Sales order › Part deliveries

Part deliveries against one sales order

Big orders often go out in lots: what is ready today, the rest next week. The order is one, but each lot needs its own paperwork, and someone has to keep track of what is still to go.

The rule to remember

For goods, GST follows the supply, not the order. A regular registered seller issues a tax invoice at or before the time each lot leaves for the buyer. So a sales order for 60 desks delivered in two lots normally means two invoices, one for each lot. There are special cases (goods sent on approval, job work, some continuous supplies), so ask your accountant if your trade works differently.

Two ways to send each lot

Invoice with each lot. The simplest. Each invoice carries only the quantity sent that day.
Challan now, invoice later. Some trades send goods with a delivery challan and raise one invoice later. Check with your accountant when this is allowed for your goods; for an ordinary sale the invoice should not wait.

Either way, an e-way bill is needed for each consignment above the value limit (₹50,000 in most cases, with some state rules for movement within a state). The limit is checked per consignment, not per order.

Step by step in the maker

Make the sales order for the full quantity. Status: Open.
When the first lot is ready, open the order from Saved sales orders and press Make invoice.
The invoice maker opens with all the order's lines. Change the quantities to what is going today, check, and save the invoice.
Back on the sales order, set the status to Part delivered and write in Notes what went: "20 Nov 2026: 40 desks, invoice INV/26-27/233."
For the next lot, repeat. After the last one, set the status to Delivered or Invoice made.

A worked example

Lot	Date	Desks	Value	GST 18%	Invoice total
1	20 Nov 2026	40	₹1,52,000	₹27,360	₹1,79,360
2	4 Dec 2026	20	₹76,000	₹13,680	₹89,680
Order total			₹2,28,000	₹41,040	₹2,69,040

The two invoices add up to the order. Both lots are above ₹50,000, so each needs its own e-way bill.

Common mistakes

Billing the full order on the first lot "to save time". The buyer is billed for goods they have not received, and the tax is paid early.
Forgetting the customer's PO number on the later invoices. Their accounts team may hold the payment.
Not noting what was sent, so nobody knows the balance. Write it in the sales order's Notes each time.
Leaving a short-closed order Open. If the customer cancels the rest, set the status to Cancelled and note why.

Make a sales order now.Open the maker