Core Concepts
Term | Meaning |
Billing start strategy | Controls when a first payment (of any type) falls due |
First payment strategy | Controls what is actually collected when the first payment is taken |
Billing start date | The configured date billing should begin when using the On Date billing strategy. |
Billing anchor day | Optional day of month used to align future subscription payments. Ideal for UK clubs who are used to direct debit payments on a given day of the month. |
Billing ends on | The configured date that subscriptions should be automatically ended by the system |
Additional fees | Membership fees such as registration fees or levies. These can be upfront or recurring. |
Subscription payment | The regular membership recurring charge is separate from any upfront fee. |
Billing Start Strategies
Immediate
Billing begins at checkout.
Use this when there is no membership registration ahead of a season start date and the customer should pay immediately.
Effects:
Checkout date becomes the effective billing start date.
If a subscription is charged now, the next recurring payment is normally one billing interval (month) after the checkout date.
If a billing anchor is configured then the next payment aligns to the anchor instead of the checkout date.
On Date
Billing begins on a configured date.
Use this when members may register before a given season starts.
Effects:
Before the billing start date checkout will collect only a payment method. Actual payments will be deferred.
On or after the billing start date, checkout will charge immediately.
With a billing anchor, future recurring payments align to the anchor.
First Payment Strategies
Standard
The first payment is the regular membership subscription payment.
Use this when there are no upfront additional fees. Recurring fees are allowed and the product should behave like a normal recurring subscription.
Effects:
Before billing start date: no charge today, payment method setup only.
On or after billing start date: membership is charged now.
Important restriction:
Standard cannot be used when non-recurring (upfront) additional fees are configured on a membership product.
Fees Only
The first payment is fees only. The recurring subscription payment is deferred.
Use this when:
Registration or other upfront fees should be collected first.
Membership subscription should start later.
The first checkout should not charge the membership subscription.
Effects:
Before billing start date: no charge today.
On or after billing start date: fees are due today, subscription remains deferred.
Subscription should begin on the next recurring period or resolved billing anchor.
Fees Only intentionally does not charge a subscription during initial checkout. If a member signs up after the billing start date, they still pay only fees first.
The first membership subscription payment is deferred to the next relevant recurring date.
Needs care:
Do not use Fees Only when there are no fees to collect.
Fees And Subscription
The first payment includes both additional fees and a membership subscription payment.
Use this when fees and membership should be paid together in the first payment
Effects:
Before billing start date: no charge today; payment method setup only.
On or after billing start date: fees and membership are charged now.
Future recurring payments are for membership subscription only.
Important behavior:
Unlike Fees Only this strategy immediate charges for subscription once billing has started.
If billing started June 1 and checkout is June 9, the member pays fees and membership on June 9.
Billing Anchor Day
A billing anchor day aligns future recurring payments to a fixed monthly day. Use this with clubs who want to collect the vast majority of their payments on a particular day each month. Billing Anchors are only supported for packages with Monthly billing.
Example:
Billing start date: June 1
Checkout date: June 9
Billing anchor day: 1
Charged today: June 9
Next recurring payment: July 1
Without an anchor:
Charged today: June 9
Next recurring payment: July 9
Short month behavior:
If the anchor is day 31, shorter months use the final day of the month.
Example: anchor 31 in February becomes February 28 or February 29.
Billing Ends On
If set then a scheduled job is created at checkout that will end the recurring membership subscription on that date. This is useful for UK clubs that have defined the final payment date for their seasons. If using with a Billing Anchor Day then it is best to set the end date to the last day of the month