---
key: send-a-purchase-order-and-receive-items
title: Send a purchase order and receive the items
audience: staff
section: sales-billing
routes: ["/purchase-orders"]
permissions: ["commerce.purchase_orders.read"]
features: ["commerce.purchase_orders"]
since: 0.0.1
updated: 0.0.1
status: published
summary: Move a supplier purchase order from draft to approved, send it to the supplier, record the items as they arrive, and match the supplier's bill.
keywords: [approve PO, email PO to supplier, receive delivery, partial delivery, goods received, vendor bill, cancel order]
related: [create-a-supplier-purchase-order, add-a-supplier]
---

In the sidebar, open **Sales & Billing**, then **Purchasing**, then **Purchase Orders**. The page address is `/purchase-orders`.

Every order moves through the same steps: draft, submitted, approved, sent, received. The **Next step** box on the order shows only the step that is available now. Move an order forward only when that has really happened in the world.

## Before you start

- Submitting, approving, sending and receiving are separate permissions. If a button in **Next step** is missing, your role does not have that one. Ask your admin.

## Steps

1. On a **Draft** order, press **Submit for approval**. If the button is greyed out, hover it: the order still needs a supplier, a destination or a complete line.
2. Someone with approval rights opens the **Submitted** order and presses **Approve**.
3. On the **Approved** order, press **Send to supplier**. A dialog asks **How was the order sent?**
   - **Email through Nova**: type the **Supplier email** and press **Email purchase order**. Nova sends the PDF and records the delivery.
   - **Send it myself / download PDF**: use this when you phone the order in or hand over the PDF. Type a note and press **Mark sent manually**.
   - **Ordered in another system**: use this for a supplier portal. Type the confirmation and press **Mark ordered externally**.
4. When the delivery arrives, press **Receive items**. In **Record received items**, type only the quantity that arrived on each line, then press **Record receipt**. Nova keeps the order open as **Partially received** while quantities remain, and marks it **Received** when everything is in.
5. When the supplier's invoice arrives, press **Create vendor bill** under **Vendor bill matching** and copy the figures from the supplier's paperwork. (On a cancelled order the button reads **Create bill for received items**.)

## What you see

- **Ordered and received** lists every line with the quantity ordered, the quantity received and the expected cost.
- **Vendor bill matching** compares what was ordered, received and billed so the office can spot a mismatch before paying.
- **PDF** opens the supplier-facing copy at any stage.
- **Cancel PO** appears on any order that is not yet fully received. Use it only when the supplier will not fulfil the order. Its history is kept.
- A cancelled order offers **Create replacement**, which makes a fresh draft linked to the old one. Receipts, approvals and bills are not copied.

## If something looks different

- **Send to supplier** is greyed out on an order linked to a work order: the customer's payment for that work is not ready yet. The message beside the button explains.
- **Receive items** shows on an **Approved** order that was never sent: use it to record an order placed outside Nova.
- **Discard draft** is only offered on a draft. Once submitted, an order is cancelled instead.

[[route:/purchase-orders|Open Supplier Purchase Orders]]