The quick answer
Open the invoice, click Edit, then choose Actions > Delete. Delete is on the edit form's Actions menu, not the view form's. With the Use Deletion Reason feature on, NetSuite opens a popup that requires a Deletion Reason before it deletes anything. The invoice and its GL posting are removed, and its number stays in the Transaction Numbering Audit Log with the date it was deleted and who deleted it. You can't delete an invoice that other transactions, such as an applied payment or credit, are linked to.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and company names are fictional. Use your own invoice and values when following the steps.
Before you start
In this example, Larkspur Outdoor Supply billed Beacon Hill Dental Group for a September supply order twice. Theo Ramirez entered INV1046 at 9:12 am on 09/22/2026, and Maya Chen entered the same order again that afternoon as INV1047. Same customer, date, PO BH-4471, memo and amount, 2,340.00. Neither has a payment applied. The customer should pay once, so INV1047 goes.
The walkthrough uses the Administrator role. Other roles need Full permission on invoices to delete them. Before deleting, check that the posting period is open and that nothing else depends on the invoice, such as a bank reconciliation match, revenue recognition or an integration. The deleted invoice can't be opened again, and the audit log keeps only the number and deletion details, not its lines.
01. Turn on Use Deletion Reason
Go to Setup > Company > Enable Features and stay on the Company subtab. Under ERP General, Use Deletion Reason is checked here: "Record the reason for deleted transactions." If it isn't, check it and click Save. Without it, NetSuite deletes a transaction after a plain confirmation and doesn't ask why.
It's an account feature, so it applies to every transaction type that uses auto-generated numbers, not just invoices.
02. Find the duplicate
Go to Transactions > Sales > Create Invoices > List. The list shows Total: 4. Beacon Hill Dental Group has two invoices, INV1046 and INV1047, both dated 09/22/2026 with PO/Check Number BH-4471, memo September supply order and Amount 2,340.00. Both are Open, so no payment has been applied to either.
Compare more than the amount before you delete anything: customer, date, PO number, items, the source sales order and who entered each copy. Keep the one the customer already has, and the one any other process references. Here that's INV1046, so INV1047, the later copy, goes.
03. Delete it with a reason
Click View on the INV1047 row. The invoice shows Beacon Hill Dental Group, memo September supply order and a Total of 2,340.00. Click Edit.
On the edit form, click Actions, then Delete. It sits next to Memorize and Go To Register. In this account, the view form's Actions menu doesn't offer Delete. If Delete is missing on the edit form too, check the role's permission on invoices and your accounting preferences; accounts that void transactions with reversing journals can handle deletion differently.
The Delete Invoice INV1047 popup asks for a required Deletion Reason and a Memo, and explains that your account settings require a reason. Choose Other and type the memo Duplicate of INV1046, customer PO BH-4471. The memo is optional for other reasons, but Other requires one.
NetSuite ships two reasons, Original Document Damaged and Other. An administrator can add, rename or inactivate reasons at Setup > Accounting > Accounting Lists > New > Transaction Deletion Reason. A reason like Duplicate entry reports more cleanly than Other plus a memo.
Click Delete. NetSuite opens the Transactions center with the confirmation "Transaction successfully Deleted".
04. Check what remains
Go back to Transactions > Sales > Create Invoices > List. The list shows Total: 3, and INV1046 is the only Beacon Hill Dental Group invoice, still Open for 2,340.00.
Now go to Transactions > Management > Transaction Numbering Audit Log. Expand Filters and set Transaction Type to Invoice. Number 1046 is still a link, allocated at 09/22/2026 9:12 am by Theo Ramirez. Number 1047, allocated at 2:47 pm by Maya Chen, is no longer a link. It shows Date Deleted 09/30/2026 10:14 am and Deleted By Theo Ramirez.
Check the result
- The Invoices list shows Total: 3 instead of 4.
- INV1046 is the only Beacon Hill Dental Group invoice, still Open for 2,340.00.
- In the Transaction Numbering Audit Log, number 1047 is plain text with Date Deleted 09/30/2026 10:14 am and Deleted By Theo Ramirez.
- Numbers 1046 and 1048 are still links, so the sequence has no unexplained gap.
NetSuite doesn't reuse the deleted number, so the gap between 1046 and 1048 is accounted for. With Use Deletion Reason on, NetSuite also keeps the reason and memo for the deletion. The log view in the recording doesn't show those columns. A Deleted Record saved search is another way to report on deletions.
Delete, void or credit
Delete removes the transaction and its GL posting. It doesn't create a reversing entry. That's right for an invoice that never should have existed, like this duplicate.
You can't delete a transaction that other transactions are linked to. If a customer payment, credit memo or deposit is applied to the invoice, even partially, that has to be sorted out first, and often that's a sign you shouldn't be deleting at all. Don't delete an invoice that's been matched on a bank reconciliation either.
A void keeps the invoice on record and cancels its amounts, either by zeroing it or with a reversing journal, depending on your accounting preferences. A credit memo is a separate transaction that offsets the invoice. For an invoice the customer has already received or paid, one of those is usually the better correction, because it leaves a record of what happened.
Common questions
Where is the Delete option on a NetSuite invoice?
Open the invoice, click Edit, and choose Actions > Delete. In the account shown, the view form's Actions menu doesn't have it. If the edit form doesn't either, your role probably lacks Full permission on invoices, or the invoice has linked transactions.
Why does NetSuite ask for a deletion reason when I delete a transaction?
Because the Use Deletion Reason feature is on. Every deletion then needs a reason, and NetSuite keeps it with the deleted number, so an auditor looking at a gap in the invoice sequence can see why it's there.
How do I turn on Use Deletion Reason?
Go to Setup > Company > Enable Features, open the Company subtab, and check Use Deletion Reason under ERP General. Click Save. From then on, deleting a transaction with an auto-generated number asks for a reason.
How do I add my own deletion reasons?
Go to Setup > Accounting > Accounting Lists > New and choose Transaction Deletion Reason. You need to be an administrator or have access to accounting lists. A specific reason like Duplicate entry is easier to report on than Other with a memo.
Why can't I delete an invoice that has a payment applied?
NetSuite won't delete a transaction that other transactions are linked to, and an applied payment or credit links to the invoice. Before you unapply anything, ask whether the invoice should be deleted at all. Once money has been applied, a credit memo or a void usually tells the story better.
Should I delete or void a duplicate invoice?
Delete it when it was entered by mistake, the customer never got it, and nothing is applied to it. Void it when you need to keep the transaction on record. Use a credit memo when the invoice was valid but some or all of the balance has to come off.
How can I see who deleted a transaction and why?
Go to Transactions > Management > Transaction Numbering Audit Log and filter by transaction type. The deleted number shows without a link, with Date Deleted and Deleted By. With Use Deletion Reason on, NetSuite keeps the reason and memo for the deletion too.
Does NetSuite reuse the invoice number after an invoice is deleted?
No. The deleted number stays in the Transaction Numbering Audit Log, and new invoices carry on from the next number in the sequence.