> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.billpal.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Find and edit documents

> How Billpal reads documents, and how to search, filter, edit and link them.

**Documents** holds every invoice, receipt, credit note and reminder in a workspace, whether it came by upload, email, WhatsApp or from a portal.

## What happens to a new document

First, Billpal recognizes the type: invoice, receipt, credit note, reminder or other. Then Billpal picks up the supplier or customer, date, amounts, tax and every single line item. Billpal assigns each line item an account from your [chart of accounts](/en/chart).

Finally, Billpal checks the math: do the line items add up to the total, and do net plus tax add up to the gross amount? If something doesn't fit, the document goes to **Review**. See [Review documents](/en/review).

* **Other**: Documents that are not an invoice, receipt, credit note or reminder. Billpal doesn't read them any further, and they don't count toward your allowance.
* **Duplicate files**: If the same file arrives again, Billpal keeps the original and doesn't create a second document.
* **E-invoices**: Billpal recognizes ZUGFeRD and Factur-X PDFs. The **General** tab then shows "E-invoice". A standalone XML file, such as an XRechnung without a PDF, isn't accepted yet.

## Find documents

The tabs at the top split your documents by status: **Processed**, **Review**, **Exported**, **Excluded** and **Other**. **Search docs** searches by text, and the filter narrows down by supplier, customer, date, status, type, source, tags, payment and direction.

If you need a combination often, for example "Q1 unclear expenses", save it with **Save view**. The view then shows up in the list and loads those filters in one click.

| Status | Meaning |
| - | - |
| Pending | The document is waiting to be processed. |
| Processing | Billpal is reading the document right now. |
| Processed | Read and ready to export. |
| Review | Something doesn't fit and needs a look. |
| Exported | The document was in an export. |
| Failed | Billpal couldn't process the document. |
| Excluded | The document won't go into any export. |

## Open a document

Click a document to open it next to the original file. The details are spread across tabs:

* **General**: Type, document number, issue date, due date, service date or period, and payment.
* **Line items**: Every line with quantity, price, tax rate and account.
* **Transaction**: The posting lines that go into the export, with account and posting text.
* **Contacts**: Supplier and customer.
* **Linked docs**: Related documents and references, see below.
* **Notes**: Review notes and notes from your team.
* **Exports** and **Activity**: Which exports the document was in, and who changed what.

You can change any field. Whatever you enter by hand won't be overwritten by a [rule](/en/rules).

### Linked documents

Billpal links receipts, credit notes and reminders to the original invoice automatically. For that they need to cite the same invoice or receipt number or a unique payment reference, belong to the same supplier or customer, and the amount has to fit.

If Billpal doesn't find the link, click **Link document** in the **Linked docs** tab and pick the right document. **Unlink** removes a wrong link again.

### References and cost center

In the same tab, **References** lists the numbers printed on the document: purchase order, order, delivery note, original invoice, contract or other. Billpal fills them in when it reads the document. **Add reference** lets you add more.

A document can also have exactly one cost center. Cost centers aren't in the DATEV, BMD and DVO files yet.

### Notes and mentions

In the **Notes** tab you write notes on the document. Type `@` and a name to mention someone in the workspace. They get a notification. It doesn't assign the document to them.

### Reprocess

If Billpal read something wrong, click **Reprocess**. Billpal reads totals, tax, line items and dates again and replaces the current values.

* You can do this up to three times per document. The first reading doesn't count.
* Exported documents and documents still being processed can't be reprocessed.
* After the [trial](/en/billing#trial) ends, this needs a subscription.

If a document is on **Failed**, **Retry processing** starts a new attempt.

## Edit several documents at once

Select documents in the list. The bar that appears offers these actions:

* **Edit**: Set account, tags, supplier, customer, payment and export status for all selected documents. What you enter here overwrites existing values. This only works if all documents are incoming or all are outgoing.
* **Add tags**: Add tags without removing existing ones.
* **Create a note**: Put the same note on every selected document.
* **Mark as paid**: Set payment method and payment date for all selected documents.
* **Mark review done**: Close several reviews at once.
* **Download (.zip)**: Download the original files.
* **Delete**: Delete the documents for good. This can't be undone. Documents already counted stay counted.

## Exclude documents from exports

Select the documents and click **Exclude**. They move to the **Excluded** tab and won't go into any export. **Include in exports** undoes this.

Excluded documents still count toward your allowance, since Billpal already processed them. If you don't want a sender's documents in Billpal at all, add them to the [blacklist](/en/email#block-senders). A [rule](/en/rules) can also exclude recurring cases automatically.


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