Procure-to-pay walk-through

Contoso needs 100 rotors to build 100 alternators. In a real plant, MRP would raise the requirement automatically (we will see that in the next lesson). Here we follow the purchasing leg on its own first so each document is clear.

Purchase requisitionNeed for 100 CMC-RTR-200 in plant 1710, from MRP or a user
Purchase orderBuyer converts the requisition; Lakeside, 40.00 USD each, purchasing org 1710
Goods receiptWarehouse posts receipt of 100 pieces into the plant's storage location
Supplier invoiceAccounts payable posts Lakeside's invoice for 4,000.00 USD
PaymentPayment run pays Lakeside and clears the open item

Procure to pay for the rotor.

Step by step

Step	Role	SAP GUI	Fiori app (examples)	Document created
Create requisition	Requester or MRP	ME51N	Manage Purchase Requisitions	Purchase requisition
Create purchase order	Purchaser	ME21N	Manage Purchase Orders / Create Purchase Order - Advanced	Purchase order
Post goods receipt	Warehouse clerk	MIGO (movement type 101)	Post Goods Receipt for Purchasing Document	Material document + journal entry
Post supplier invoice	Accounts payable accountant	MIRO	Create Supplier Invoice / Manage Supplier Invoices	Supplier invoice + journal entry
Pay supplier	Accounts payable accountant	F110	Manage Automatic Payments	Payment journal entry (clearing)

Procure-to-pay steps, roles and tools. App names vary by release; use the app finder.

Where finance first sees the transaction

The requisition and purchase order are commitments. They matter for planning and for budget control, but they do not post to the general ledger. Finance first sees the purchase at the goods receipt, because the rotor is valuated stock: its value enters the balance sheet the moment it arrives.

Event	Debit	Credit	Amount (USD)
Goods receipt of 100 rotors	Raw materials inventory	GR/IR clearing	4,000.00
Supplier invoice	GR/IR clearing	Supplier (accounts payable)	4,000.00
Payment	Supplier (accounts payable)	Bank (or bank clearing)	4,000.00

Journal entries in the procure-to-pay leg (tax omitted for simplicity).

After the invoice, GR/IR for this PO item nets to zero: received and invoiced match. After the payment, the supplier item is cleared. Three journal entries, each traceable back to its logistics document.

Checks for this leg

The PO took the price 40.00 USD from the info record, not typed by hand.
The goods receipt increased unrestricted stock of CMC-RTR-200 in plant 1710 by 100.
The goods receipt journal entry hit the raw materials inventory account and GR/IR for 4,000.00 USD.
The invoice matched quantity and price with no block; GR/IR nets to zero.
The payment cleared the supplier open item.

Variants worth knowing

The happy path hides some controls that real projects depend on. Purchase orders above a value threshold usually need approval (a release strategy or flexible workflow) before they can be sent; if the tour PO sits in "awaiting approval", the goods receipt cannot be posted against it. Invoice verification uses tolerances: small price differences may be accepted automatically, larger ones block the invoice. And the goods receipt may go into quality inspection stock instead of unrestricted stock when the rotor is inspection-relevant, which means production cannot consume it until the inspection lot is decided. Each of these is a hand-off to another role (approver, buyer, quality inspector) and a likely place for an integrated test to stall.

Two more practical points. First, the payment step is usually a scheduled batch run, not something a tester triggers at will; agree with accounts payable how the tour invoice will be paid in the test system. Second, if the supplier sends an advance shipping notification or the warehouse runs extended warehouse management, the goods receipt is posted from the inbound delivery instead of directly against the PO. The journal entry is the same; the screens and roles differ.

What would you do?

In the tour, the supplier invoice is posted before anyone has posted the goods receipt. Invoice verification flags a quantity variance and the invoice is blocked for payment. The accounts payable accountant wants to remove the block. What is the right response?

Key points