Delivery Note
A delivery note is a shipping document that accompanies a consignment and lists the items and quantities actually delivered. It travels with the goods from sender to recipient and serves as proof of delivery as well as the basis for goods-receipt checks and invoicing.
A delivery note is a shipping document that the sender encloses with a consignment and that lists the items actually delivered together with their quantities. It accompanies the goods physically or digitally from sender to recipient, documents what is part of the delivery and serves both sides as proof: the customer for the goods-receipt check, the supplier as evidence of the service rendered. Unlike an invoice, the delivery note usually contains no prices but focuses on describing the scope of delivery in terms of quantity.
The delivery note is part of the commercial document chain between quotation, order confirmation, delivery and invoice. It is typically created at goods issue, when an order is picked and made ready for shipping, and refers to the underlying transaction via a delivery-note and order number. At the recipient it becomes the central document for incoming inspection: using the delivery note, goods receiving checks whether the goods delivered match, in type and quantity, what was ordered and announced. Legally, the delivery note is not a mandatory document in Germany, but in practice it is an established and important record for complaints as well as for accounting.
At a glance
- Shipping document that lists the items and quantities actually delivered in a consignment
- Proof of delivery for sender and recipient - the basis of the goods-receipt check
- Usually contains no prices; valuation is handled separately in the invoice
- Not legally mandatory in Germany, but commercially customary and important for complaints
- Generated from the sales order in the ERP system and linked to goods issue, invoice and inventory management
What does a delivery note contain?
A delivery note primarily lists the items delivered: item description, item number, delivered quantity and unit of measure. Because it describes the goods rather than valuing them, unit and total prices are usually absent - these appear on the invoice. The line items are supplemented by header data that clearly assigns sender and recipient and places the document within the transaction chain.
Typical components include the name and address of supplier and recipient, the delivery date, a unique delivery-note number and the reference to the purchase-order or sales-order number and customer number. If the delivery and billing addresses differ, both are shown. Details on the shipping method, number of packages, weight or tracking number often supplement the document. For batch- or serial-number-managed goods, the delivered batches or serial numbers are additionally shown to ensure traceability.
Partial delivery and deviating quantities
The delivery note reflects what is actually delivered - not necessarily what was ordered. If a supplier can only deliver part of the order, the delivery note shows the partial quantity delivered, while the remaining quantity is carried forward as an open item or back order in the system. This makes it possible to later assign several delivery notes to one order. This clean separation is important so that goods-receipt checks and invoicing are based on the quantity actually delivered and not on the quantity originally ordered.
What is the delivery note for?
The delivery note fulfils several functions along the supply chain. For the recipient it is the inspection document for goods receiving: the incoming goods are checked against the delivery note to verify completeness, quantity and condition before receipt is confirmed. If the delivered and stated quantities do not match or goods are damaged, the signed delivery note serves as the basis for a complaint or return.
For the sender the delivery note is both proof of performance and an internal control document. The delivery note signed off by the recipient proves that the goods were handed over - an important piece of evidence in later disputes about the quantity or timing of the delivery. Internally, it links the physical goods issue with the commercial processing: the invoice is created on its basis and the inventory is written off. The delivery note is thus the link between logistics and accounting.
Distinguishing delivery note, invoice and order confirmation
The delivery note is often confused with other documents in the transaction chain, but it has a clearly defined purpose. The order confirmation documents the binding acceptance of an order and describes what is to be delivered. The delivery note documents what is actually delivered and accompanies the goods. The invoice, finally, demands payment for the delivered service and is the only one of the three documents with complete price and VAT details.
The key difference between delivery note and invoice lies in their content: the delivery note describes the goods in terms of quantity, the invoice values them. In practice the delivery note is often generated directly from the order or from the posted goods issue, and the invoice in turn from the delivery note - so quantities remain consistent across the entire document chain. A special case is the delivery note with prices, which can appear as a combined delivery and invoice document in cash sales or certain industry practices.
A delivery note as a substitute for an invoice?
A plain delivery note without price and tax details does not meet the requirements for a proper invoice under German VAT law and does not on its own entitle the holder to input-tax deduction. It therefore does not replace the invoice. If the delivery note is supplemented with all the mandatory details of an invoice, it can in individual cases also serve as an invoice - but keeping the two documents separate is the usual practice. For accounting, the delivery note remains a source or supporting document that records the delivery and is assigned to the invoice.
The delivery note in the ERP system
In the ERP system the delivery note is not a document captured in isolation but a document that is created automatically from upstream data. From a released sales order the system generates the delivery note at the push of a button, taking over line items, quantities, customer and address data from the order as well as item data from the item master. When goods issue is posted, the stock of the relevant item is reduced, and the delivery note is available as the basis for subsequent invoicing.
The advantage of this integration is a continuous, media-break-free document chain: quotation, order confirmation, delivery note and invoice access the same master data and can be converted into one another without gaps. Changes such as partial deliveries or deviating quantities are consistently carried through in inventory, order status and invoicing. Via an API or interfaces to shipping service providers, delivery-note data can also be coupled with the shipping label and shipment tracking, so that a single transaction represents the complete goods issue.
GoBD and retention
As a document that records an inventory- and business-relevant delivery, the delivery note is subject in Germany to the principles of proper bookkeeping. Under the GoBD, documents must be retained in a way that is traceable, unalterable and orderly. If a delivery note serves as an accounting document or is to be treated as part of an invoice, the commercial and tax retention periods apply. An ERP system maps this via audit-proof document storage including a change history and a clear link between order, delivery note and invoice.
DACH specifics and legal situation
In Germany, Austria and Switzerland there is no general legal obligation to enclose a delivery note with every goods delivery. It has nevertheless become established as a commercial standard because it facilitates the goods-receipt check and serves as evidence in the event of a dispute. The situation is different for certain goods and transports: for consignments of excise-liable or dangerous goods as well as in cross-border trade, special accompanying documents may be legally required.
Even though the delivery note itself is optional, it has an accounting effect as soon as it serves as a source or accounting document. The GoBD and the retention periods of the German Fiscal Code (Abgabenordnung) then apply. In practice, digital delivery notes and e-invoicing processes are increasingly replacing the classic paper document: the delivery note is generated electronically, added to the consignment as a PDF or via an EDI message, and automatically reconciled against the order at the recipient.
Example
Example: A wholesaler checks incoming goods against the delivery note
A wholesaler of electronics accessories orders 500 USB cables and 200 power adapters from a supplier. The supplier can only ship the cables immediately and encloses a delivery note with the consignment that shows 500 cables as the delivered quantity but marks the 200 power adapters as an open back order. In goods receiving, an employee scans the delivery-note number, the ERP opens the associated order and displays the target quantities.
When counting, the employee finds that only 495 cables have arrived. He records the discrepancy directly in the system, the delivery note is posted with the quantity actually received, and the missing five cables go to the supplier as a complaint. Because the supplier's invoice is later checked against the posted delivery note and not against the purchase order, the wholesaler only pays for the quantity actually delivered - shortfalls and partial deliveries feed cleanly into inventory and accounting.
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