> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.dualentry.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # How Custom Templates Work > How DualEntry picks the custom template for each invoice PDF, why a generated PDF keeps its layout, and what custom templates do and don't control. A custom template is a saved layout for customer-facing invoice PDFs. It controls which fields appear on the PDF, where they sit, what their labels say, which language the fixed text uses, and the paper size. You build templates under **Accounting Setup → Custom Templates** and apply them to your organization, a company, or a customer. DualEntry then uses the most specific applicable template every time it renders an invoice PDF. This page explains the model behind that behavior. For the steps, see [How to Create a Custom Template](./how-to-create-a-custom-template) and [How to Apply a Custom Template](./how-to-apply-a-custom-template). ## The system template Every organization starts with one read-only template, **System English Letter**. It is English, Letter-sized, follows your organization's date format, and uses the company logo. You can't edit, rename, or archive it. The system template plays two roles. It is the starting point for new templates: choosing **New** on the Custom Templates list creates an editable copy of it. It is also the final fallback: any invoice that has no other template available renders with it. Because it never changes, it doubles as a reset. If a custom layout goes wrong, clone the system template again rather than trying to undo your edits. ## How DualEntry chooses a template for an invoice DualEntry resolves a template for each invoice by checking three levels from most specific to least specific, then falling back to the system template: 1. The template applied to the invoice's **customer**. 2. The template applied to the invoice's **company**. 3. The template applied to the **organization**. 4. The **System English Letter** template. The first active template found wins. A template that has been archived is skipped, and DualEntry keeps looking at the next level. A customer-level template applies to every invoice for that customer, regardless of which company issues it. This layering mirrors how billing requirements tend to vary. Most organizations have one house layout (organization level). Subsidiaries in different countries often need a local format or language (company level). A few customers have their own requirements, such as a purchase order reference or a specific label, that justify an exception (customer level). Applying templates at the broadest level that works keeps the number of exceptions small. There is no template picker on an individual invoice. If one invoice needs a different layout, apply a template to its customer before you generate the PDF. ## Why a generated PDF keeps its layout The first time you download, bulk download, or email an invoice, DualEntry stores a snapshot of the template it resolved, including the company logo at that moment. Every later PDF for that invoice renders from the snapshot. Viewing the PDF preview alone doesn't create a snapshot. The snapshot exists so an invoice your customer has already received never changes underneath them. If you edit a template, apply a different one, or archive it, invoices that already have a snapshot are unaffected. Only invoices that haven't been downloaded or emailed yet pick up the change. This matters for audit: the PDF in your records matches the PDF the customer received. The tradeoff is that you can't push a layout fix onto invoices you've already sent. If that's required, contact DualEntry support. ## What a custom template controls A custom template controls the invoice PDF's layout and wording: * **Layout**: tiles on a 12-column grid, the fields inside them, and the line-item columns. * **Language**: the fixed text on the PDF, in English or Dutch, plus any custom labels. * **Item text**: translated item names and descriptions, when items have a translation for the template's language. * **Date format and paper size**: A4 or Letter, and any supported date format. * **Logo source**: the company logo or a logo uploaded to the template. Amounts, currency, and number formatting come from the invoice itself. Translations change words only, never quantities, rates, tax, or totals. A custom template doesn't control the invoice email body, the DualEntry interface language, or PDFs for other records such as credit memos, sales orders, and customer statements. Those keep their standard layout. ## Related pages * [How to Create a Custom Template](./how-to-create-a-custom-template): build and edit a layout. * [How to Apply a Custom Template](./how-to-apply-a-custom-template): assign a template to an organization, company, or customer. * [How to Invoice in Another Language](./how-to-invoice-in-another-language): Dutch templates and item translations. * [Custom Templates Reference](./custom-templates-reference): every tile, field, setting, and permission. * [Invoicing and dunning](../invoicing-and-dunning): creating and sending the invoices these templates render. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.