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There are four ways to get an invoice to your shipper: create it manually from a load, upload a CSV in bulk, submit it through the Owlery API, or send an EDI 210. However you submit, the invoice reaches the shipper immediately and starts in Needs Review status. Track it from Dashboard → Finances → Invoices — see Track and Fix Invoices.
Uploading a PDF is not the same as creating an invoice. Owlery needs structured line-item data to process an invoice — a PDF alone won’t do it.
1

Open the Load

Go to Dashboard → Shipments (Loads), find the load, and click the Financials tab in the drawer.
2

Add Line Items

Fill in the empty line at the bottom of the line-item table:
  • Category (required)
  • Description (optional)
  • Due Date (required)
  • Total (required)
Press Enter to save the line and open a new one. Repeat for each charge on the load. To change or remove a line, use the edit and delete buttons on its row.Optionally, add an Invoice description. The shipper sees it on the invoice.
Due Date records the date you’re asking to be paid by. Shippers may also apply their own payment terms and track due dates on their side, so the date they work from can differ from the one you enter.
3

Finalize the Invoice

Click Create Invoice, confirm or enter your Invoice Number, and submit.

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Break Out Charges on an Invoice

List each charge as its own line item so your shipper can see what makes up the total. This is the best way to explain an increase. For example, instead of one lump sum, bill the linehaul, fuel surcharge, and detention as separate lines. The shipper sees every line item when they review the invoice, next to what they expected to pay. Every submission method supports multiple line items:
  • Manual: Add one line per charge in the load’s Financials tab.
  • CSV upload: Add one row per charge, all with the same Invoice Number.
  • API: Send each charge as a separate line item. See the Owlery API reference.
  • EDI (210): Send each charge as a separate line item. See the EDI Guidelines.
When you enter an invoice manually, use each line item’s Description to say why the charge applies, such as “Detention: 3 hours at receiver.” Add an Invoice description for context about the whole invoice.

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Add Another Invoice to a Load

Sometimes one load needs a second bill, such as a detention or lumper charge that came in after the first invoice.
  • If an existing invoice is still Needs Review or Disputed: add the charge to that invoice instead. A second invoice for the same load can slow down the shipper’s review or look like a duplicate charge.
  • Include only the new charge: if the shipper already paid the line haul, in Owlery or outside it, don’t bill it again. Check that no line haul line is on the new invoice before you submit.
  • CSV, API, or EDI: Submit the charge with a new Invoice Number and the same load number. See How Owlery Matches Invoices.
  • Load drawer: Follow the steps below.

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From the Load Drawer

1

Start the New Invoice

Open the load, go to the Financials tab, and click Another Invoice.
  • If every invoice on the load is paid: A New invoice tab opens right away.
  • If an invoice is still unpaid: Owlery asks you to confirm. Enter a Reason for additional invoice and click Continue. The shipper sees this reason on the invoice.
2

Add Line Items and Create It

Add the line items. Click Create Invoice, enter a new Invoice Number, and submit. The new invoice gets its own tab under Invoices for this load.

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Invoice a Cancelled or Archived Load

You can still bill for a load after the shipper cancels or archives it, for example a TONU (truck ordered, not used) or a cancellation fee. Submit the invoice on the original load. Don’t create a new load to bill against.
  • Cancelled load: invoice it the usual way, by manual entry, CSV, API, or EDI.
  • Archived load: invoice it by manual entry. A CSV upload fails with Load “X” was deleted by the shipper.
To invoice an archived load by manual entry:
1

Find the Load

Go to Dashboard → Shipments (Loads), open the All tab, and search for the load number. Archived loads only appear when you search for them.
2

Open the Load

A banner at the top says the load is archived. That’s expected.
3

Create the Invoice

Open the Financials tab, then create and submit your invoice as usual. The shipper sees it with a note that its load is archived.
If you can’t find the load, check that you’re using its exact load number. See Find Your Load Number.

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How Owlery Matches Invoices

Owlery identifies an invoice by its Invoice Number for that shipper and carrier. It does not use the load number to decide whether an invoice is a duplicate.
  • Different Invoice Number: Creates a new invoice, even when another invoice already references the same load.
  • Same Invoice Number: Updates the existing invoice when its status allows changes. The update can replace its charges, totals, dates, references, and linked load numbers.
An invoice can also cover more than one load when the submission channel supports multiple load numbers. In a CSV, use the same Invoice Number on rows with different PRO/Load Numbers to link those loads to one invoice. If you are correcting an invoice or adding a charge to it, reuse the same Invoice Number so Owlery updates that invoice. See Track and Fix Invoices.

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Correcting an Invoice

You can update and resubmit an invoice while it’s Needs Review or Disputed, using the same channel you submitted it through. Once it moves to Approved, Payment Created, or Paid, it’s locked. See Track and Fix Invoices for the full process.