Accounts Receivable — Module Introduction
Invoices, cash application, credit & collections, month-end, and reporting
← Back to FasTrax Main Manual AR Menu Standard Key Words

Overview

The Accounts Receivable (AR) module manages the full order-to-cash lifecycle for FasTrax: creating and issuing invoices, posting and applying cash, monitoring customer credit, managing collections, and closing the period with auditable reporting. AR connects directly with shipments/entries to minimize re-keying and ensures amounts, customers, and supporting references stay in sync.

  • Who uses AR: billing specialists, cash posters, collectors, and accounting managers.
  • What you can do: generate invoices, post payments and credit memos, manage credit holds, run statements and dunning, close the month, and export reports.

AR Documentation — Learning Flow

The Accounts Receivable documentation is organized in layers, allowing users to learn the system progressively—from high-level understanding to daily operational use and detailed screen reference.

  • Introduction & Navigation
    Understand the purpose of AR, how it fits into FasTrax, and how to navigate the AR menu.
  • Core Master Data
    Learn how customers, departments, and billing defaults are structured and maintained.
  • Billing & Transactions
    Review how invoices are created, posted, and displayed throughout the system.
  • Cash Application & Aging
    Understand how payments are applied, balances age, and customer exposure is tracked.
  • Statements & Collections
    Learn how statements are generated, formatted, and delivered to customers.
  • Operations & Controls
    Review real-world workflows, roles, and best practices using the AR Operations Guide.
Tip: Reference pages explain what each screen does. The Operations Guide explains how AR is actually run day-to-day.

AR Operations & Training Guide

The Accounts Receivable Operations & Training Guide bridges the gap between system reference documentation and real-world AR work.

While the AR Reference Manual explains each screen and option in detail, the Operations Guide focuses on:

  • Who performs each AR task
  • The order in which tasks are typically performed
  • Daily, monthly, and supervisory responsibilities
  • Controls, risks, and best practices
Recommended Reading:
All users responsible for billing, cash application, or AR oversight should review the AR Operations & Training Guide after becoming familiar with the AR menu and core screens.
Open AR Operations & Training Guide →

ATS Portal — Web Interface for Accounting

The ATS Portal provides a modern, web‑based interface for Accounting managers and users. It surfaces live dashboards for A/R, A/P, billing, checks issued, scheduled payments, and work‑in‑process. From each widget you can drill down into the underlying customer, invoice, or file details to investigate issues or take action. Use the Portal to monitor aging, receipts, past‑due follow‑ups, and billing performance throughout the day—without leaving your browser.

Note: ATS Portal is an optional add-on module; contact your ATS representative for details.

Getting Started

Before you begin using Accounts Receivable, confirm the following setup in Maintenance and Setup & Administration. This ensures invoices post cleanly, cash can be applied without creating suspense items, and reports reconcile.

Bill Codes

  • Define service Bill Codes with correct GL mappings and Fee settings.
  • Set default amounts/units where helpful; mark inactive codes you no longer use.
  • Verify that commonly used codes are visible to the AR/Invoicing roles.

Bank Codes

  • Create a Bank Code for each depository account used for receipts.
  • Confirm bank GL accounts and posting rules (cash, discounts, differences).
  • If lockbox is used, store import profiles and matching priorities.

Departments / Branches

  • Ensure Department/Branch lists are current and mapped to proper GL segments.
  • Assign default departments to users/locations for consistent posting.
  • Review reporting hierarchy (region/branch/collector) for aging/statements.

Customers

  • Complete Customer Master data: terms, currency, statement/dunning preferences.
  • Set credit limits, salesperson/collector, and email contacts for invoice delivery.
  • Attach tax IDs/exemptions and default Bill Codes if applicable.

Tip: After setup, create a test invoice and a small test receipt to validate postings from end to end.

Core Workflows

Invoicing

  1. Start from a shipment/entry or billing queue; review charges and fees.
  2. Generate the invoice (PDF/print/email) and post to the ledger.
  3. Batch utilities for bulk invoice print/reprint and void/credit.

Cash Posting & Applications

  1. Record payments (checks, ACH/wire, card) and select invoices to apply.
  2. Handle partials, short-pays, and over-payments using adjustments/credits.
  3. Lockbox import (if enabled) to auto-match by invoice/customer/amount.

Credit & Collections

  1. Set and monitor credit limits, terms, and holds.
  2. Run aging and contact customers; record notes and next actions.
  3. Email statements and dunning letters from saved views.

