---
title: "Xero invoicing questions: statements, online invoices, payments"
description: "Plain answers to the Xero invoicing questions accountants and bookkeepers get asked most: paying several invoices at once, why a saved invoice never arrived, what customers can do on an online invoice, statements, reminders and lender access."
url: https://www.paidnice.com/blog/xero-invoicing-questions-answered
---

# Xero invoicing questions answered: statements, online invoices and payments

Written byAshley SchroderCo-founder of Paidnice
Ashley SchroderCo-founder of Paidnice
Ashley is a co-founder and lead developer of Paidnice, and builds the Xero and QuickBooks connections that put reminders, late fees and payments on the ledger. Before Paidnice he co-founded A2X, ecommerce accounting software for Xero and QuickBooks.

Reviewed byDenym BirdCo-founder & CEO of Paidnice
Denym BirdCo-founder & CEO of Paidnice
Denym started Paidnice in 2022 after customers paying late left his own business short on payroll. He has led it to $1 billion collected on time across more than 1 million invoices, and writes about credit control, late fees and getting paid on Xero and QuickBooks.

Published Oct 22, 2026 · 6 min readExpert verified

## Summary

Most Xero invoicing questions come down to three facts. A saved or approved invoice is not sent until you choose Approve & email or send it. Customers can pay several invoices in one go only from an online statement you send, and only with Stripe connected. Xero sends reminders automatically, but it cannot send statements on a schedule.

- **Five unpaid invoices:** Email a statement from Xero. The customer opens the online statement, ticks the invoices and pays them together through Stripe.
- **Invoice never arrived:** Save keeps a draft and Approve only approves. Nothing reaches the customer until the invoice is emailed.
- **Statements on a schedule:** Xero has no automatic statements. You send them yourself, or a connected app such as Paidnice sends them weekly or monthly.

Contents▾

**Accountants and bookkeepers get the same Xero invoicing questions from clients again and again.** Many of them also appear in the scenarios of Xero's own [certification courses](https://www.xero.com/us/certifications/), in the module on [recording and managing customer sales](https://learning.central.xero.com/student/path/4747-record-and-manage-customer-sales). Each answer below starts with the short version, then gives the Xero steps. Where an app on top of Xero changes the answer, we say so in one line.

Free: Payment reminder email templatesCopy the reminder emails for before, on and after the due date.

## A customer has five unpaid invoices and says paying them one by one online is too slow. What can they do?

They can pay the invoices together from your online statement. Email the customer a statement from Xero. The email links to an online statement, where the customer ticks the invoices they want and pays them in one payment. This only works when Stripe is your payment service. Other payment services let the customer pay one invoice at a time.

Xero calls this paying outstanding invoices from the online statement. Its help article states that [Stripe must be turned on to bulk pay multiple invoices](https://central.xero.com/0/article/Allow-customers-to-pay-outstanding-invoices). The customer can use any Stripe payment method that is available in their country, such as cards, bank transfer or Apple Pay.

1. Connect Stripe as a payment service in Xero, so your invoices carry a pay option.
2. Go to Contacts, then Customers, and open the customer.
3. Choose Send statements, pick Outstanding as the statement type, and email it.
4. The customer opens the link, selects Review and pay, ticks the invoices and pays the total.

If the button in the statement email reads View statement and not Review and pay, no payment service is attached, and the customer can only look.

**With Paidnice:** every reminder and statement links to a [customer payment portal](https://www.paidnice.com/customer-payment-portal) where the customer can pay one invoice, several, the whole balance, or a part payment. They can also set up a payment plan without emailing you. Our guide to a [payment portal for Xero customers](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/customer-payment-portal-xero) shows the full flow.

## You created and saved an invoice in Xero, but the customer says they got nothing. What is the most likely reason?

The invoice was saved or approved but never sent. In Xero, Save keeps the invoice as a draft, and Approve only approves it. Nothing goes to the customer until you choose Approve & email, or open the approved invoice and email it. Check the invoice history first, then the contact's email address, then the customer's spam folder.

Xero's guide to [approving and sending an invoice](https://central.xero.com/0/article/Approve-and-send-a-customer-invoice) lists Approve and Approve & email as separate options. The same screen also lets you schedule the email for later, so an invoice can be approved and still waiting to go out.

Work through these checks in order:

1. Open the invoice and look at History and Notes. If there is no email entry, it was never sent, so send it now.
2. Check whether it was scheduled. An invoice set to send later does not go out until that time.
3. Check the contact has an email address. Xero does not warn you when a contact has none, a gap customers have raised on [Xero Product Ideas](https://productideas.xero.com/forums/967115-invoices-quotes/suggestions/51185224-contacts-email-address-notify-if-a-contact-doe).
4. Ask the customer to check spam. Strict mail filters often catch invoice emails sent through Xero. Our guide on [why Xero invoices go to spam](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/how-to-stop-xero-invoices-going-to-spam) covers the fix.

A Sent entry in Xero records that the email left Xero. It does not prove the customer received it, which Xero users have also [asked Xero to change](https://productideas.xero.com/forums/967115-invoices-quotes/suggestions/44960542-sales-notification-that-invoice-sent-not-sent).

**With Paidnice:** each email shows whether it was delivered, opened, clicked or bounced, so "we never got it" takes seconds to check. On the Pro plan, emails can also [come from your own domain](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/send-invoices-from-your-domain-xero).

