Document and print controls field guide

Documents are the visible evidence of OSERP transactions. A reliable document has a legal number, company, dates, source, parties, totals, status, approvals, attachments, version, delivery history, and retention rule. Printing or emailing a document must not create a second accounting event.

Document metadata fields

Open Administration → Documents → Templates and Control.

Field	Example	Purpose and impact
Document type	Sales Invoice	Workflow and numbering
Document ID	ar_004281	Immutable API/source key
Number series	UAE-DXB-AR-2026	Legal sequence
Company	Demo Retail Group LLC	Statutory scope
Branch	DXB-MAIN	Responsibility
Issue date	2026-09-17	Commercial evidence
Tax date	2026-09-17	Return period
Source type/ID	Delivery / dn_00811	Operational drill-down
Status	Draft / posted	Legal and ledger gate
Template version	invoice-v5	Printed layout
Language	English	Customer communication
Currency	AED	Amount display
Signature status	Signed / pending	Acceptance evidence
Retention class	Financial-7Y	Disposal policy

Document numbers are unique within legal scope. A voided number requires reason and remains visible. Reprinting does not increment numbering or repost the ledger.

Template and layout fields

Template fields include code, document type, company scope, language, paper size, logo, address block, tax block, currency format, decimal precision, barcode/QR, footer, legal text, effective dates, and approval. A template version is immutable once used on a posted document.

Use safe tokens such as customer name, invoice number, line description, tax total, and source reference. Sensitive fields require permission and should not appear in a public PDF.

Attachments and evidence

Attachment fields include document ID, type, file name, version, source, uploader, upload time, checksum, issue/expiry, confidentiality, retention class, and access rule. Attachments may be quotation, contract, delivery proof, tax certificate, bank verification, inspection, or signed acceptance.

Replacing a file creates a new version while preserving the prior file and reason. A missing mandatory attachment keeps the document pending. Delete rights are restricted; archive or supersede instead.

Signatures and approvals

Signature fields include signer, role, method, requested time, signed time, certificate or provider, hash, IP/session reference, status, and revocation. A signature proves document acceptance; it does not replace workflow approval or posting permission.

An invoice may require finance approval before posting and customer signature after delivery. Both events remain distinct. A revoked certificate creates a visible exception and does not silently invalidate historic postings.

Delivery and communication

Delivery fields include recipient, channel, email/portal address, attempted time, sent time, message ID, provider response, opened time, bounce, and retry state. A failed email remains a delivery exception; it does not cancel the invoice.

Customer communication should use the document’s printed version and language. Resending uses the same document number and version unless an approved correction generated a new document.

Source and lifecycle controls

Draft, submitted, approved, posted, sent, acknowledged, corrected, cancelled, reversed, and archived are separate statuses. Source type and ID link to order, delivery, receipt, journal, payment, claim, project, or work order.

A credit note references the original document. A correction creates a new version or reversal according to policy. A posted document cannot be edited to change legal amount, tax, party, or source without an auditable correction.

Multi-company, currency, and tax display

Company, branch, tax registration, address, currency, exchange rate, tax code, taxable base, and rounding are captured at issue. Historic documents retain the values used then. A template must show transaction and functional currency where policy requires.

QR or electronic-invoice payload fields include document number, UUID, issue date, supplier/customer tax numbers, tax total, grand total, and signature/hash. Validate the local standard before production.

Retention and privacy

Retention fields include class, jurisdiction, years, start event, disposal date, legal hold, owner, and disposition approval. Confidentiality may be standard, restricted, privileged, payroll, or health. Export and share rights are narrower than view rights.

Public links should be signed, time-limited, and revocable. Logs must not contain bearer tokens, bank data, or unnecessary personal information.

API and idempotency

Document APIs use immutable document ID, type, number, company, source, template version, status, totals, attachments, and idempotency key. Rendering or sending is a side effect separate from posting.

{"documentId":"ar_004281","type":"SALES_INVOICE","companyId":"company_uae",
 "source":{"type":"DELIVERY","id":"dn_00811"},"templateVersion":"invoice-v5",
 "render":{"language":"en","format":"PDF"},"send":{"channel":"EMAIL","to":"finance@alnoor.example"}}

Webhook events such as document.posted, document.signed, document.sent, and document.delivery_failed include event ID, tenant, document, version, timestamp, and correlation ID. Verify and deduplicate.

Audit and practice

Audit shows template version, number allocation, field changes, attachment versions, approval, signature, rendering, delivery, resend, correction, reversal, user, and request ID. Reconcile document totals to journals, tax returns, source quantities, and delivery history.

Practice: configure a sales-invoice series and template, create an invoice from a delivery, attach proof, approve and sign, render in AED, send it, simulate a bounce, issue a credit note, resend, and archive under retention. Explain every field, precision, version, permission, status, source, journal, tax, API ID, and audit event.

Related: Sales Order field guide, AR Invoice field guide, Workflow and Approval field guide, Tax field guide, and API cookbook.