Recurring invoices

A recurring invoice is a schedule for one client: what each invoice carries, how often it's made, and what happens to it once it's made. AspirePro makes each invoice on its date, through the same path as any invoice you create by hand, so numbering, tax, Pay now and QuickBooks all behave the same — and one that sends automatically sends the way your organization sends invoices.

Where to find them#

Finance → Recurring invoices lists every client's schedules, with filters, saved views and the columns you choose. The Recurring button on Finance → Invoices opens it too.
A client's Finance tab has a Recurring tab with just that client's schedules, and a New recurring invoice button that starts one for them.

Setting one up#

Choose New recurring invoice and fill in:

Client and a name for yourself (the client doesn't see the name).
Agreement (optional). Bill the agreement's fee adds the fee as a line, the same as on an invoice. A prepaid block's price is never billed on a schedule (it bills once, or by the hour), so the option isn't offered for one. A one-time fee bills once: the first invoice carries it, and a later run stops and tells you it's already billed — bill it again by hand from an invoice if that's what you mean. Left as it is, it follows the agreement: each invoice carries the agreement's name and fee as they are on the day, so change the agreement and the next invoice follows. Change the line's wording or price and it keeps what you set. Every invoice a schedule makes is on one agreement — the schedule's (or none) — never an agreement per line; you can change a made invoice from its own Agreement field.
Billing period — which month each invoice is for: the month it's made, the next month (billed in advance — an invoice made before the month starts, for that month), or the month before (billed in arrears). The form lists the next few invoices with the month each is for, so you can check it lines up. An agreement fee's line carries that month too. (This applies to invoices AspirePro makes. Invoices QuickBooks or Xero make from their own templates count for the month they're dated, unless their agreement's Invoices count for says otherwise.)
Lines — the same lines as an invoice: products and services From catalog, or anything typed, each with its quantity, rate and Taxable. With QuickBooks or Xero connected, Posts to under each line chooses the QuickBooks product or service (or Xero sales account) it posts to — automatic until you choose. Each invoice the schedule makes carries these lines and their choices, and a recurring invoice run in QuickBooks or Xero sends each line where it was chosen to post. Templates brought in from QuickBooks or Xero keep each line's product or account.
When — every n weeks, months or years; for months and years, the day of the month (or the last day). A day the month doesn't have (the 31st in April) is that month's last day. The form shows the next three dates.
Ends — never, on a date, or after a number of invoices.
Sales tax rate — when AspirePro works out sales tax, the rate added on the lines marked Tax (a tax-exempt client is never taxed). When QuickBooks or Xero works out tax, they do it from those lines when each invoice is sent.
Each invoice — a draft for you to review and send, or sent to the client automatically. An invoice sent automatically goes the way your organization sends invoices — Who emails your invoices on System → Finance settings → Invoices — exactly as pressing Send on the invoice would, and the form says which way that is:
AspirePro (our PDF and email) — AspirePro's PDF and email go to the addresses you list, with an optional Cc and message. With QuickBooks connected, Put it in QuickBooks when it's sent (on by default) adds each invoice to QuickBooks before the email goes, so the client gets QuickBooks' Pay now link. Switch it off and this schedule's invoices aren't copied to QuickBooks for being sent, even when the invoices you send by hand go there — only when QuickBooks works out their sales tax, or Pay now is taken by QuickBooks Payments (the tax and the pay link come from QuickBooks' copy).
QuickBooks — each invoice is added to QuickBooks with your addresses as its email, and QuickBooks emails it with its own Pay now link. QuickBooks emails at most 100 characters of addresses (To and Cc each); a schedule whose addresses would be cut is refused when you save it, and an invoice that would be is made as a draft and not sent, with the reason.
Stripe or Xero — each invoice goes through Stripe (which emails the client's Stripe customer) or into Xero (which emails the Xero contact). The addresses you list are optional then, and kept for when invoices go out by email. A draft is copied to QuickBooks the way any invoice is, once you send it. Change the organization's setting and every schedule follows from its next invoice.
Clients can pay online by (when Pay now is on, or Stripe is connected) — card or bank transfer, bank transfer only, or card only, for every invoice it makes; or leave it to Finance settings. A QuickBooks recurring invoice carries it too; Xero's repeating invoices have no such setting.

A start date already in the past starts from the next date that's due — AspirePro never back-bills the dates before you set it up.

Recurring invoices in QuickBooks#

With QuickBooks connected, its recurring invoices (Sales → Recurring transactions there) show in the same list, marked Runs in QuickBooks. They're brought in every four hours, and straight away with Refresh on the list. QuickBooks makes, numbers, taxes and sends each of those invoices itself, and they show under their recurring invoice here as they arrive.

