Enrollsy handles three core billing tasks automatically: invoice creation, credit reconciliation, and payment collection. This article explains how each process works, when it runs, and what to expect — whether you're setting up a Payment Plan or troubleshooting a billing question. If any terms are unfamiliar as you read, expand the definitions section below.
Payment Terms Definitions
Payment Terms Definitions
Invoice
An invoice is the billing record that connects your business, the customer, and the payment processor. Every invoice in Enrollsy includes:
Created or Posted Date — the date the customer was notified or gained access to pay
Due Date — the date payment is due
Invoice Number — auto-generated or set by an admin
Charge Items — the products or services and their costs
Credit Items — credits or discounts that offset charge items
Total — the sum of all charge and credit items
Paid — the total amount paid against the invoice so far
Amount Due — the total minus any amount already paid
Every invoice has a status:
Current (includes partially paid) — a created or posted invoice with $0.01 or more remaining in the Amount Due
Paid — a created or posted invoice with exactly $0.00 remaining
Future — an invoice tied to a future Payment Event that hasn't been created or posted yet
Payment Plan
A Payment Plan divides the total cost of a Program or Class into one or more Payment Events. Enrollsy automatically creates a Pay-in-Full Payment Plan (with one Payment Event set at the time of enrollment) for every Program or Class.
Additional Payment Plans can be published or unpublished, giving admins control over which plans are visible to customers at enrollment. Plan types include Scheduled Payment Plans, Installment Plans, and Subscription Plans.
Payment Plans are attached to a Program or Class. When someone enrolls and selects a Payment Plan, that plan governs when and how they are billed.
Payment Event
A Payment Event is a scheduled date on which an invoice payment is due. Payment Events are defined within a Payment Plan and drive the automated invoice creation process. They also support settings for invoice reminders and other notification options.
How Enrollsy's Automated System Works
Enrollsy runs three automated billing tasks on a predictable schedule:
Task | Frequency | When | Beginning | Ending |
Invoice Creation | Every 1 hr | Hourly | 12:15 am PT/ 3:15 am ET | N/A |
Credit Reconciliation | Every 1 hr | Hourly | 12:00 am PT/ 3:00 am ET | N/A |
Payment Collection | Twice a Day | Morning & Evening | 5:45 am PT/ 8:45 am ET | 8:45 pm PT/ 11:45 pm ET |
All times are shown in both Pacific and Eastern time — your account displays times in your browser's timezone.
The sections below explain how each task works with practical examples.
Invoice Creation
Invoices are created in two ways: automatically by Enrollsy based on Payment Events in a Payment Plan, or manually by an admin.
Automatically Created Invoices
When an admin creates a Payment Plan with Payment Events, Enrollsy automatically creates and sends invoices according to the schedule set in that plan.
Example:
Suppose you create a Payment Plan with Payment Events occurring monthly on the 5th, from August through May. You also configure invoices to be sent 3 days before each Payment Event.
Once this Payment Plan is saved and attached to a Program or Class, any customer who enrolls and selects this plan will receive an invoice reminder (if auto-pay is on) or an invoice (if auto-pay is off) via SMS and email on the 2nd of every month at 1:30 am PT — three days before the 5th — beginning in August 2023 and ending in May 2024.
Manually Created Invoices
Admins can create invoices manually in three ways:
Clicking the "+" button on the Invoices item in the main left menu
Clicking the "Add Current Invoice" button from within a customer's Account (Billing page, within each Enrollment)
Selecting one or more enrollees from another page and using the bulk transaction button
Current Invoices
When an admin manually creates an invoice, it can be dated in the past, present, or future — but regardless of the due date, manually created invoices are always categorized as Current Invoices immediately upon creation.
Example:
If today is July 24th and you create a manual invoice with a future due date, that invoice immediately becomes a Current Invoice and is payable by the customer inside their Account.
NOTE: Manually generated invoices do not trigger a reminder or send an invoice to the customer for payment. Auto-pay will also not run on invoices created in the past at the time of creation.
Future Invoices
Any invoice added via "Create Invoice" will appear under "Current Invoices" even if the due date is in the future. To create an invoice that appears as a Future Invoice, see How to Create Future Invoices.
Credit Reconciliation
Credits can be applied automatically within the pricing setup of a Program or Class, or manually within a customer's Account. How a credit behaves depends on where it is applied.
Invoice Credits
Credits applied directly to an invoice cannot exceed the total of the charge items on that invoice. Credits applied at the invoice level reduce the invoice's amount due immediately.
