Automate invoice handling — from supplier invoice to booked entry
Automating invoice handling means supplier invoices are captured, interpreted, approved and booked without manual keying. An AI reads the amount, VAT and account, the right person approves, and the invoice lands in Fortnox or Visma. You avoid late payments, duplicates and hours of admin every month.
Quick overview
In short: Automated invoice handling captures supplier invoices from email, PDF and PEPPOL, lets AI interpret the amount, VAT and account, sends them through an approval flow and then books them in Fortnox or Visma — with no manual entry and with fewer late payments and duplicates.
How to get started:
- Gather all inflows into one channel, e.g. a dedicated invoice email address and a connection to PEPPOL for e-invoices.
- Let AI/OCR interpret the invoice and suggest amount, VAT, account and supplier.
- Set up an approval flow with clear amount thresholds and book automatically once the invoice is approved.
GDPR: invoices contain data about individuals and companies — sign a data processing agreement, minimise storage and choose interpretation that can run in the EU or in Sweden.
What is automated invoice handling?
Automated invoice handling means a supplier invoice travels all the way from inbox to booked entry without anyone copying it out by hand. The system captures the invoice, interprets the content, makes sure the right person approves it and then books it in your accounting system. What you do manually today — open, read, code, send for approval and register — is instead handled automatically, with you as the point of control.
It isn't about switching accounting systems. Both Fortnox and Visma have open APIs, and e-invoices arrive via the PEPPOL network in a standard format. Around that you build a flow that captures, interprets and books. It's the same principle as in our guide on system integration: connect what you already have instead of replacing it.
Capture — collect the invoice regardless of format
Invoices arrive in many ways, and the first step is to gather everything in one place. The more channels you capture automatically, the less ends up in someone's private inbox and is forgotten. Common inflows:
- PDF invoices emailed to a dedicated invoice address.
- E-invoices via PEPPOL in a structured format (e.g. Peppol BIS).
- Paper invoices scanned in and read with OCR.
- Invoices fetched from supplier portals.
A structured e-invoice via PEPPOL is the easiest to handle because the amount, VAT and supplier already exist as data. A PDF or scanned invoice, on the other hand, requires interpretation before the content can be used — and that's where AI and OCR come in.
AI interpretation of amount, VAT and account
Once the invoice is captured, the content needs to be understood. An OCR engine reads the text, and an AI interpretation pulls out the fields needed for the bookkeeping: supplier, invoice number, amount, VAT rate, due date and OCR/payment reference. Based on the supplier and previous bookkeeping, the system can also suggest the right account and cost centre.
The point is to avoid reading and coding every invoice by hand. The system suggests, a human confirms when needed, and over time the suggestions become more accurate. Typical fields interpreted:
- Amount excluding and including VAT, and the VAT rate per line.
- Supplier and company registration number, matched against the supplier register.
- Due date and payment reference (OCR or bankgiro).
- Suggested account and cost centre based on history.
Keep a checkpoint for invoices that stand out — new suppliers, unusual amounts or unclear documents. The AI does the heavy lifting, but you decide where the line for automatic approval sits.
Approval flow — the right person approves
Most companies want someone to approve an invoice before it's paid. An approval flow controls who should approve what, often based on amount, department or supplier. Once the invoice is interpreted, it's sent automatically to the right approver, who approves or rejects — ideally straight from their phone.
| Amount | Approval | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Low, known supplier | Can be approved automatically by rule | Fastest flow, no waiting on a person |
| Medium | One approver, e.g. a team lead | Control without bottlenecking the whole flow |
| High | Two approvers in sequence (dual approval) | Extra control on large payments |
A clear approval flow is also an internal control against fraud and incorrect payments. By setting amount thresholds and rules, you avoid everything having to pass through a single person, while large amounts always get extra eyes.
Bookkeeping in Fortnox or Visma
Once the invoice is approved, it's booked automatically in your accounting system via API. The coding interpreted earlier was suggested, the approver has approved it, and the entry is registered as an accounts payable item with the right account, VAT and due date. From there, the payment can be added to a payment file or sent to the bank according to your routines.
Because both Fortnox and Visma have open APIs, you don't need to switch systems to automate. You connect the interpretation and approval flow to the accounting system you already use. That means the bookkeeping stays current in real time instead of invoices piling up and being registered in a batch at month-end. If you want to see how this ties in with the rest of the business, read our guide on how to automate the business.
A well set-up flow also logs every step: when the invoice came in, how it was interpreted, who approved it and when it was booked. That gives a clear audit trail that makes both auditing and troubleshooting easier — you can always trace a single invoice all the way through. Start small: automate capture and interpretation first, then add the approval flow and connect the bookkeeping last, once you've seen that the suggestions hold up.
Avoid late payments and duplicates
Two of the costliest problems in manual invoice handling are late payments and duplicate payments. An automated process counters both by ensuring nothing gets stuck in a single inbox and by having the system recognise invoices it has already seen. Concrete gains:
- Invoices are captured immediately and don't risk sitting unopened.
- Due dates are monitored so nothing is paid late — fewer reminder fees.
- Duplicates are detected via invoice number and amount before they are paid.
- Approvers are reminded automatically so the flow doesn't stall.
When personal data and company data are processed, GDPR applies: sign a data processing agreement, keep only what you need and choose an interpretation service that can run in the EU or be self-hosted in Sweden when the documents are sensitive. Would you like us to look at your specific invoice flow? Get in touch and we'll go through it together.
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