How to Issue an Invoice from the Work Order in the Onmotor System

Note: this walkthrough describes Brazil-specific tax documents (DANFE, digital certificate A1) and the Onmotor system's interface. The underlying idea, generating the invoice directly from the work order instead of as a separate step, applies anywhere, but the specific screens and legal requirements below are built for the Brazilian market.

It's already clear from another article on this blog that keeping invoicing disconnected from the rest of the operation is one of the quietest ways to build up tax errors: forgetting to issue one, issuing it with wrong data, or losing track of which invoice matches which service. The real fix isn't more discipline about remembering, it's removing the separate step entirely. In Onmotor, the invoice is generated directly from the work order, with no separate process, and no need to open another system or re-enter the same data somewhere else.

That changes the workflow directly: instead of finishing the service and then remembering to issue the invoice separately, issuing it becomes a natural part of closing out the work order, at the exact moment the service is already documented and the price is already set.

Here's the full step-by-step for issuing an invoice from the work order in the system.

Step 1: Access the system and find the work order

The first step is to log into the system and locate, in the work order module, the specific job you need to declare to the tax authority. Just search using the search bar, located in the top right corner of the screen.

If there's more than one open work order, make sure you identify the right one before moving forward, since the invoice generated will reflect exactly the data recorded in that specific work order.

Step 2: Open the work order and click "issue DANFE"

Once you open the correct work order, you'll find an "issue DANFE" button. Before confirming, it's worth checking three groups of information shown on screen:

Basic details, such as transaction type, invoice type, and payment method. Customer data, such as name, email, and tax ID. And information about the parts used or sold, including price and item code for each one.

Since this data comes directly from what was already filled in on the work order, this review step is usually quick, but it's still worth checking before confirming, since any mistake here shows up directly on the issued tax document.

Step 3: Confirm submission

With the information reviewed, click "next step" and then "confirm submission." The invoice is generated and automatically sent by email, and it can also be printed afterward if you need to hand a physical copy to the customer.

Depending on the municipality where the shop is registered, you may also need to issue a separate service invoice in addition to the goods invoice, since the two documents cover different types of transactions.

One technical detail you can't skip

To issue invoices through the system, you need to have a digital certificate (type A1 in Brazil) set up beforehand. Without that certificate, the issuance process won't go through, so it's worth making sure it's active before you even open the first work order of the day that will need an invoice.

What if I issue an invoice with the wrong information?

It's natural for a piece of data to occasionally be entered incorrectly before issuance, especially in shops with high service volume. In those cases, the system usually allows cancellation or a supplementary invoice within the timeframe set by tax regulations, so the best approach is to catch the mistake as early as possible and fix it the same day, rather than letting the inconsistency sit longer than necessary.

Why issuing directly from the work order makes a difference

The real gain here isn't just the speed of clicking a few buttons. It's eliminating the need to enter the same information twice, once on the work order and again on the invoice, which naturally reduces data-entry errors and keeps the price charged, customer data, and parts used consistent across both documents.

That kind of consistency matters especially in shops with high service volume, where the chance of forgetting an invoice or entering wrong data grows in proportion to the number of work orders opened per day. Having the process integrated doesn't just eliminate rework, it also eliminates the risk of tax inconsistency that goes unnoticed until it shows up as a problem during an audit or a customer complaint.

If you want to understand more deeply why this integration matters so much for a shop's fiscal health, it's worth reading our full article on invoicing at your auto repair shop, and on how the work order supports this entire chain of information.

If you don't use the Onmotor system yet and want to see this workflow running in practice at your shop, you can try it free for a few days before deciding.