A note on scope
This article is general operational guidance, not tax or legal advice. Requirements and deadlines are set by ZATCA and change over time; confirm them with official sources or your accountant.
The aim here is not to interpret regulation but to make sure the shipping side of your records can support whatever your invoicing system produces. If your accountant asks for a delivery date, a COD amount or proof that a return happened, you should be able to supply it in minutes rather than days.
What finance teams usually ask shipping for
Requests vary by business, but a handful of items come up again and again. If you can produce them quickly, most questions never become a problem.
- Order ID and the invoice number linked to it
- Waybill number and carrier
- Shipping date and delivery date
- COD amount collected and when it was settled
- Shipping and return fees
- Return status and refund reference
Keep the chain from order to delivery
Make sure each invoice number can be linked to its order and waybill. When a customer disputes a charge or a parcel is returned, you can show exactly what shipped and when.
Think of each sale as a chain: order, invoice, waybill, delivery and, sometimes, return. A break anywhere in the chain turns a simple question into a search through several systems. The fix is cheap: carry the same references through every link.
- Order ID on the invoice and the waybill
- COD amount recorded against the invoice
- Returns linked back to the original invoice
Use the order ID as the common thread
One reference that appears everywhere is worth more than any amount of careful filing. Choose the order ID as that reference and make sure it appears on the invoice, on the waybill and in your shipping reports.
- Create the order and let the platform assign its ID.
- Issue the invoice in your invoicing system and record the order ID on it.
- Create the waybill from the same order, so it carries the same ID.
- Store the invoice number against the order so you can search both ways.
Handle returns cleanly
A return changes the financial picture, so the record of it needs to be as clear as the record of the sale. Your accountant decides which documents are required; the shipping side should show what physically happened and when.
Link each return to the original order and invoice, record the date the parcel came back and note whether it was a full or partial return. When the refund is issued, store its reference beside the return.
Keep COD and invoices reconcilable
The cash a courier collects rarely equals the invoice exactly once fees are taken into account. That is normal, but the difference should be explainable line by line.
- Record the COD amount against the invoice it settles
- Keep courier fees separate from the sale amount
- Note settlement dates so timing differences are visible
- Reconcile weekly so differences are small and recent
Make exports easy for your accountant
A shipping report that lists waybills, COD collected, fees and returns in one export saves hours at month-end and reduces reconciliation mistakes.
Agree a standard export with your accountant once, with the columns they need, and then produce it the same way every month. A familiar layout is faster to check and far less likely to contain surprises.
A simple month-end routine
A fixed routine turns a stressful scramble into a short checklist, and it catches mismatches while they are still easy to explain.
- Export the month's waybills with status, COD collected, fees and returns.
- Check that every delivered waybill has a linked order and invoice number.
- List returns and confirm each links back to its original invoice.
- Reconcile COD collected against settlements received.
- Send the export and a list of open items to your accountant.