Vendor invoice pricing does not always line up cleanly with the purchase order and the receipt. Freight might not be known until after you have received and closed the PO, or a vendor might invoice at a different unit cost than what was originally entered.

When Cetec ERP detects that the PO line, receipt, and voucher do not match, it commonly triggers an approval workflow so someone can decide how to handle the discrepancy. The goal is to get the vendor paid while keeping inventory valuation and your accrued purchases account clean.

Why Voucher, PO, and Receipt Prices Drift

A three-way match problem typically comes from timing. You may receive material before you know the final landed cost, or you may accept a vendor's invoice price even though it differs from the original PO. If you simply change the voucher split to match the invoice without addressing the underlying receipt valuation, you can leave a balance stranded in accrued purchases.

Option 1: Reverse the Receipt and Correct the PO Line

If it is still operationally reasonable, you can cancel the receipt, correct the PO line unit cost, and receive the material again at the correct value. When you voucher the invoice and tie it to the PO line, the amounts should match without additional accounting cleanup.

This is usually the cleanest path when the receipt is recent and the inventory has not moved through production.

Option 2: Revalue the Receipt With an Inventory Adjustment

If the receipt cannot be reversed, you can adjust the inventory lot value so the receipt valuation matches what you are actually going to pay. In Cetec ERP, this is done using an inventory adjustment tied to the specific lot or receipt.

Use an inventory adjustment reason code that is mapped to an accrued liabilities or accrued purchases account. That mapping ensures the adjustment clears the difference out of accrued purchases instead of pushing it into an unrelated expense account.

You can see this kind of mapping in Data Maintenance for the inventory shortage or adjustment reason, where the reason code points to an accrued purchases account.

In the example shown, the mapped GL account ID corresponds to an accrued purchases account.

Option 2 Example: $3.00 Received, $4.00 Invoiced

Assume a PO line is entered at $3.00, then received at $3.00. The receipt posts $3.00 debit to inventory and $3.00 credit to accrued purchases. Later, the vendor invoices at $4.00 and you are going to pay it.

When you create the voucher and tie it to the PO line receipt, the default voucher split aligns to the receipt value of $3.00. If you increase the voucher split to $4.00 so the voucher matches the invoice, the voucher posts $4.00 debit to accrued purchases and $4.00 credit to accounts payable.

At that point, accrued purchases has a $1.00 debit remaining because the receipt only credited $3.00 but the voucher debited $4.00. The inventory adjustment fixes this by increasing inventory value by $1.00 and crediting accrued purchases by $1.00. That clears the remainder, and inventory now reflects the true cost you paid.

Option 3: Expense the Delta When Inventory Is Already Consumed

If the received inventory has already been consumed, revaluing the lot may not be the outcome you want. In that case, you can leave the receipt valuation alone and handle the difference on the voucher.

Tie the PO line to the voucher and leave the default split alone so it clears the same amount that was credited to accrued purchases at receipt. Then add a new voucher split for the difference and map that split to an expense account or a materials cost of goods sold account.

Option 3 Example: $3.00 Received, $4.00 Invoiced

Using the same example, the receipt posted $3.00 debit to inventory and $3.00 credit to accrued purchases. On the voucher, leave the PO-tied split at $3.00 so the accrued purchases account clears cleanly against the receipt.

Add a second split for $1.00 and map it to materials cost of goods sold (or an expense account you prefer). That posts the $1.00 difference to your P&L immediately. This is often the right approach when the inventory already shipped and the original issue was that too little cost hit COGS.

How to Choose Between Option 2 and Option 3

Use Option 2 when you want inventory to reflect the true landed cost and the material is still on hand or you need the lot value corrected. Use Option 3 when the material has already been consumed and the most accurate outcome is to push the delta to expense or COGS now.

Key Takeaways

• A three-way match mismatch is a timing and valuation problem, not just a voucher entry problem.
• If you increase the voucher split without addressing the receipt valuation, you can strand a balance in accrued purchases.
• Option 1 works best when you can reverse the receipt and correct the PO line cleanly.
• Option 2 revalues inventory and clears the delta by posting the adjustment against accrued purchases.
• Option 3 leaves inventory alone and posts the difference to expense or materials COGS when inventory is already consumed.

Conclusion

Voucher, PO, and receipt price mismatches happen in real purchasing workflows, especially when freight and vendor pricing change after receipt. In Cetec ERP, the right resolution depends on whether you need to correct inventory value or capture the difference directly to expense or COGS, while keeping accrued purchases fully cleared.