Month-End Close

  1. Close AR Period
  2. Rebuild Account Summary if applicable
  3. Archive period reports to your compliance folder.

Prerequisites & Setup

Master Data

  • Customers, terms, and contacts in Customer Master.
  • GL mappings, Fee settings, and numbering in Setup & Maintenance.
  • Carrier/port codes current in Maintenance to ensure invoice data aligns with filings.

Controls

  • User roles and approval limits configured.
  • Statement templates, email settings, and lockbox profile (if used).
  • Finance charges and dunning policies (optional).

KPIs & Reports

Operational

  • A/R Aging (by customer, collector, branch)
  • Cash application turnaround time
  • Open credit/ unapplied cash

Finance

  • DSO and delinquency buckets
  • Write-off/adjustment trend
  • Revenue vs. billing variance

Security & Roles

  • Billing — create/post invoices; limited to customer scope.
  • Cash App — post payments and apply; cannot modify invoices.
  • Collections — view aging/notes; send statements/dunning.
  • Admin — setup, GL mapping, period close.

AR Responsibilities & System Boundaries

Accounts Receivable (AR) exists to ensure customer billing, balances, cash application, aging, and statements are accurate, consistent, and auditable. This section clarifies what AR does and what AR does not do—so users know where to go and what to expect.

Why this matters: Most AR issues come from confusion about responsibility boundaries (Operations vs Billing vs Accounting). Use this as a “first check” before troubleshooting.

AR Does

  • Create and manage customer balances through invoicing, adjustments, and cash application.
  • Provide inquiry and aging views for customer activity, exposure, and past due follow-up.
  • Generate customer statements (including HTML statements, logo/colors, and standard messaging).
  • Support controlled corrections using approved processes (adjust, transfer, void, rebill).
  • Support month-end review with aging reports, reconciliation steps, and period workflows (if applicable).

Integrations

  • EDI/Email — invoice delivery to customers.
  • Bank/Lockbox — import payment files to speed cash posting.
  • GL Posting — summarized or detailed postings to your accounting system.

Tips & Best Practices

  • Use saved filters (e.g., “Today’s invoices”, “Unapplied cash”, “Over-60 accounts”).
  • Enter concise remarks ([] keywords) on invoices and payments for audit trail.
  • Batch print statements after reconciling unapplied/credits.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where should a new user start in Accounts Receivable?

Start with the AR Menu to understand the workflow areas (invoicing, cash receipts, collections, inquiries, setup, and month-end). Then review the AR Operations & Training Guide to learn the recommended day-to-day process.

Where do I maintain customer billing defaults and contacts?

Use Customer Master Entry to manage customer profile, billing defaults, contacts, and related settings that affect invoicing and statements.

How do Bill Codes relate to invoicing?

Bill Codes define the charges that appear on invoices. Start at Bill Codes Menu, then use Bill Codes Entry / Update to add or maintain charge codes used by billing.

How can I apply a bulk rate change (example: increase everyone’s Entry Fee by $10)?

Use the bulk update tool under Update Customer / Manufacturer Standard Charges. This allows a manager to increase or decrease a specific Bill Code amount across Customers, Manufacturers, or both, without updating one record at a time.

How do I enter invoices manually?

Use Invoice Entry for manual invoice creation when needed. Your company’s default behavior for manual billing is controlled in Billing Interface Setup.

How do I correct an invoice after it’s been created?

Depending on the situation, use:

How do I enter a payment and apply it to invoices?

Use Cash Receipts to record payments and apply them against open invoices. For credits and cash-on-account scenarios, see Apply Credits & Cash on Account.

How do I generate and email customer statements in HTML with our logo/colors?

Configure statement formatting under Statement Setup. This controls whether HTML is created for emailed statements and the logo/color settings used for presentation.

What are Reporting Group Codes and when would I use them?

Reporting Group Codes let you combine two or more departments into a single reporting group so certain reports can run across multiple departments at once—without changing posting behavior. See Reporting Group Codes Setup.

Where do I go for AR month-end procedures?

Use AR Month-End Procedures for the end-of-period workflow, including aging review, reconciliations, and period controls (as applicable to your site).

Where can I learn the real day-to-day AR workflow (billing → cash → statements)?

Use the AR Operations & Training Guide. It explains roles, responsibilities, daily routines, month-end expectations, and best practices beyond individual screen descriptions.