You can use the invoicing system to manage recurring payments. This is done by creating a subscription record.
Each subscription has a schedule which determines the frequency that invoices are sent out, the number of invoices that will be sent, and the amount of each invoice. Subscriptions can have an immediate payment amount as well as the scheduled payments. If the subscription is for a set number of invoices (what is known as a fixed term) then an additional final payment can also be set.
Some example schedules are as follows:
• Regular payments of $95.00 every month
• An initial payment of $200.00, followed by regular payments of $75.00 every 6 weeks.
• 11 monthly payments of $80.00, followed by a final payment of $120.00
One of the main advantages of using an invoice based subscription system over standard recurring payment methods is that it allows the customer the option to use a different card for any given payment should they need to do so – for example the card they normally use may of expired, or may have been replaced. As each instalment is processed as a full e-commerce authorised transaction, as opposed to a continuous-authority transaction, there is also a much reduced chargeback risk.
Creating a new subscription
When you click on the ‘Add new subscription’ menu option you will be shown a page where you enter the details of the payment schedule, and the details of the customer.
Subscription invoices are created using Layout 1 (Basic invoice with a simple item and cost entry for each line). The item description used will be the details entered at the top of the ‘Add new subscription’ page, with the invoice amount being set according to the schedule.
Please provide as much of the customer details as possible. The information supplied will be displayed within the invoice email, and will also be used to pre-populate the payment form making it quicker and easier for the customer to complete the payment process.
When the subscription is created, if there is any immediate payment due an invoice will be generated at that point, otherwise the first invoice will be generated as per the instalment date given.
Each instalment invoice will be generated a few days before the actual due date. This gives the customer advanced notice of when the payment is due.
Existing subscriptions
Click on the ‘Existing subscriptions’ menu option to view a list of your existing subscriptions, this will show you a summary of each one.
Click on the ID of a subscription to see the complete details, including a list of all invoices generated.
You can click on an individual invoice title to view that invoice, at which point you will have the option to re-send that invoice. If the invoice has been paid, then you can click on the transaction ID to view the payment details.