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Can you apply credit memos to open invoices without the customer's consent?

I'm a distributor. Some of my accounts have old (back to 2005) credit memos that they won't, for whatever reason, agree to apply to open invoices on their account. Can I apply the credits to the open invoices without the customer's consent? Is there legislation or generally accepted principle that prohibits this practice?

Public Comments

1. You should have something in your terms and agreements that states something like "Credit memos will automatically be applied to open invoices" or something like that. If you don't state that specifically then you are probably still ok applyting them, the problem is that most companies will just send you a check to pay them so you will end up with credits again. The best thing to do is contact the company/individual and let them know you would like to apply them towards an open invoice and see if they have a problem with it.