Different invoicing modes of ConfTool Pro

ConfTool Pro is available in two modes. They differ in the way invoices (and other transactions) are generated.
This text explains the features of both modes.

(A German version of this article is available.)

If we have any indication that you might require several invoices per participant, we will give you the option to choose between one of them, before installing ConfTool Pro for your conference.

If required, you can contact us, and we can convert your current system from Mode A to Mode B.
The update process will take us about 30 minutes during which the installation cannot be accessed.
A conversion from Mode B to Mode A is currently not possible.

General Overview
The different modes only refer to the participant (attendee) registration module of ConfTool.
If you decide to use ConfTool for submission and reviewing only, you do not need to worry about the different options.
When using ConfTool Pro for participant registration, you have the option to choose between two different invoicing modes:

• In Mode A, each participant will receive a single invoice. If changes are made to the registration, the existing invoice will be updated. At the end of the registration phase, the system will always provide one invoice for each participant, representing their last registration choices. This is a simple and straightforward approach that works well for most scientific events, particularly if you are not required to use double-entry accounting or to submit regular VAT summary reports to your tax authorities.
• If you need more flexibility, you can choose Mode B. This option allows the system to create additional invoices when a registration is updated, for example, to add a dinner ticket or other extras. This can be useful if you want participants to be able to make changes to their bookings after the initial registration. Furthermore, this mode also allows for the creation of corrective invoices, or credit notes, if a booking is cancelled or changed in other ways. This can be important for accounting purposes, especially if you use double-entry accounting and are subject to VAT for your event. However, this also makes the handling of registrations a bit more complex, as there are potentially more invoices (transactions) than registrations in your system.

Technical Details
In Mode B, each participant registration is linked to one or several transactions. These can be regular invoices, but also canceled invoices and corrective invoices (credit notes). When an invoice is canceled, a corresponding corrective invoice (credit note) is always created with the same negative amounts.
As a result, organizers can not only edit the registration of participants (see image 1), but they can also edit their invoices if required. If organizers want to modify the fees of a certain participant, for instance to give him/her a discount or to add a custom item or fee, they can do so by editing the participant’s invoice(s) (see image 2) and not their registration.

In Mode A, organizers always edit the participant’s registration, also to give discounts or add a custom item or fee. The registration resembles the invoice data, too.

Summary
A simple formula illustrates the differences.

• Mode A: One registration = one invoice (no canceled invoices or credit notes)
• Mode B: One registration = one or several transactions = several invoices + canceled invoices + credit notes

Identify Your ConfTool Pro Invoice Mode
You can easily find out which invoice mode is active for your ConfTool Pro installation by scrolling down to the very bottom of the page.
There, it is clearly indicated which mode you are using (see image 3).