Learn how to create a payment plan.
How does the Payment Plans system work?
Upon registration, an account is assigned to a Payment Plan for their class. The Payment Plan creates a schedule of fees that charge the account the proper amount on the correct day.
At the beginning of every day, the Class Payment Plan (CPP) system runs through active payment plans looking for scheduled fees. New charges are then created on each account's Account Billing Summary.
Recurring Fees
When fees are marked "Recurring," you tell the system to repeatedly charge the fee on a consistent cycle. For example, when a fee is set up to recur "monthly on the 5th", accounts are charged on the 5th day of every month throughout the class session.
We recommend marking a fee as recurring if members need to be charged consistently, with limited exceptions.
First Charge Options
When setting up a recurring fee, you must choose when the first occurrence, or installment, should be charged. Your options are:
Class Start - The first fee is charged to members on their first scheduled class day.
Registration- The first occurrence of the fee is charged and collected at the time of class registration. This functions as a deposit for the class's first charge cycle, and the account is not charged the fee again until the second charge cycle.
Example: If a member registers for a class on December 10th, for a class that runs from Jan 1 - May 15, and the tuition fee is set to a charge cycle of "monthly on the 1st", with the first charge set at "registration":
The member, upon registration, is charged and must pay for the Jan 1 - Jan 31 cycle.
The following tuition fee charge will occur on Feb 1 for the Feb 1 - Feb 28 charge cycle.
Next Charge Date - Charges are rolled into the next billing cycle and will be posted to an account when the next round of charges comes through. Proration of these charges does not occur.
Proration of Recurring Fees
You may wish to prorate recurring fees if students can join a class partway through a fee's charge cycle.
There are several ways of calculating the cost per day. See Payment Plan's Monthly Charge Cycle Proration Methods to learn more.
Due Dates of Recurring Fees
Every charge must have a due date. Due dates determine when the billing manager automatically collects electronic payments for charges from accounts for reporting and late fee assessments when charges are considered overdue. There are two options:
Billing Manager Default - Due dates are assigned based on the global due plan settings by going from Billing Manager > Billing Setup > Due Plan.
Class End - The due date of each fee's occurrence is assigned to the final day of the class session.
Overriding Recurring Fee Installments
Individual installments of a recurring fee's charge amounts, dates, and payment due dates can all be overridden by clicking on the installment in the Payment Plan Grid View. See How to Override Installments of a Recurring Fee for more information.
Non-Recurring Fees
Whereas recurring fees charge accounts based on defined rules, non-recurring fees are set up based on the amount and date you provide.
Choose this option if the fee only needs to be charged once or if it is charged multiple times on an inconsistent schedule. Non-recurring fees are a good option if a specific payment plan is intended to provide "pay upfront" or "pay in 2 installments" registration options for parents.
Non-Recurring Charge Dates
To set up a non-recurring fee, you must specify the dates or installments when the fee should be charged and for how much. You have a few options as to when a fee can be charged:
Registration Charge Date - To be used when registrants should be charged and then pay for class fees at the time of registration. If a student registers after the class start date, the payment can be prorated. This option is ideal for per-member registration fees or to collect deposits for a class fee before the session starts.
Class Start Charge Date - Fees are charged on or after the student's first class day. These installments can be assigned due dates based on the Billing Manager Due Plan settings or the final day of a class session. If a student registers after the class start date, the payment can be prorated. If you wish to wait to charge an installment of a fee once the class starts, this option is ideal.
Specific Charge Date - This option allows you to create installments on any number of specific dates before the beginning of or during the current class session. Installments charged on a specific date can be set to be due based on the Billing Manager Due Plan setting, the final day of a class session, or on another later specified date. These installments cannot be prorated. Members that register for a class after the specific date installment has occurred will not be charged for that installment. If you don't have or don't need to prorate for late registrants and have particular requirements about when a fee installment should be charged and due, use this option.