A QuickBooks recurring invoice whose customer isn't linked to a client here is left out — the refresh names it. Link the customer on the client's Finance → Integrations tab, then refresh.
Set one up in QuickBooks from here: choose QuickBooks makes each invoice under Runs in when you set it up.
Edit — QuickBooks doesn't let other apps change a recurring invoice, so saving replaces it there: AspirePro deletes the old one, checks it's gone, then makes the new one. The two never both run. If QuickBooks refuses to delete it (for example, "it has linked transactions"), nothing changes there and Finance → Sync asks you what to do.
End deletes it in QuickBooks.
Run it in AspirePro moves it here: AspirePro deletes it in QuickBooks first and checks it's gone, then makes each invoice from the next date QuickBooks hadn't billed — with AspirePro's numbering, tax and Pay now, and copied to QuickBooks when sent. If it can't be deleted, it stays in QuickBooks.
An agreement's fee on a QuickBooks recurring invoice is the fee as it is when you save — QuickBooks can't follow the agreement. Save it again after the agreement changes.
Whose version counts. A recurring invoice you set up in QuickBooks from here is AspirePro's: bringing it in every four hours only reads back what QuickBooks is doing with it (paused, its next date, the invoices it made), never its lines, fee, name, recipients or notes. When QuickBooks' copy says something else — a price changed there, or the agreement's fee moved on since you saved — the list shows QuickBooks has a different copy and the recurring invoice's page lists the differences. Open Edit and save to update QuickBooks with AspirePro's version. One that started in QuickBooks is QuickBooks': each time it's brought in, it's updated here from QuickBooks.
A fee that became a plain line. Before AspirePro kept its own version, bringing it in from QuickBooks could turn an agreement's fee into an ordinary line with the agreement's name. That line no longer follows the agreement, and Bill the agreement's fee would add the fee a second time. AspirePro doesn't guess which line was the fee: the recurring invoice's page points out a line named like its agreement. If it's the fee, take the line off and choose Bill the agreement's fee; if it isn't, rename it.
If the agreement whose fee it bills is archived while a change is on its way, the change is held rather than made without the fee: the old recurring invoice keeps running in QuickBooks and Finance → Sync asks you what to do.

Repeating invoices in Xero#

With Xero connected, its repeating invoices show the same way, marked Runs in Xero, and can be set up, changed (replaced — Xero can't edit one either), ended or moved to AspirePro from here.

Xero runs a repeating invoice on its start date's day of the month, every n weeks or months (a year is 12 months).
A draft for you to review is a Xero repeating invoice in draft: Xero makes draft invoices to approve. Sent automatically is approved for sending: Xero emails each invoice to the Xero contact's email address.
The payment terms become Xero's "days after the invoice date".
The invoices Xero makes come in with the client's other Xero invoices and show under the recurring invoice that made them.
A Xero repeating invoice whose contact isn't linked to a client here is left out, and the refresh names it.
Whose version counts works as it does for QuickBooks. One you set up in Xero from here is AspirePro's: the refresh brings back its next date, never its lines, fee, recipients or whether it emails. When Xero's copy says something else, the list shows Xero has a different copy and the page lists the differences — save it here to update Xero with AspirePro's version. One that started in Xero is Xero's: each refresh updates it here from Xero.

Stripe subscriptions#

With Stripe connected, each subscription linked to an agreement shows as a recurring invoice marked Runs in Stripe — its amount, how often, and the next billing date. Stripe bills it, and its invoices stay in Stripe. Change it the way you always have: its amount on the agreement goes to Stripe. It can't be paused, changed or ended from the recurring invoice. Unlinking the subscription from the agreement ends it here.

Two schedules billing one client#

Before AspirePro makes an invoice, it checks for a live QuickBooks or Xero recurring invoice, or a Stripe subscription, billing the same client a similar amount (within a quarter). If there is one, the invoice is held — nothing is made — and Finance → Sync shows "Two schedules bill this client" with three choices:

Keep AspirePro's — the QuickBooks or Xero one is deleted, and once it's gone the held invoice is made. (Not offered for a Stripe subscription: cancel that in Stripe or on the agreement.)
Keep QuickBooks' (or Xero's, or Stripe's) — AspirePro's recurring invoice ends; the held invoice is never made.
They bill different things — keep both — the held invoice is made now, and they aren't flagged again.

When invoices are made#

Each organization's recurring invoices are made once a day, from the hour set on System → Finance settings → Recurring (6:00 AM by default, in your organization's time zone). Each invoice is dated its schedule date.

A period is only ever billed once. If AspirePro was down for a while, it catches up the missed dates when it's back; running again the same day finds nothing new.

Pausing, resuming and ending#

Pause stops new invoices. Resume picks up from today — the dates it was paused for are not billed afterwards.
End (in the ⋯ menu, under Edit) stops it for good. Invoices it already made are untouched. Delete, last in that menu, stops it and takes it off the list.
Make next invoice now makes the next date's invoice straight away (as a draft or sent, as the schedule says), and the schedule moves on to the date after.
Changing how often it runs, or its day, takes effect from the next date that hasn't been billed.

Once a schedule has made invoices, its client stays the same — end it and set up a new one to bill someone else.

When something goes wrong#

The recurring invoice's page lists every invoice it made, with what happened:

Sent or Draft made — all went well.
Made, not sent — the invoice exists as a draft, but it couldn't go (for example, no one to send to, QuickBooks couldn't take it, the client isn't linked to a Stripe customer or Xero contact, or QuickBooks would have cut the addresses). Open the invoice and send it.
May have gone — the invoice was made and handed to the invoice mailbox, which didn't answer in time, so it may have reached the client. It isn't sent again by itself. Check the mailbox's Sent folder, then on the invoice choose Mark as sent (it went) or It didn't go.
Nothing made — the invoice couldn't be made (for example, the client is archived). Fix the reason, then choose Try again: it makes that same period's invoice, never a second one.
Held back — another system's recurring invoice bills the same client (see above). Decide on Finance → Sync, or Try again once it's sorted.

Finance managers are notified when a recurring invoice isn't made, isn't sent, or may have gone (Notification preferences → Finance).

Prox#

Prox can set up a recurring invoice, pause, resume or end one, and make the next draft now. It only ever makes drafts — sending invoices to clients automatically is something a person turns on, from the recurring invoice's page.

Permissions#

Seeing every client's recurring invoices needs Finance access. A client's recurring invoices, on its Finance tab, need the company Finance view permission.
Setting up and changing them needs Finance manage (or the company Finance manage permission). One that sends to the client automatically also needs the Send invoices permission — to set it up, change it, or make its next invoice now.
Export CSV on the list downloads what the list shows.
Recurring invoices are part of Invoices in System → Features: switch invoicing off and none are made.