# Source: https://getlago.com/docs/guide/invoicing/invoicing-settings/empty-invoices.md

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://getlago.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Empty invoice generation

> Configure whether Lago should generate invoices with a total amount of zero.

## Finalize empty invoices

By default, Lago finalizes all invoices — even those with a total amount of zero. However, some customers may prefer to skip these invoices to avoid generating unnecessary accounting documents.
To support this, you can configure Lago to skip finalizing invoices that are considered **empty**.

### Empty invoices definition

Lago considers an invoice empty if it contains no line items before applying coupons or discounts.
If a discount brings the total amount to zero but the invoice originally contained line items, it will still be finalized, as it is not considered empty under this definition.

### Billing entity level

The setting `finalize_zero_amount_invoice` is enabled (`true`) by default.
You can disable it at the billing entity level under Invoice settings. When set to `false`, Lago will skip finalizing empty invoices for all customers linked to that billing entity — unless a customer-specific override is applied.

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Dashboard">
    To modify this setting from the Lago Dashboard:

    1. Go to Settings in your app;
    2. Navigate to the Billing entity > Invoices settings; and
    3. Update the value in the **'Finalize zero amount invoice'** section according to your preference.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="API">
    <CodeGroup>
      ```bash Update the organization's settings theme={"dark"}
      LAGO_URL="https://api.getlago.com"
      API_KEY="__YOUR_API_KEY__"

      curl --location --request PUT "$LAGO_URL/api/v1/billing_entities/{code}" \
        --header "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
        --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
        --data-raw '{
          "billing_entity": {
            "country": "US",
            "finalize_zero_amount_invoice": true
          }
        }'
      ```
    </CodeGroup>
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

### Customer level

By default, new customers inherit the `finalize_zero_amount_invoice` setting from the organization.
You can override this setting for individual customers to meet specific needs.

The available options are:

* `inherit`: Follows the billing entity setting;
* `skip`: Skips finalizing empty invoices; or
* `finalize`: Always finalizes invoices, even if empty.

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Dashboard">
    To modify this customer setting from the Lago user interface:

    1. Go to a specific customer;
    2. Navigate to the Settings section; and
    3. Override the value in the **'Finalize zero amount invoice'** section according to your preference.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="API">
    <CodeGroup>
      ```bash Update the customer's settings theme={"dark"}
      LAGO_URL="https://api.getlago.com"
      API_KEY="__YOUR_API_KEY__"

      curl --location --request POST "$LAGO_URL/api/v1/customers" \
        --header "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
        --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
        --data-raw '{
          "customer": {
            "external_id": "hooli_12345",
            "address_line1": "100 Fintech Devcon Street",
            "city": "Austin",
            "country": "US",
            "email": "hooli@fintech.com",
            "legal_number": "54321",
            "name": "Hooli 12345",
            "state": "Texas",
            "tax_identification_number": "1234",
            "zipcode": "9399",
            "finalize_zero_amount_invoice": "skip"
          }
        }'
      ```
    </CodeGroup>
  </Tab>
</Tabs>