## Customers often pay late even though they intend to pay on time. What can they do when they first open one of your online invoices?

They can schedule the payment. When you turn on scheduled payments, a customer who opens your online invoice can pick a future payment date, such as the due date, and pay by card on that day without having to remember. Xero emails them if the payment fails. Without scheduled payments, they can only pay now.

Xero's guide for customers on [paying an online invoice](https://central.xero.com/0/article/Pay-an-online-invoice) describes the flow. The customer selects Review and pay now, enters an email address, chooses card, sets the payment date and selects Schedule payment. The option only shows when the business has turned it on.

This suits the customer who means to pay but forgets. It does nothing for the customer who cannot pay yet. That customer needs a payment plan or a conversation.

**With Paidnice:** the portal lets a customer give a promise to pay with a date, or [build a payment plan](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/how-to-set-up-payment-plan-xero) within the rules you set. Reminders can wait until the promised date and start again if the promise is broken.

## What is a statement of account in Xero, and which type should you send?

A Xero statement lists a customer's invoices, payments and credits. An outstanding statement shows only what the customer owes on a date. An activity statement shows every transaction in a date range, including paid invoices. Send outstanding statements to collect money. Send activity statements when the customer needs to reconcile their account.

Xero's guide to [sending a customer statement](https://central.xero.com/0/article/Send-a-customer-statement) sets out both types:

| Statement type | What it shows | Send it when |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Outstanding | Unpaid invoices and open credits at a date. No fully paid items. | You want payment. |
| Activity | Invoices, payments, credit notes, prepayments and overpayments in a date range. | The customer's accounts team wants to match their records to yours. |

To send one, go to Contacts, then Customers, open the contact, and select Send statements. To send many, tick the customers on the Customers list and choose Email. The email includes a link to the online statement.

Note that an outstanding statement includes invoices that are not yet due. Xero has no overdue-only option, which users have [requested on Product Ideas](https://productideas.xero.com/forums/967115-invoices-quotes/suggestions/44995492-customer-statement-send-an-overdue-invoice-state). Our guide to [adding 30, 60 and 90 day aging to Xero statements](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/add-30-60-90-day-aging-to-xero-statements) shows how to make the overdue part clear.

## Can Xero send customer statements automatically?

No. Xero can email statements to many customers at once, but someone has to start each run. There is no schedule that sends statements every month. The request to automate statements on Xero Product Ideas has more than 1,100 votes and is marked In discovery. To send statements on a schedule, you need a connected app.

You can follow the [auto email statements request](https://productideas.xero.com/forums/967115/suggestions/44961106) on Xero Product Ideas. Until it ships, the native routine is a monthly calendar task to select customers and send.

**With Paidnice:** [automated customer statements](https://www.paidnice.com/automated-customer-statements) go out weekly or monthly on the days you pick, as outstanding or activity statements, each with a link to pay. The setup is in our guide to [sending statements automatically in Xero](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/how-to-setup-automatic-customer-statements-xero).

## How do automatic invoice reminders work in Xero?

Xero can email up to five reminders for each invoice, before or after the due date. Reminders are set for the whole organisation, so every customer gets the same schedule. They only go out for invoices marked as sent, to contacts with an email address. You can include the online invoice link and a PDF.

Turn them on from Xero's [invoice reminders settings](https://central.xero.com/0/article/Set-up-invoice-reminders). You can set a minimum amount, and replies go to the email address you choose. Two gaps catch people out. An invoice that was printed or sent outside Xero gets no reminders until you mark it as sent. A customer with no email address gets none at all.

**With Paidnice:** different customer groups can get different reminder schedules, wording and late fees. Our comparison of [Xero reminders and a dedicated app](https://www.paidnice.com/blog/xero-reminders-vs-credit-control-app) covers when the switch is worth it.

## How do lenders use Xero to evaluate a business for funding?

With the owner's consent, a lender connected to Xero can read the business's financial data to assess credit. This includes business details, transaction history, profit and loss, the balance sheet, and debtors and creditors. Most lenders keep access to check the business stays creditworthy. Xero does not lend money itself.

Xero explains this in its [business loans and finance FAQ](https://www.xero.com/au/business-loans-and-finance/lending-faq/). The data only goes to a lender after the owner agrees. For an adviser, the practical point is the debtors figure. A lender will see the aged receivables, so a client with a large overdue balance looks riskier than one that collects on time.

## Where can advisers see these problems across every client?

Most of the questions above reach an adviser after a client has already waited weeks for money. The [Paidnice partner program](https://www.paidnice.com/partner-program) gives accountants and bookkeepers one view of every client's receivables, so an unsent invoice or a growing overdue balance shows up before the client calls.

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## About the editorial team

Written byAshley SchroderCo-founder of Paidnice

Ashley is a co-founder and lead developer of Paidnice, and builds the Xero and QuickBooks connections that put reminders, late fees and payments on the ledger. Before Paidnice he co-founded A2X, ecommerce accounting software for Xero and QuickBooks.

Reviewed byDenym BirdCo-founder & CEO of Paidnice

Denym started Paidnice in 2022 after customers paying late left his own business short on payroll. He has led it to $1 billion collected on time across more than 1 million invoices, and writes about credit control, late fees and getting paid on Xero and QuickBooks.

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