# Members' dues: setting up, pausing and credit

> Set up a member's recurring payments from their record, pause or resume collection, change their payment method and add account credit.

A member's dues are collected by a payment schedule built from their membership plan. You manage it from the **Payments** card in the details column of the member's record. The schedule itself also shows in **Payments**, on the **Schedules** tab (see **Payment schedules and retries**).

Your business's **Payments account** needs to be set up first. See **Setting up payments - card and bank debit**. To set up or change a member's dues, you need a role that can manage members' billing. Without it, a card with no billing yet reads **Adding billing needs the billing permission.**, and some roles see **Billing details are restricted for your role.** instead of the amounts.

## Add a membership plan

The member needs a membership plan on their record first. Then:

1. Open the member and find the **Payments** card. It reads **No membership plan billing yet**.
2. Select **Add membership plan**.
3. The member's plan shows at the top. If the plan has more than one billing option, choose one under **Billing**.
4. Set the **First billing date**. It defaults to today and can't be earlier.
5. If the member belongs to an organisation, choose under **Bill to** whether to bill the person or the organisation.
6. Under **How they pay**, choose:
   - **Send invoices to pay** - each cycle issues an invoice for them to pay.
   - **Charge a saved method automatically** - each cycle charges a payment method on file. Pick it under **Payment method**, or choose **Attach one later**.
   - **Paid outside Prevarro** - the member holds the plan but pays you another way, so Prevarro doesn't invoice or charge them.
7. Select **Start billing**. If the first billing date is later than today, the button reads **Schedule billing**.

A plan that starts later shows **Billing starts** with its first billing date under the card's buttons until its first cycle's invoice is raised.

No payment link is sent from here. If you chose **Attach one later**, the card shows **No payment method on file yet** until one is added. To ask the member for one, select **Change**, then **Send update link**.

If the plan needs a payment method before its free trial starts, setup here needs a method on file. To send the member a card link instead, start them from **Payments → Schedules** with **Start from a membership plan**.

## What the card shows

Once dues are set up, the **Payments** card shows the payment method, the **Amount**, the date they're **Paid through** and the **Next charge**. It also shows their **Last payment**, and their **Account credit** if they have any. Select the **Invoices** button to see the invoices billed to them.

The card also tells you when something needs attention:

- **Overdue - in dunning** - a payment failed and is being retried, with which retry it's on and when the next one is. Select **Send update link** to ask the member for a new payment method.
- A card that's about to expire shows when it expires. Select **Send link** to ask for a new one before it fails.
- **Membership open - no active billing** - the schedule was cancelled in **Payments**, but the membership is still open. Select **Add membership plan** to start billing again.

For why a payment failed, see **Why did a payment fail?**.

## Pause and resume

1. Select **Pause**.
2. Read what will happen, then select **Pause membership**.

If the member is paid up, their paid period runs out first: collection pauses on the next billing date, and the card shows **Collection pauses on** with that date. Until then, **Withdraw pause** keeps collection going. If a payment is failing, collection stops straight away and the retries are held until you resume. Either way, the dialog notes that the member's access continues.

While paused, the card shows **Collection paused**. To restart:

1. Select **Resume**.
2. Leave **Resume from** on today and select **Resume membership**, or pick a later date and select **Set resume date**.

The dialog says when collection restarts. A held payment is retried, and otherwise billing restarts at the next billing date. A resume date you've set shows on the card, and you can remove it with **Withdraw resume date**.

## Change the payment method

Select **Change** beside the payment method. In **Change payment method**, pick another method the member has on file and select **Save**, or select **Send update link** to send them a secure link to add a new one. The link goes by email and text, to whichever of those their record has.

## Add account credit

1. Select **Add credit**.
2. Enter the amount. The label says whether it's tax included or before tax, following how your business enters prices.
3. Pick a **Reason**: **Goodwill**, **Quality issue**, **Wrong amount**, **Scope change**, **Duplicate charge** or **Other**.
4. Add a note if you like. It's kept on the member's activity.
5. Select **Add credit**.

As the dialog says, the credit comes off the member's next invoices until it's used up. It never expires and isn't paid out as cash. If you charged a member twice or too much, they may be entitled to their money back, so offer a refund if they ask. The card's header shows the credit left.

To void credit, open **Payments → Customers** and open the customer. Under **Account credit**, select the void button beside the credit, give a reason under **Why it is voided** and select **Void credit**. The unused credit stops coming off invoices, and credit already used stays on its invoices. You need a role that can manage payment schedules.

## Extend a trial

If the member is on a trial, or their trial has ended, and nothing has been charged yet, select **Extend trial**. Pick the **New trial end** and select **Extend trial to** with the date. If the trial has already ended, the new end must be after today, and they're back on trial until then.