Contracts

Contracts record the agreements you have with customers: what they are called, what they are worth, and where each one is in its life, from draft to signature, active, and finally expired, terminated or renewed. Keeping them in Commerce puts the agreement next to the quotes, orders and invoices for the same customer.

Key concepts#

• Contract number: assigned automatically from your organization’s sequence, such as CON-1007. The list shows it before the title.
• Value: the total worth of the agreement, in US dollars when created from the Commerce page.
• Owner: the person responsible for the contract. It is set to whoever creates it.
• Renewal: renewing closes the current contract and starts a new one with the same terms. You end up with two contracts, not one updated contract.

Who can use it#

Create a contract#

1. Open the Contracts tab

   Go to CommerceContracts. The form is below the list.

2. Fill in the details

   Choose the Customer and enter a Title, for example 2027 platform services agreement. Both are required. Optionally enter the Value, such as 10000.00.

3. Select Create contract

   The contract is added as a draft with the next contract number, and you are its owner.

Move a contract through its life#

Each contract card shows only the buttons that are valid for its current status:

Every button takes effect immediately, with no confirmation step.

Send for signature and activate#

Send for signature marks the contract as pending signature. It doesn’t send anything or collect an e-signature. Get the contract signed the way you normally do, then select Activate. If you don’t need to track the signing step, activate straight from draft.

Terminate a contract#

Select Terminate to end a draft, pending or active contract early, for example when a customer cancels. A terminated contract is final and can’t be edited. The Commerce page doesn’t ask for a reason, so record it somewhere your team will find it, such as a note on the customer.

Expire a contract#

Select Expire on an active contract once it has run its course. Contracts don’t expire on their own when their end date passes, and an auto-renews flag doesn’t renew them automatically. Both are reminders for you to act on.

Renew a contract#

Select Renew on an active contract. UnitX:

1. Marks the current contract renewed. It is final from then on.
2. Creates a new active contract with a new contract number and the same customer, title, type, value, currency, owner and auto-renew setting.
3. Starts the new contract on the old contract’s end date, or today if it had none. The new contract has no end date.

Both contracts stay in the list, so the renewal history is visible.

Contract statuses#

Draft

Being prepared. Can be sent for signature, activated or terminated.

Pending signature

Waiting to be signed. Can be activated or terminated.

Active

In force. Can be renewed, expired or terminated.

Expired

Ran its course. Final.

Terminated

Ended early. Final.

Renewed

Replaced by a new contract created when it was renewed. Final.

Reading a contract card#

Each card shows contract number · title, a status badge, and a summary line with the value, the end date when there is one (ends 12/31/2026) and auto-renews when that is set.

Limitations#

• The Commerce page only sets customer, title and value. Contract type, start and end dates, renewal type, auto-renew, owner, a linked deal and a linked document can only be set through the API.
• Contracts can’t be edited from the Commerce page. Through the API they can be edited until they are terminated or renewed.
• Contracts can’t be deleted.

Related#

• Customers
• Commerce overview
• Invoices