments / Bank Transactions / Credit Notes
• Go to Admin > Integrations > Xero > Xero: Sales Invoices / Payments / Bank Transactions / Credit Notes

Unlinking a Payment

To unlink a payment:

In Actionstep, go to Admin > Accounting. The Accounting page appears.
Click Edit next to the Xero: Payments option. The Linked Xero Payments List page appears.
Find the specific payment you want to unlink. To help, use the options on the Filter menu.
Select the checkbox next to the payment you want to unlink and click Unlink from Xero.

Unlinking an Invoice

To unlink an invoice:

In Actionstep, go to Admin > Accounting. The Accounting page appears
Click Edit next to Xero: Sales Invoices. The Linked Xero Invoices List page appears.
Find the specific invoice you want to unlink. To help, use the options on the Filter menu.
Select the checkbox next to the invoice you want to unlink and click Unlink from Xero.

NOTE: After unlinking the invoice, it will still exist in Xero. You will need to delete it directly in Xero. Once you approve the invoice again, it will recreate the invoice in Xero.

Removing a Payment from an Invoice (Optional)

In most cases, when you remove a payment from an invoice or delete it, you shouldn't need to unlink the transaction. There may be instances, however, when you should. For example, if the record in Xero is updated first, the change Actionstep tried to make might be blocked by Xero. In this case, you must unlink the invoice/payment before it can be saved in Actionstep.

NOTE: Prior to September 2025, if you needed to revert an invoice to a draft or delete it, you'd have to unlink it. Starting in September 2025, this is no longer a requirement. In most cases, these changes should be automatic.

To remove a payment from an invoice:

In Actionstep, view the relevant matter. (See Editing a Matter for help.)
Click the Billing menu icon. The Billing page appears.
Click Invoices from the list on the left.
Open the invoice you want to remove the payment from.
Click the Payment history tab.
Select the payment you want to remove.
Click Delete or Reverse. Deleting will completely remove the payment and reversing will maintain a record of the payment.