Part payment
A partial payment covers only part of the invoice amount; the invoice remains an open item with the balance, and the payment interrupts the limitation period.
Definition
Partial payments are the most frequent reason a receivables list stops matching: if the payment is posted as complete and the difference written off «for rounding», the remainder vanishes from monitoring. The clean way is allocation with a balance, visible in open items.
With agreed instalments a second question arises: from when is the whole balance due if one instalment fails? That acceleration clause has to be agreed — it does not apply by itself.
Where to read it
What the software must be able to do
The software has to accept a payment below the invoice amount without closing the invoice, and keep chasing the remainder. Instalment plans with their own due dates are the next step and are rare in smaller programs.
Checked Aug 2026
More terms under Invoicing, payment and banking: Advance payment Allowance for doubtful debts Bad debt camt.053 Cancellation invoice Cash discount Certificate of shortfall Credit note Creditor Current account Debt enforcement Debtor Default interest Delivery note Dunning eBill Final invoice IBAN Invoice number ISO 20022 / camt Open items pain.001 Payment term Pro forma invoice QR reference QR-bill QR-IBAN Quotation Receipt Tips TWINT as a payment method Visitor taxes