> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.firstrespondershub.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Payment configurations

> Configure how students pay for a program offering: full payment, deposits, monthly payment plans, balance due dates, and free/no-payment enrollment

Payment configuration is set **per program offering**. It defines how students can pay for a cohort: full payment upfront, a deposit with the balance later, a **monthly payment plan**, or enrollment without payment. You also control when any remaining balance is due (relative to the cohort start or end date).

You can enable **any combination** of these options. Whatever you turn on becomes a choice the student sees at checkout.

## Where to configure

When you [**create** or **edit** a program offering](https://firstrespondershub.com/program-dashboard/program-offerings), open the **Payment Configuration** section.

* Payment options appear only when the offering uses **platform (hosted) enrollment**. If the offering sends students to an external link or is inquiry-only, no payment configuration is needed and the section is replaced with a short notice.
* The full payment options only appear when the offering has a **tuition amount greater than zero**. A \$0 offering is treated as free (see [Free offerings](#free-offerings-0-tuition)).

## Tuition amount

* **Tuition Amount (\$):** The total price for the offering in dollars (e.g. `1200.00`). This is the full amount a student owes before any promo code discount. It drives every downstream calculation (deposit balance, payment-plan totals).
* Setting tuition to **0** makes the offering **free** — see below.

<Note>
  Amounts are entered in **US dollars**. All offerings currently bill in **USD**.
</Note>

## Payment options (paid offerings)

Enable one or more of the following. Each enabled option becomes a payment method the student can pick at enrollment.

### Allow full payment upfront

* **Label at checkout:** "Pay in Full"
* **Checked (default):** Students can pay the full tuition (or the discounted amount after a promo code) in one payment at enrollment.
* **Unchecked:** Students cannot pay in full at enrollment; they must use a deposit, payment plan, or "enroll without payment" if you allow those.

### Allow deposit payment

* **Label at checkout:** "Pay Deposit Now"
* **Checked:** Students pay a set **deposit** at enrollment. The rest becomes a **balance due** later, billed by invoice (with a payment link).
* **Deposit Amount (\$):** The dollar amount paid at enrollment (e.g. `300.00`). Required when deposit is enabled, and must be greater than zero and less than the full tuition. The balance-due schedule (below) controls when the remainder is invoiced.

### Allow payment plan (monthly installments)

<Info>
  **Payment plans are a newer feature.** They require a **Growth** or **Scale** subscription. On the Starter plan the option is disabled with an "Upgrade to Growth or Scale" prompt.
</Info>

* **Label at checkout:** "Payment Plan"
* **Checked:** Students pay a **down payment** at enrollment, then a fixed number of **equal monthly installments** that are **automatically charged** to the card they enroll with.
* Configure three fields:
  * **Payment Plan Total (\$):** The total the student pays across the whole plan. **Leave blank to match the tuition amount.** Set it **higher than tuition** to add a **financing fee** — the difference is shown to the student as an "includes financing fee" note. It cannot be lower than tuition.
  * **Down Payment (\$):** The amount paid upfront at enrollment. Must be less than the plan total.
  * **Number of Monthly Installments:** How many monthly payments follow the down payment. Allowed range is **1–24**.
* As you fill these in, a live **preview** shows the resulting schedule, e.g. *"$300 down + 6 payments of $150/mo = \$1,200 total."*

After enrollment, the platform auto-charges each installment on a monthly schedule, retries failed charges, emails the student on each attempt, and lets you pause, resume, or cancel the plan. See [**Payment plans**](/payment-settings/payment-plans) for the full lifecycle.

### Allow enrollment without payment

<Info>
  Enrolling without payment requires a **Growth** or **Scale** subscription. On Starter the option is disabled with an upgrade prompt.
</Info>

* **Label at checkout:** "Enroll Without Payment"
* **Checked:** Students can complete enrollment without paying anything at enrollment. The full balance is billed by invoice, due according to the **balance due** rules below.
* **Unchecked:** Every student must pay something at enrollment (full, deposit, or a payment plan's down payment).

Use this for internal billing, sponsor-paid enrollments, scholarships, or when you collect payment outside the platform and record it manually.

