update_invoice
Update an existing invoice. Supports status, dates, notes, discount, shipping, adjustment, salesperson, and terms. Recalculates totals automatically.
What update_invoice does
Updates an existing invoice. Pass only the fields you want to change — every other field is preserved.
This tool is part of InvoiceCave's open MCP server — the most MCP-complete invoicing platform on the market with 102 tools covering invoices, customers, quotes, expenses, payments, recurring schedules, accounting, and reports. Every tool is callable from any MCP-compatible AI client without writing a single line of integration code.
How an AI uses update_invoice
Use this for partial edits — "change the due date to Net 30", "fix the customer's billing address", "update the line item description". The AI can read the current state with the matching get_* tool first if it needs to confirm what it's editing.
You don't call this tool directly — you ask the AI in plain English and the MCP client decides which tool to invoke based on your request. The example prompts below were lifted from real Claude Desktop sessions, so you can use them verbatim or adapt them to your data.
Parameters
update_invoice accepts 14 parameters — 1 required, 13 optional. The AI fills these in from your natural-language prompt; you never write them by hand.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| invoiceId | string | required | Invoice ID to update |
| status | enum | optional | —DraftSentViewedPartially PaidPaidOverdueVoid |
| dueDate | string | optional | New due date (YYYY-MM-DD) |
| customerNotes | string | optional | Notes visible to customer |
| termsAndConditions | string | optional | Terms & conditions text |
| terms | string | optional | Payment terms (e.g. Net 30) |
| subject | string | optional | Invoice subject |
| salesperson | string | optional | Salesperson name |
| discountType | enum | optional | Discount typefixedpercentage |
| discountValue | number | optional | Discount value (amount or percentage) |
| shippingCharges | number | optional | Shipping charges |
| adjustment | number | optional | Adjustment amount (positive or negative) |
| invoiceTemplate | enum | optional | PDF template style override for this invoice.classicmodernminimalboldelegant |
| selectedPaymentMethods | array | optional | Replace the array of payment method IDs shown on this invoice. Pass empty array to show all configured methods. |
Request example
Under the hood, your AI client sends a JSON-RPC 2.0 tools/call request to InvoiceCave's MCP endpoint at https://www.invoicecave.com/api/mcp/mcp. Here's what a update_invoice call looks like:
{
"jsonrpc": "2.0",
"id": 1,
"method": "tools/call",
"params": {
"name": "update_invoice",
"arguments": {
"invoiceId": "inv_a1b2c3d4",
"status": "Draft",
"dueDate": "2026-06-01",
"customerNotes": "Thanks for your business",
"termsAndConditions": "Acme"
}
}
}You won't write this yourself — it's shown so developers can see exactly what the MCP client generates. The arguments object maps 1:1 to the parameters above. Authentication is handled by the Authorization: Bearer header with your API key.
Example AI prompts
Type any of these into Claude Desktop, Claude Code, or Cursor — InvoiceCave's MCP server will route them to update_invoice automatically.
“Update this invoice — change the …”
“Fix the details on that invoice.”
Use it in 30 seconds
Related tools
More from the Invoices category.
list_invoicesList invoices. Optionally filter by status or search by invoice number/customer name.
get_invoiceGet full details of a specific invoice including line items.
create_invoiceCreate a new invoice with line items, optional discount, shipping, adjustment. If the customer does not exist, they will be auto-created. Line item descriptions support multi-line: first line = bold title, lines after \\n = sub-description in lighter text.
send_invoiceMark an invoice as "Sent" and get the shareable public link.
get_invoice_linkGet the shareable public link for an invoice.
delete_invoiceDelete an invoice permanently.
email_invoiceEmail an invoice to the customer with a professional HTML email and PDF attachment. Updates status to Sent if currently Draft.
duplicate_invoiceCreate a copy of an existing invoice as a new Draft. Copies line items, template, payment methods. Status = Draft, paidAmount = 0, balanceDue = total.
FAQ — update_invoice
What is update_invoice?▾
update_invoice is one of 102 tools in InvoiceCave's MCP server. Updates an existing invoice. Pass only the fields you want to change — every other field is preserved. It's invoked automatically when an AI client like Claude or Cursor decides the user's request maps to this action.
Which AI clients can call update_invoice?▾
Any MCP-compatible client. We've tested it with Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and Codex. The MCP protocol is open, so any AI tool that speaks MCP can call this endpoint with a valid InvoiceCave API key.
Is calling update_invoice secure?▾
Yes. Every call is authenticated by the API key you mint in the dashboard, scoped to a single organization, rate-limited per key, and recorded in the audit log with source='mcp'. Sensitive fields (SMTP passwords, encryption keys) are never returned to the AI client.
What parameters does update_invoice take?▾
update_invoice accepts 14 parameters — 1 required (invoiceId) and 13 optional. The AI populates these from your plain-English prompt — see the parameter table and request example above.
Does update_invoice count against any quota?▾
MCP tool calls are unmetered on the free plan up to a generous monthly limit. Once you connect Stripe and start charging your customers, every call still counts against the same per-key rate limit but doesn't add to your bill.
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