You can receive multiple orders at one time, if the orders do not require additional data. If Ariba Buyer determines that any orders require asset or other data, it prompts you to enter receipts for those orders individually.

If a requisition contains line items that do not require a receipt (as configured by your system administrator), those line items have a status of Ordered, and not Received, when the requisition is fully approved. The status of the line items does not change during the procurement process; Ordered is the final status of those line items.

The receiving process starts when an order has been sent to a supplier and the supplier ships goods in exchange. When the shipment arrives, the user who receives those items submits a receipt to acknowledge that the items have arrived. Depending on your company's business rules, receiving can be done by a Central Receiver or by the user who requested an item.

Receiving ordered items involves these basic steps (see the process flow diagram for a detailed description of the process):

1. The user receives ordered items and verifies that they match those specified in the original request.
2. On the Home page, the user clicks Receive in the "swoosh" or central image, or Purchase Orders in the Navigation Panel, to search for and select the order associated with the items received.

   If you have overdue receipts and you are the first approver in the approval flow for those receipts, an Overdue Receipts link flashes in the To Do section of the Navigation Panel. The Receive link is always available for you to review or edit older receipts, if necessary.

3. The user enters the receipt details, which can include partial receipts and rejections, and then submits the receipt for approval.
4. Approvers approve or deny the receipt (and receipt tracker, if applicable). If the receipt is denied, the user must take appropriate action to resolve the problem, and continue the receiving process until all items are received or until the order is closed short.
5. When all items are received, the order status change from Receiving to Received and the process is finished.