When an approved invoice misses a buyer's payment run, remove the expired timing assumption and ask for new dated evidence. Do not automatically shift expected cash by one week. The invoice can remain open and approved while the actual next payment run, inclusion decision, release step, or settlement date is still unknown.
SAP's supplier invoice-status documentation distinguishes invoices pending approval, approved invoices pending payment, overdue invoices, and remittances. Recent accounting-community discussion also describes invoices that remain pending approval or miss the next payment run despite being valid. These states explain the workflow, but they do not by themselves prove a cash date.
Separate approval from scheduling
Use a status chain rather than one `approved` flag:
| Observed state | What is known | Forecast treatment | | --- | --- | --- | | Invoice received by buyer | Delivery may be confirmed | Keep timing unassigned unless stronger evidence exists | | Invoice approved | Buyer-side review may be complete | Keep the receivable open; do not infer a payment date | | Included in a dated payment run | A specific processing event is expected | Use the date as labeled workflow evidence | | Payment run missed | The prior timing evidence expired | Remove the old week and request a new date | | Remittance issued or payment processing | A payment event may have started | Reconcile the payment status without counting cash early | | Receipt observed | Cash evidence exists | Remove only the supported settled amount from future collections |
An approved invoice can be commercially healthy but still have weak short-term timing evidence. That is a confidence distinction, not a reason to remove the invoice from AR.
Record why the run was missed
Capture the buyer status, expected run date, date the miss was confirmed, reason if provided, next stated run, remittance reference, internal owner, and review date. Keep unsupported explanations out of the record. If the buyer only says `pending payment`, record exactly that and leave the collection week unassigned.
Common paths include an approval not completed before cutoff, an invoice excluded from the batch, a payment batch awaiting release, or no confirmed next run. These paths may require different internal follow-up, but none supports a receipt date until a current source identifies one.
Use the invoice-viewed status guide for delivery-only evidence. Use the pending-payment guide when processing has started but settlement is not observed.
Rebuild timing from the next event
After a missed run, assign a new week only when finance observes a dated replacement event: confirmed inclusion in the next run, a remittance with a specific payment date, or a customer commitment that identifies amount and scope. Preserve the earlier forecast snapshot so variance analysis shows why the invoice moved.
Do not use the due date as a substitute for current payment-run evidence after the due date has already passed. Likewise, do not treat a historical weekly cadence as proof that this invoice will be included in the next batch.
If several material invoices depend on one buyer's run, flag concentration. One operational miss may affect a large share of the four-week range. The customer-concentration framework helps keep that portfolio exposure visible.
Decision rule
A missed payment run invalidates the old collection week but does not settle or cancel the invoice. Keep the supported open balance, record the missed event, assign an owner, and restore timing only from fresh dated evidence.
AR Pulse turns an authorized receivables export into a ranked internal action list and four-week collections range. It does not contact buyers or promise payment outcomes. Apply for an AR Pulse review when approval and payment-run states need an evidence trail.