---
title: "Converting documents"
description: "Move a sales document to another type, add linked documents, and direct sale"
url: https://docs.starnapp.com/en/articles/201-converting-documents
updated: 2026-11-06
language: en
alternates: [es]
---

# Converting documents

Move a sales document to another type, add linked documents, and direct sale

The **CONVERT** button is the single crossing point between the different sales document types (QUOTE, WORK ORDER, DELIVERY NOTE, PROFORMA and INVOICE). Instead of creating each document from scratch, we generate it from an existing one, keeping its content.

### How do we get there?

Inside any document, the **CONVERT** button sits at the top right.

![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/ghelparticle/l81B0FG49k6JQTsRxhTGckYoroa2XoOZozBGX9mCYROK7UTJPkRELP3BqckRddSsuyHYET2uA38.png)

When we press it, we choose which document type to convert it to. The options available depend on the source document type.

### How does the conversion map work?

-   A **QUOTE** can be converted directly into an **INVOICE**, a **DELIVERY NOTE** or a **PROFORMA**, or into a **WORK ORDER** if work needs to be carried out first.
    
-   A **WORK ORDER** can be converted into a **DELIVERY NOTE**, a **PROFORMA** or an **INVOICE**.
    
-   A **DELIVERY NOTE** or a **PROFORMA** can be converted into an **INVOICE**.
    
-   An issued **INVOICE** can only be converted into a **CREDIT NOTE** or a **CORRECTIVE INVOICE** (see [**Credit notes and corrective invoices**](gleap://article/69c4f4aa49cb86c2271b031e)).
    

Any of the five types can also be created on its own, without going through a previous document — we don't always have to start from a quote.

### How do we choose the billing source when converting a Work Order?

When we convert a **WORK ORDER** into a **DELIVERY NOTE**, a **PROFORMA** or an **INVOICE**, StarNapp lets us choose whether we want to bill the resources from the original **QUOTE** or from the work order itself.

![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/ghelparticle/b08kKvE3ufc97oYQaEf1fGvqTO2OxpSc7TGziILNA9FMvkJRMiMyxGRdSeBzFCSXjayrfZLbSkW.png)

This choice is a step in the conversion wizard itself, not a fixed property of the document: the quote and the work order can hold different content, and we decide at that moment which one carries over to the invoice.

### How does ADD work?

When we convert a document into a final **INVOICE** or **PROFORMA**, the **ADD (n)** button appears at the top right, with the number of already-linked documents we can bring in: deposits already invoiced, or delivery notes/proformas still pending to be invoiced.

![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/ghelparticle/WzI8Ug7lhOqk4k4QoWdumesCKDA6W7jYRPGllY9yASFxKyCil1qUBfIyhgezubGJZ9PGV6B89QH.png)

When we press **ADD**, we choose which document to bring in. The sign of the resulting line depends on what we're adding:

-   If we add a **deposit already invoiced and paid**, it's brought in as a **negative** line — it's deducted, because that amount was already invoiced and collected before.
    
-   If we add a **delivery note or proforma with content still pending to be invoiced**, it's brought in as a **positive** line — it's added, because that content hadn't been invoiced yet.
    

![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/ghelparticle/Ac6s0RzNVEOJWD8P2wz5f2UOOWCMkuqwiTjlzjtBU46Xya8dwsfuXbKYJTD9FCKDK44qHfQ8c87.png)

It's the **same mechanism** in both cases: what changes is whether the added document had already been invoiced or not, never how the button itself is used. For the detail on RESERVE and deposit invoices, see [**Invoices**](gleap://article/6a9024169f2bbf7392b37b71).

### Direct sale: a document with no vessel

**Direct sale** isn't a special mode inside CONVERT, it's simply leaving out the **VESSEL**: any Sales document can be created or converted with only the **CUSTOMER**, without linking it to any boat.

It's useful for selling standalone products or services that aren't tied to a specific boat — for example, over the counter or on POS. The resulting document can still be converted normally, just like one with a vessel.

![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/ghelparticle/EFposU74Y9ixPR9gYucmno1Se7i27RrrIaojEA5m4IxNPa1NzNOlIMkgPPAn0teQIWadlbKYWL3.png)

### What should we keep in mind?

-   **CONVERT** creates a previous/next document relationship (it becomes part of the conversion graph). **COPY** doesn't: it generates a new, independent document with no relationship to the original — these are different mechanisms, see [**Working with sales documents**](gleap://article/6a90270dcbfbdb6a3fd3c03f).
    
-   We don't have to go through a quote or a work order: any document type can also be created on its own — see [**Quotes**](gleap://article/6a902373e101a0953fae4fd1).
    
-   Direct-sale costs are still tracked the same way in profitability reports, even though no vessel is linked to the document.
    
-   For the complete map of the sales flow and where each document type fits, see [**Sales flow**](gleap://article/67d184c611131777add2d8aa).