How to Transfer Time
Introduction
The transfer feature in Matters.Cloud allows you to move recorded time between both matters and opportunities. This is useful when time has been recorded against the wrong record, work needs to be reallocated, or billing arrangements have changed.
When transferring time, Matters.Cloud can recalculate the billing rate and update the billable status based on the destination matter or opportunity. This helps maintain accurate billing, reduces the risk of invoicing errors, and ensures your time records remain organised.
In this article, you'll learn:
- The prerequisites for transferring time.
- How to transfer time between both matters and opportunities.
- How Recalculate rates and Update billable status work.
- How task matching is handled during a transfer.
- Important considerations and transfer limitations.
Pre-requisites
Users must have the Transfer time permission assigned to their role before they can transfer time entries.
For further information, please refer to the following article: Understanding Role-Based Permissions and How to Manage Them in Matters.Cloud
Note: Only administrators can enable this permission. If you are not an administrator, please contact your internal administrator to request access.
How to Transfer time
You can transfer time in the following ways:
- Matter to Matter
- Matter to Opportunity
- Opportunity to Matter
- Opportunity to Opportunity
To transfer time:
- Open the relevant Matter or Opportunity.
- Navigate to the Time tab.
- Select one or more time entries.
- Click Transfer.
The Transfer window is displayed. - In the Select type field, choose whether the destination is a Matter or an Opportunity.
- In the next field, select the destination matter or opportunity. The available records displayed depend on the type selected.
- If required, enable Recalculate rates to apply the billing rate of the destination matter or opportunity.
- If required, enable Update billable status to update the billable status based on the billing arrangement of the destination matter or opportunity.
- Click Submit to complete the transfer.
Note: Only WIP (unbilled) time entries can be transferred. Time entries associated with a draft or final invoice cannot be transferred. If a time entry is included in a draft invoice, exclude it from the draft invoice or delete the draft invoice before attempting the transfer.
Recalculate rates
When Recalculate rates is enabled, Matters.Cloud recalculates the billing rate using the rate applicable to the destination matter or opportunity.
Billing rates are only recalculated for time entries that are eligible to be transferred.
For further information about how billing rates are determined, please refer to the following article: Understanding Rates Within Matters.Cloud
Update billable status
When Update billable status is enabled, Matters.Cloud evaluates the billing arrangement of the destination matter or opportunity and updates the billable status of the transferred time accordingly.
The table below shows how the billable status is updated when Update billable status is enabled.
| Transfer | Billable status after transfer |
|---|---|
| Opportunity → Billable Matter | Billable |
| Billable Matter → Non-billable Matter | Non-billable |
| Billable Matter → Internal Matter | Non-billable |
| Billable Matter → Opportunity | Non-billable |
If Update billable status is not enabled, the transferred time retains its existing billable status.
Note: Time recorded against Opportunities is intended to be Non-billable only. Therefore, if you transfer time to an opportunity and Update billable status is enabled, the transferred time will be updated to Non-billable.
Task matching during a transfer
If a transferred time entry is associated with a task, Matters.Cloud searches the destination matter for a task with the same task code.
- If a matching task code is found, the transferred time entry is associated with the corresponding task in the destination matter.
- If no matching task code is found, the task association is removed from the transferred time entry.
This ensures that transferred time entries are linked only to tasks that exist in the destination matter.
Important considerations
- Only WIP (unbilled) time entries can be transferred.
- Time entries included in a draft or final invoice cannot be transferred.
- To transfer a time entry included in a draft invoice, first exclude it from the draft invoice or delete the draft invoice if it is no longer required.
- Once the time entry is no longer associated with the draft invoice, the transfer can be processed.
- Recalculate rates and Update billable status are optional. If these options are not selected, the billing rate and billable status remain unchanged.
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