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Inter-Business-Unit Stock Transfers

Move stock between business units with a dispatch-and-receive workflow, in-transit visibility, and the inter-BU accounting posted on both sides.

An inter-business-unit transfer moves stock from one business unit to another with a dispatch-and-receive workflow. The sending unit dispatches, the stock sits In Transit where it belongs to neither shelf, and the receiving unit confirms what actually arrived. Because each business unit keeps its own books, the transfer also posts the inter-BU accounting on both sides.

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Why transfers are not just an adjustment

Reducing stock in one place and increasing it in another would lose two things that matter: the period in between, when the goods are on a van and on nobody's shelf, and the money. Each business unit keeps its own books, so stock leaving one and arriving in another is a transaction between them, not a bookkeeping non-event.

The transfer workflow handles both — In Transit is a real state, and the accounting is posted on both sides so neither unit's stock value is quietly wrong.

Transfer states

  • Draft — being prepared, nothing has moved
  • In Transit — dispatched by the sender, not yet received. Shown as Awaiting receipt on the receiving side
  • Received — confirmed by the receiving unit and on their shelf
  • Cancelled — abandoned before dispatch

Common Tasks

How to Send Stock to Another Business Unit (transfer stock, move stock between locations, send to branch)

Create and dispatch a transfer from the sending unit.

Required permission: Inventory transfer

  1. Go to Inventory & Products → Inter-BU Transfers in the left sidebar
  2. Start a new transfer
  3. Choose the destination business unit
  4. Add the products and the quantities you are sending
  5. Review the Combined value of the transfer
  6. Dispatch it

Result: Stock leaves the sending unit and the transfer becomes In Transit. It appears on the receiving unit's list as Incoming, awaiting receipt.

Note: Dispatch when the goods physically leave, not when you create the paperwork. The In Transit period should match reality — that is what makes a discrepancy on arrival meaningful.

How to Receive an Incoming Transfer (receive transfer, confirm delivery from branch, incoming stock)

Confirm what actually arrived, which is not always what was sent.

Required permission: Inventory transfer

  1. Go to Inventory & Products → Inter-BU Transfers
  2. Filter Direction to Incoming
  3. Open a transfer showing In Transit or Awaiting receipt
  4. Check each line against what physically arrived and correct any quantity that differs
  5. Confirm receipt

Result: Stock is added to the receiving unit at the transferred cost, the transfer becomes RECEIVED, and the inter-BU accounting is posted on both sides.

Note: Record what arrived, not what the paperwork says. A short delivery recorded accurately is a discrepancy you can investigate; one recorded as complete is a loss that surfaces months later in a stock count.

How to Find a Transfer (transfer history, where is my stock, track transfer)

Filter the list to the transfers you care about.

  1. Go to Inventory & Products → Inter-BU Transfers
  2. Open Filters
  3. Set Direction — Incoming, Outgoing or All Directions
  4. Set the status, or leave it as All Statuses
  5. Use All records to search beyond the default window

Result: The list narrows to the matching transfers with their direction, status and value.

Note: If a transfer seems missing, check All Directions — it is easy to look for an incoming transfer on the sending unit's view.

Stuck in transit

A transfer left In Transit is stock belonging to neither unit's shelf, which will show up as a shortage at the receiving end and an unexplained gap at the sending end. Reviewing anything Awaiting receipt for more than a day or two is a quick and worthwhile habit.

The accounting side

Because each business unit has its own books, a transfer creates a balance between them: the receiving unit owes the sending unit for the stock. Those balances are settled through inter-BU settlements — see Business Units. Stock is transferred at cost, so no profit is recognised on an internal move.

Troubleshooting

A transfer has been In Transit for weeks

Cause: It was dispatched but the receiving unit never confirmed it.

Fix: Have the receiving unit open it under Direction: Incoming and confirm what arrived. Until they do, the stock counts against neither unit.

Less arrived than was sent

Cause: Short delivery, damage in transit, or a miscount at dispatch.

Fix: Record the quantity that actually arrived when receiving. The difference stays visible as a discrepancy between the two units and can be investigated, rather than being absorbed silently.

The receiving unit cannot see the transfer

Cause: It has not been dispatched — a Draft transfer is not visible to the destination.

Fix: Have the sending unit dispatch it. Only then does it appear as incoming.

Should I use a transfer or a sale between my own units?

Cause: Both move stock, but they mean different things.

Fix: Use a transfer when you are moving your own stock between your own locations at cost. Use a sale when one unit is genuinely selling to the other and margin should be recognised — for example a central kitchen selling to an outlet at a set price.