Every invoice in Cradled has a status. Here's what each one means and what triggers a change.
Draft
You've created the invoice but haven't emailed it yet. No one has seen it except you. You can freely edit line items, amounts, due dates, or delete the invoice.
Goes to Sent when you click Send (emails the client) or share the payment link manually.
Sent
The invoice has been emailed (or its link has been generated). The due date has not yet passed. Client can pay anytime.
Goes to Paid when payment arrives. Goes to Overdue automatically when the due date passes.
Paid
The client paid. Either:
- Stripe confirmed a successful charge, or
- You manually marked it paid (for e-transfer, cash, cheque, etc.).
Stays Paid — no further automatic transitions. You can still issue a refund.
Overdue
The due date has passed and the invoice is still unpaid. Appears with a red badge on the client card. An Invoice overdue action badge shows on your dashboard and client list.
Goes to Paid when the client pays. Stays Overdue until you cancel or they pay.
Cancelled
You cancelled the invoice. The client can no longer pay it via the original link. Useful when:
- You sent an invoice in error.
- Terms changed and you need to issue a new one.
- The client can't or won't pay and you want to close the record.
Cancelled invoices stay in your records for reference but don't count toward outstanding revenue.
Refunds don't change the status
There's no "Refunded" status. A refunded invoice stays Paid — Cradled tracks the refunded amount separately and shows it on the invoice. Even a fully refunded invoice still reads Paid, with the full amount marked as refunded.
Disputed
If a client disputes a card charge (a chargeback), Cradled flags the invoice as disputed and notifies you. Respond to the dispute in your Stripe dashboard before its deadline — that's where the evidence and outcome are handled.
Payment plan charges
Payment plans auto-charge a card on file, so their invoices aren't sent or paid by hand. Each charge is created already Paid (the charge succeeded) or Overdue (it failed). After repeated failures the plan pauses until you resume it. See How payment plans work.