Clio Manage supports working with multiple currencies for creating activities, billing, reporting, recording bank transactions, and more. This enables you to bill in the currency your client expects, without manual conversion on individual entries.
Note: Administrators can manage the default currency and add, edit, and delete currencies.
Important: Multiple currencies are not yet compatible with Clio Accounting.
Change the default currency
When you set the default currency and use only one currency, any future change to this default currency changes the currency symbol in Clio Manage, but the change will not apply to any activities or expenses that were already billed, nor any previously recorded payments.
Note: You cannot change the default currency once you add additional currencies.
- Go to Settings > Billing > General.
- Scroll to the Currencies section and for Default currency, select the new currency.
- Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Save changes.
Add a currency
Important: Once you add and use a second currency, multi-currency billing cannot be turned off, the added currency cannot be removed, your default currency locks, and the currency of an invoice cannot be changed.
Note: If your firm previously edited bills for certain matters to change the currency symbol on the bills itself, adding a currency will cause a mismatch between your recorded activities/expenses and the payments of those bills for those activities/expenses. This happens because editing the currency on a bill does not change the currency of the activity or expense recorded in Clio Manage (which will continue to be in your default currency). When you add a currency, you will no longer be able to continue editing the currency on bills as you did before. You will also not be able to change the currency for these matters due to the fact that their expenses and activities have already been recorded in the original currency used by your firm.
If you choose to start using the multiple currencies feature, you can handle this scenario in the following way:
- Create a new matter for your client and set the currency of the matter to your client’s preference. This leaves your previous historical data intact while allows your firm to take full advantage of Clio’s multiple currency feature..
- Go to Settings > Billing > General.
- Under Currencies, click + Add currency.
- Read the notice on the Add missing currencies modal, then check the box to confirm that you understand the effects of adding a currency.
- Select the currency.
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Choose how to use the currency when recording time entries.
- When it's a [your selected currency] matter billing preference, also record time in [your selected currency]: When you choose this option, any time entry created for a matter where the billing preference is set to your selected currency will create the time entry in the same selected currency.
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When it's a [your selected currency] matter billing preference, record time in the default billing currency: When you choose this option, any time entry created for a matter where the billing preference is set to your selected currency will have the time entry be created in the default currency.
ExampleIf your firm is in the US and you use a default currency of USD, but you have a client in Canada, you may set the client’s matter’s billing preference to CAD. If you choose this option, any time entry that you create for your client (in CAD) will be converted to your firm’s default currency of USD.
If necessary, also select the conversion rate to use for billing.
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Choose how to use the currency when recording expense entries.
- Bill [your selected currency] expenses in [your selected currency] without converting to the matter billing currency: When you choose this option, any expense entry created for a matter will remain in that currency.
- Bill [your selected currency] expenses by converting them to the matter billing currency: When you choose this option, any expense entry created for a will be converted to the billing currency set for the matter.
If necessary, also select the conversion rate to use for billing. You can choose to use the market rate based on the date of expense, the market rate on the bill issue date, or require a rate to be selected/provided on the date you record the expense.
- Click Add.
- At the bottom of the screen, click Save changes.
Tip: For example, a firm with a default currency of USD can add CAD as a currency. If that firm selects When it's a CAD matter billing preference, record time in the default billing currency every time an entry is created on a CAD matter, it converts to USD.
Note: If your firm integrates with a third-party accounting product, confirm your sync settings support multiple currencies before you add one here. Turn on currency features in QuickBooks Online or Xero. Confirm any other third-party accounting integration supports multiple currencies.
Edit a currency's options
You can update the options on any currency you added.
- Go to Settings > Billing > General
- Scroll to the Currencies section.
- In the Other currencies table, click the pencil icon for the currency and update its options.
Important: Editing currency settings may overwrite matter billing preferences. Clio Manage notifies you when they do. For example, switching from recording time in your added currency to recording time in the default currency clears all custom rates previously added to matters with the currency. If you need to update custom rates, a matter notification banner appears as a reminder to review its billing preference.
Remove a currency
You can remove a currency your firm added as long as no records use it.
- Go to Settings > Billing > General.
- Scroll to the Currencies section.
- Click the trash can icon for the currency.
Note: A currency used for billing or accounting activities cannot be deleted, even after you delete the records created in it.
Up next
Configure General Bill Settings: Set the PDF page size, bill sending options, LEDES billing, and other general bill preferences.