Account Credits
Credits applied to a customer's Account can be added at any time and for any amount. Enrollsy's automated system reconciles these credits against open invoices on the schedule shown above. The outcome depends on the relationship between the credit amount and existing invoices:
Scenario | Outcome |
Credit is less than the total of current or future invoices | Invoices are paid down using the credit; a partially paid invoice will remain as the account balance |
Credit is greater than the total of current or future invoices | All invoices are paid down; the account balance will be positive until a new invoice is created |
Credit equals the total of current or future invoices | All invoices are paid down; account balance is $0.00 |
Credit is posted but there are no current or future invoices | Credit is applied in full, resulting in a positive account balance equal to the credit amount (until a new invoice is created) |
Account credits can directly impact whether and when payment collection runs. See the Payment Collection section below for details.
Payment Collection
Enrollsy collects invoice payments in one of three ways: automatically via auto-pay, manually by a customer within their Account, or manually by an admin within a customer's Account.
Automatic Payment Collection (Auto-Pay)
When a customer has a valid payment method on file and auto-pay enabled, Enrollsy automatically collects payment on or after the invoice due date during one of its two daily payment collection windows.
⚠️ Auto-Pay Will Not Run If…
The account balance is under 50¢. Auto-pay ignores balances less than $0.50.
The invoice is more than 3 months overdue — unless there is also a current invoice with a balance due. Auto-pay generally skips older past-due invoices on their own.
The customer does not have a valid payment method on file. Auto-pay requires an active card or bank account to process.
The customer has auto-pay turned off. Auto-pay will not run on accounts where the customer has disabled it.
The invoice was created in the past at the time of manual creation. Auto-pay does not retroactively process invoices with a past creation date at the moment they are added.
⚠️ Warning: Leaving past-due invoices open increases the likelihood of unintentional auto-pay collections. Consolidate overdue balances or create a new payment plan to prevent unintended charges.
The table below shows how invoice creation time relates to when payment is collected. Pay close attention to the invoice created times and how they relate to the payment times:
Invoice Generation Method | Invoice Created Date and Time | Invoice Due Date | Invoice Payment Date and Time |
Automatically from a Payment Plan | Wed Aug 2 @ 1:15 am EST | Sat Aug 5 EST | Sat Aug 5 @ 8:45 am EST |
Manually by an Admin | Wed Aug 2 @ 8:01 am EST | Sat Aug 5 EST | Sat Aug 5 @ 8:45 am EST |
Manually by an Admin | Sat Aug 5 @ 8:29 am EST | Sat Aug 5 EST | Sat Aug 5 @ 8:45 am EST |
Manually by an Admin | Wed Aug 5 @ 8:31 am EST | Sat Aug 5 EST | Sat Aug 5 @ 11:45 pm EST |
Manually by an Admin | Wed Aug 5 @ 11:31 pm EST | Sat Aug 5 EST | Sat Aug 6 @ 8:45 pm EST |
All times are shown in both Pacific and Eastern time — your account displays times in your browser's timezone.
Manually — Customer Pays Within Their Account
Customers can make payments at any time directly within their Account. They can choose to:
Pay their Account Balance (the sum of all Current Invoices, including past-due and partially paid)
Pay specific invoices
Pay a specific amount
Payments made this way are not tied to Enrollsy's automated schedule and post to the account immediately upon success.
Customers with auto-pay turned off can enable it at any time from within their Account, which eliminates the need for them to manually sign in and pay each billing cycle.
Manually — Admin Collects Payment
Admins can collect payment on behalf of a customer directly from the Customer Billing page inside Enrollsy.
Like customer-initiated payments, admin-collected payments are not tied to the automated schedule and post immediately upon success.
Viewing Auto-Pay Status
To see which customers are on auto-pay, go to the Invoices page. The Auto-Pay column shows the payment method on file (ACH or Credit Card) for customers with auto-pay enabled, and displays "Off" for those who do not have it enabled.
NOTE: Customers with auto-pay off can turn it on at any time from within their Account, eliminating the need to sign in and manually pay each cycle.
Best Practices for Payment Configuration
Review overdue invoices regularly. Past-due invoices left open can lead to unintended auto-pay collections, especially as new billing cycles begin.
Consolidate past-due balances. When possible, roll overdue amounts into a new payment plan and remove old invoices to keep accounts clean.
Align schedules with enrollment start dates. For mid-year enrollments, make sure payment schedules only include future payment events — not events that have already passed.
Use the right plan type for the situation. Scheduled Plans, Installment Plans, and Subscription Plans each serve different needs. Choose the plan type that best reflects how and when customers will pay.