Putting vendor bills on hold

Place a vendor bill on hold with a recorded reason so it cannot be selected for payment, batches, or check/ACH preparation until an authorized user releases it.

Plans: Core and above
Availability: Rolling out in prelaunch
For: Owners, Bookkeepers, Accountants
In KontoCore: Purchases → Bills → (bill) → Hold · hold status also shown in Pay bills and Payment batches

In plain English

A hold says “don’t pay this yet” — for a dispute, missing paperwork, or a pending receipt — without changing the bill itself.

What this does

A held bill stays posted in accounts payable with its original amounts. The hold only blocks it from payment selection, payment batches, and check or ACH preparation where those apply.

Hold state and reason appear on the bill and in AP lists such as Bills, Pay bills, and Payment batches.

How to

Place a hold

1Open the bill and choose Hold.
2Enter a reason (required) and save.

Release a hold

1Open the held bill and choose Release hold.
2Add a release note and confirm. The bill becomes payable again.

Partially paid bills and existing batches

Payments already posted before the hold stay posted; the hold blocks only further payment of the remaining balance.
If a bill is already in a payment batch that hasn’t been processed, review that batch — remove the bill or release the hold before processing. Confirm in your workspace how in-progress batches display held bills.
A fully paid bill has nothing left to block; a hold on it is informational.

Statuses and lifecycle

Status	Meaning
On hold	Not selectable for payment.
Released	Payable again; hold history kept.

Corrections, voids, and reversals

Release the hold to undo it. To change amounts, use the normal bill correction (void/reverse or vendor credit).

Audit trail

Each hold and release records the user, date/time, and reason or note, and stays in the bill’s history.

Availability and provider notes

Built – unverified: this workflow exists in the prelaunch product but has not yet completed human certification. Review results before relying on them.
No external provider is required.

Permissions

Users with bookkeeping permission can place holds. Release may be limited to owners, administrators, or approvers depending on your settings.

What happens in your books

No accounting effect. Placing or releasing a hold never voids, deletes, or reposts the bill.

Common mistakes

Voiding a disputed bill instead of holding it, which removes the liability from your books.
Forgetting to release once the dispute is resolved, delaying payment.

Troubleshooting

Bill missing from Pay bills

It’s on hold — check its status and reason.

Can’t release

Your role isn’t permitted to release holds.

Paying vendor billsSelect open vendor bills, apply vendor credits, choose how and when to pay, and record full or partial payments that clear accounts payable.Vendor payment batchesGroup several bill payments into a batch for review, approval, and release, so payment runs are controlled and traceable as one unit.Checks and check printingWrite checks for bills or direct expenses, print them on supported check stock, track check numbers, and void checks correctly.Three-way match: PO, receipt, and bill exceptionsCompare ordered, received, and billed quantities and prices, set an Off, Warn, or Block policy with tolerances, and resolve or override exceptions with an audited reason.

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Last reviewed October 6, 2026