## Balance due (invoice due dates)

When a student has a **balance due** — from a deposit or a "no payment" enrollment — the platform creates an **invoice** for the remaining amount. This section controls that invoice's **due date**. (Payment-plan installments have their own monthly due dates and are not governed by this setting.)

The balance-due settings appear when **deposit** is enabled, or when **enrollment without payment** is enabled.

### Invoice Due Date Reference

* **Days before cohort start date** — Due date = cohort **start date** − X days.
* **Days before cohort end date** — Due date = cohort **end date** − X days.

### Balance Due Days Before Start / End

* **Balance Due Days Before Start:** Used when the reference is "start." Example: `7` → the balance is due 7 days before the cohort starts. Default is **7**.
* **Balance Due Days Before End:** Used when the reference is "end." Example: `7` → the balance is due 7 days before the cohort ends. Default is **7**.

If a cohort has no end date, the platform falls back to the **start** date so the due date is still valid.

## Free offerings (\$0 tuition)

Set **Tuition Amount** to `0` to make an offering free. Payment options are hidden and students complete enrollment without payment.

<Info>
  Free ($0) offerings require a **Growth** or **Scale** subscription. On Starter, setting tuition to $0 shows an "Upgrade Required" prompt and the offering can't be saved as free.
</Info>

## Plan requirements at a glance

| Capability             | Starter | Growth / Scale |
| ---------------------- | :-----: | :------------: |
| Full payment upfront   |    ✅    |        ✅       |
| Deposit + balance due  |    ✅    |        ✅       |
| Monthly payment plans  |    —    |        ✅       |
| Enroll without payment |    —    |        ✅       |
| Free (\$0) offerings   |    —    |        ✅       |

## Summary table

| Option                   | Checkout label         | Effect                                                                                   |
| ------------------------ | ---------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Allow full payment**   | Pay in Full            | Student pays the full (or discounted) amount at enrollment.                              |
| **Allow deposit**        | Pay Deposit Now        | Student pays a set deposit; the rest becomes a balance due, invoiced later.              |
| **Allow payment plan**   | Payment Plan           | Student pays a down payment, then equal monthly installments auto-charged to their card. |
| **Allow no payment**     | Enroll Without Payment | Student enrolls with \$0 at enrollment; full amount is invoiced as balance due.          |
| **Tuition = 0**          | —                      | Free offering; no payment options; students enroll without payment.                      |
| **Due reference: start** | —                      | Invoice due date = cohort start date − X days.                                           |
| **Due reference: end**   | —                      | Invoice due date = cohort end date − X days.                                             |

## Examples

* **Full payment only:** Enable full payment; leave the others off. Everyone pays in full at enrollment.
* **Deposit + balance:** Enable full payment and deposit; set the deposit (e.g. \$300). The student chooses "Pay Deposit Now" or "Pay in Full." The balance is invoiced with a due date, e.g. 7 days before start.
* **Payment plan:** Enable the payment plan; set a $300 down payment and 6 monthly installments, leaving the plan total blank to match tuition. The student pays $300 to enroll, then \$150/mo for 6 months, auto-charged.
* **Payment plan with financing fee:** Same as above, but set the plan total above tuition (e.g. tuition $1,200, plan total $1,320). The student sees the \$120 financing fee and the installments are sized against the higher total.
* **Invoice-only (no payment at enrollment):** Enable "enroll without payment." Students enroll and receive an invoice for the full amount, paid by link or recorded manually.
* **Free cohort:** Set tuition to \$0. Payment options are hidden and enrollment is free.

## Related

* [**Payment plans**](/payment-settings/payment-plans) — how installment plans are charged, retried, paused, resumed, cancelled, and defaulted.
* [**Sponsored payments**](/payment-settings/sponsored-payments) — let an employer, department, or agency pay on a student's behalf.
* [**Invoices and balances**](/payment-settings/invoices-and-balances) — managing balances, payment links, reminders, and manual payments.
* [**Coupons (promo codes)**](/payment-settings/coupons) — discounts applied at checkout.

Configurations are saved with the offering and apply to cohorts created from that offering until you edit the offering again.