If your AP team keeps entering identical vendor invoices every month — same GL account, same descriptions, same dimensions — you’re bleeding time and inviting posting errors. Many organizations upgrading from Dynamics NAV to Business Central face that pain point straight out of the gate. Fortunately, Business Central already gives you a lifeline: by using Configuration (Config) Packages and Excel, you can auto-generate Standard Vendor Purchase Codes (a.k.a. Recurring Purchase Lines) from your posted history.
And there’s something even more powerful; Microsoft’s Payables Agent promises to push this automation further by drawing invoices from email, applying AI-driven mapping, and creating drafts in BC with minimal manual intervention. I don’t think it is quite ready for prime time for most companies, but I am excited for what the future will bring. Learn more at: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/release-plan/2025wave1/smb/dynamics365-business-central/automate-payables-processes-payables-agent.
In the interim, let’s explore how to automate invoice creation reliably right now!
Step 1 – Export the Right Data from NAV (or BC)
For our upgrade scenario, we started in Dynamics NAV using a Config Package for Table 123 – Purch. Inv. Line. If you’re working directly in Business Central, you can export similar data from the Purchase Line table. You don’t need to be upgrading to make this process work.
Include these fields:
– Document No.
– Line No.
– Buy-from Vendor No.
– Type
– No. (GL Account)
– Description
– Shortcut Dimension 1 Code
– Shortcut Dimension 2 Code
– Posting Date
Apply a Posting Date filter (no older than two years) to keep data current and manageable. Then export the Config Package to Excel.
Step 2 – Identify Unique Vendor and GL Patterns
Sort your data by:
1. Buy-from Vendor No.
2. No. (GL Account)
This quickly reveals how each vendor’s purchases post. In our case, every vendor consistently posted to the same GL account — ideal for automation.
Add a new column called Primary Key:
=CONCAT(Buy-from Vendor No., No., Shortcut Dimension 1 Code)
Use Excel’s Remove Duplicates function to reduce the list to one record per unique vendor/GL/dimension combination. We quickly determined that we didn’t need to use Shortcut Dimension 1 Code as part of our Primary Key, so we eliminated it.. If you are using Dimensions you may not find this to be case, in fact you may need to extend your key to additional dimensions. Something to consider.
Step 3 – Create Descriptions and Codes for Import
Add two more columns to make your import meaningful and user-friendly:
Description:
=CONCAT(“Vendor “, “-“,Buy-from Vendor No., “ “,” GL “, “-“,No., ” “, Description)
Code:
=CONCAT(Buy-from Vendor No., “_”, No.)
This gives each combination a readable name and a consistent internal code used for setting up Standard Purchase Codes.
Step 4 – Populate the Standard Purchase Tables
Using the cleaned list, populate the following tables in Excel for import to BC:
– Table 173 – Standard Purchase Code Header
– Table 174 – Standard Purchase Code Line
– Table 175 – Standard Vendor Purchase Code
Copy your values into a new Config Package in Business Central or use Edit in Excel directly.
Step 5 – Import and Enable Automatic Insertion
Import your Config Package into Business Central, validate, and apply it to create and assign Standard Purchase Codes to vendors.
Here’s the powerful part: In Business Central, you can decide whether to automatically insert the recurring purchase lines when creating a purchase document for a vendor.
This is controlled by the “Insert Recurring Lines” field on the vendor record. You can choose:
– Manual
– Automatic
– Always Ask
In our case, we selected Automatic for Purchase Invoices. Whenever a purchase invoice is created for a vendor linked to a Standard Purchase Code, the related recurring lines automatically appear on the document. The AP team simply reviews, updates quantities or amounts if needed, and posts. What used to take minutes per invoice now takes seconds.
Why This Approach Works
– Perfect for Upgrades: During a NAV to BC upgrade, it preserves your real posting patterns.
– Applicable Anytime: The same process works with current BC data, no historical export required.
– Efficiency: Reduces repetitive coding and data entry.
– Consistency: Every vendor is coded the same way every time.
– Control: Optional automation per vendor — insert automatically or on request.
– Auditability: Reduces GL posting variation for cleaner financial reports.
Looking Ahead – Payables Agent and the Future of AP Automation
The new Payables Agent feature in Business Central, still in its early development, takes this concept even further. It’s designed to use AI to read vendor invoices from email, automatically recognize vendors, match accounts, and create draft purchase invoices for review. Combined with your Standard Vendor Purchase Codes, this will move AP from rule-based to truly intelligent automation — a natural next step for any company already optimizing its purchase process. Read more about the Payables Agent here: Automate payables processes with the Payables Agent
Conclusion
Whether you’re upgrading from NAV to Business Central or optimizing an existing BC implementation, Configuration Packages let you turn your posted purchase history into structured, reusable automation. The result is cleaner data, faster entry, and fewer errors. A Righter Way™ to handle recurring vendor invoices.
