What is a transfer order?
A transfer order (TO) moves inventory from one warehouse to another when there is a lead time — that is, a gap between when stock leaves the source location and when it arrives at the destination. Unlike an instant inventory transfer (found under Manage → Locations), a TO:
- Tracks inventory in transit during the shipping window
- Automatically creates a linked purchase order (for the receiving side) and a sales order (for the shipping side) in the background
- Updates your incoming and pending inventory counts immediately upon posting
- Moves the FIFO cost layers of the transferred items to the destination warehouse
Use a transfer order any time stock will not arrive at the destination on the same day it leaves the source.
Does a warehouse group need to be associated with a channel?
Yes. When creating a transfer order, the Fulfillment Source field requires you to select a Fulfillment Channel (or an End-to-End Channel) — not a warehouse group directly. Luminous uses the channel to determine which warehouse group to deduct inventory from.
The selected channel must have a warehouse group with a default warehouse configured. If you choose a channel that does not have an associated warehouse, the form will display the error:
Channel must have an associated warehouse
and will prevent you from saving the order.
What this means in practice
| Scenario | What to do |
|---|---|
| You have one source warehouse | Create one Fulfillment Channel linked to the warehouse group for that warehouse, then select it as the Fulfillment Source. |
| You have multiple source warehouses you transfer from | Create a separate Fulfillment Channel for each source warehouse group. Each TO picks the channel that matches the warehouse you are shipping from. |
| Your channel has no warehouse group set | Update the channel to add a warehouse group and default warehouse before creating the transfer order. |
Note: Transfer Orders previously let you select a warehouse group directly. That was replaced with channel selection to keep transfer order logic consistent with how sales orders are fulfilled. See Transfer Order Update for full background on this change.
Key fields when creating a transfer order
- Fulfillment Source (required) — the Fulfillment Channel (with an associated warehouse group) that will provide the inventory
- Delivery Destination (required) — the warehouse that will receive the transferred stock
- Shipping Method (required) — the form cannot be saved without this
- Order Date and Arrival Date (required) — the arrival date drives auto-receive if that option is enabled
- Order # — auto-generated as
TO-{id}if left blank
Auto-receive and auto-ship options
Three optional checkboxes control how Luminous handles the receiving side of the transfer:
- Auto-Receive Transfer Order on Arrival Date — automatically creates a receiving report entry for the linked PO on the arrival date
- Open Receiving Report Form on Close — opens the receiving report form immediately after you save the TO
- Auto Mark Sales Order as Shipped — marks the linked SO as shipped on a specified ship date; if you leave this unchecked, you must manually mark the SO as shipped before inventory deducts from the source warehouse
How to set up a channel for a transfer order
- Go to Manage → Channels and create or edit a Fulfillment Channel.
- Assign a warehouse group to the channel and confirm a default warehouse is set within that group.
- Return to Inventory → Transfer Orders → Add New Transfer Order and select that channel as the Fulfillment Source.
For step-by-step transfer order creation instructions, see How to create transfer orders in Luminous.
For help setting up warehouse groups and default warehouses, see How to Create and Manage Warehouses and Warehouse Groups in Luminous.