Sending your first quarterly invoice
Generate the Q1 batch, review ESA and out-of-pocket splits, send to families.
What “quarterly” means in CohortLedger
CohortLedger invoices by quarter: one invoice per family covers the months of instruction in that quarter. Each state program funds on its own schedule (Texas TEFA funds accounts on July 1, October 1, and February 1), so check your program’s published dates in state setup.
The seeded demo is a Texas TEFA school in Q1 2026-27, dated September 24, 2026. Your own account runs on the real calendar.
1. Generate the batch
From the sidebar, click Billing. The quarterly invoice panel at the top shows the current quarter, the expected ESA total, the expected out-of-pocket total, and a button to generate the batch. Click Generate Q1 invoice batch (or the current quarter label).
CohortLedger creates one invoice per family, calculating each student’s quarter share as annualTuition / 4 for the school year, then splitting that share into the ESA-funded portion and the out-of-pocket remainder.
2. Review the splits
Each invoice row shows the family name, the students included, the ESA program for each, the expected ESA portion, the out-of-pocket portion, and a status pill for each side. Statuses are:
- Received: the ESA portion has arrived
- Partial: part of it has arrived, the rest is still due
- Pending: not yet marked received
- Out of pocket: no ESA on this invoice, the family pays the full amount
3. Tell families what they owe
CohortLedger does not email invoices or collect payments. Send each family its amounts from Messaging, which emails the family and keeps the note on their record. When a family pays its portion, mark it received on the invoice.
4. Reconcile deposits as they land
State platform deposits show up in Billing → Reconcile. CohortLedger auto-matches deposits by amount and reference. When a deposit does not match the invoiced amount, it surfaces as a variance with an inline note like “Deposit came in $24 below the invoice”. Check the platform statement, raise it with the platform if needed, and mark it once resolved.
5. Watch the at-risk banner
If an overdue compliance task could block the next quarter’s disbursement (e.g. an unfinished Arizona ESA quarterly expense report), Billing shows a red top banner: “$X across N invoices may be held by state platforms until overdue compliance work clears.” Clear the compliance work and the banner disappears.
Next
With invoices sent, the daily work is marking attendance. When the quarter wraps, export the audit trail for your state reviewer.