Finance overview

#Start with the right record type

These terms describe different events:

A charge increases an amount owed.
A payment records money received or initiated.
A credit reduces what is owed or remains available to apply, depending on the account workflow.
A scheduled payment is a future instruction; it is not proof that money was collected.
A stored card or ACH method is a tokenized payment option, not a payment.

When you are investigating a balance, begin with the client's account ledger. Use the studio-wide Finance pages when the task spans multiple accounts or requires a batch workflow.

#Before you use Finance

Confirm that you are working in the intended studio and date range.
Know whether the task creates charges, initiates payments, changes a future instruction, or only displays a list.
Use preview or list-only options before a batch action whenever they are available.
Never test payment processing with a real client's stored method.
Record the batch description, category, dates, filters, and expected count before running a financial action.

Warning: Repeating an action because a page appears slow can create duplicate charges or payment attempts. First check history and the affected ledger.

#Finance destinations

The a test studio administrator menu showed these destinations. Payment-related items can be hidden when the studio's payment system is disabled.

#Create and review charges

Destination	Use it for
Tuition	Preview and create tuition charges using billing schedules, charge details, and class or student filters.
Late Charges and Misc Charges	Find eligible positive balances and preview fixed or percentage late fees, or preview another charge for a selected audience.
Charge History	Review prior charge sessions and, when permitted, open or correct a session.
Scheduled Charges	Review upcoming lesson-related charges and whether each one is ready.

Warning: Tuition, Late Charges, and Misc Charges can create charges across many accounts. Dedicated articles and a controlled verification pass are required before those run steps are publication-ready.

#Process and manage payments

Destination	Use it for
Auto Payments	Filter eligible balances and preview a batch using available stored methods. The current Run boundary is documented in the dedicated guide.
Scheduled Payments	Find and manage future payment instructions, including pause, resume, edit, or removal when allowed.
On Hold Payments	Place an account's scheduled-payment processing on hold and record the hold period or note.
Payment History	Search studio-wide payment records; supported actions can include receipts, exports, refunds, voids, corrections, and ledger links.
Cards and ACH	Review stored payment-method summaries and token status across accounts.

Warning: A refund, void, payment deletion, or payment run can affect processor activity and financial history. Confirm the original transaction's current status before taking another action.

Before designing, renewing, holding, or ending a membership, read Membership concepts and lifecycle. A category, purchase, access rule, scheduled payment, and processor result can describe different parts of the same program without staying synchronized automatically.

Destination	Use it for
Memberships	Review and export memberships, including renewal and termination information.
Gift Cards	Create and manage gift-card records, values, available balances, and active dates.
Vouchers	Review voucher value, recipient, class, and applied or archived state when vouchers are enabled.

#A safe batch-workflow pattern

Use this pattern for tuition, fees, miscellaneous charges, and payment batches:

Write down the intended audience and expected result.
Select the narrowest correct dates, category, location, season, or billing schedule.
Choose the page's preview or list-only action.
Inspect several accounts, including an expected inclusion and an expected exclusion.
Save or export the preview when the decision requires review by another person.
Run the batch once.
Confirm the history entry and sample client ledgers before starting another batch.

If the result differs from the preview, stop and preserve the filters, messages, timestamps, and affected account IDs for investigation.

#Confirm financial activity

Use more than one of these checks for a consequential action:

the page's success or batch-history entry;
the affected client's ledger;
Payment History or Charge History;
the scheduled payment's updated status;
the payment processor's confirmed result, when money movement is involved;
a purpose-built report using the same date field and statuses.

Do not say a payment was processed unless the application or processor result confirms it.

#Troubleshooting

#A Finance item is missing

The login group may not have permission, or the studio's payment system may be disabled. Auto Payments, Scheduled Payments, On Hold Payments, Cards and ACH, and Vouchers are payment-system-dependent in the current menu rules.

#A client is missing from a preview

Check the selected dates, balance sign, charge category, billing schedule, class or season, account status, hold status, and whether an eligible stored method is required.

#A charge or payment appears twice

Do not run the batch again. Record both entries and compare their creation time, description, category, batch or transaction reference, and source. Review the ledger and history before correcting anything.

#A scheduled payment has no collected payment

A schedule is an instruction for future processing. Check its due date, pause or hold status, stored payment method, attempt history, and any processor result.