The client's card is charged automatically 48 hours before the free cancellation period ends for each meeting.
This option requires Stripe as the only payment method. If your scheduling link has any other payment method enabled, this option will not be available.
How to enable this option
Click on your scheduling link.
Click on Settings.
Click on the Recurring Meetings card.
Enable recurring meetings.
Under How should clients be charged for recurring meetings?, select Charge before each meeting.
When is the payment charged for recurring meetings?
When a client makes a recurring meeting, they are asked to provide credit or debit card information. We store the card information on Stripe. Stripe gives us a token, and we use that token to bill the client when converting a pre-booking into a confirmed booking. If no card is saved, or if the charge fails, we will send a payment link to the client via email.
For example, let's say a client pre-books a meeting for Oct 5 at 3 PM, and 5 hours of free cancellation is allowed. The free cancellation period ends at Oct 5 at 10 AM. We will attempt to charge the card 48 hours before that, meaning on Oct 3 at 10 AM.
What is a pre-booking?
When a client makes a recurring booking, the future time slots are reserved so that others cannot take those slots. However, since payment has not yet been collected for each upcoming session, those slots are not fully confirmed. We call this a pre-booking.
When the payment is made for a pre-booking, the pre-booking becomes a confirmed booking.
How discount codes work for charging before each meeting
Discount codes are applied to each meeting and only the discounted amount will be charged.
However, if a discount code has a meeting limit — for example, it is valid for only 3 meetings and the client is trying to book 5 meetings — the discount will be applied for those 3 meetings and the client will have to pay full amount for the last 2 meetings.
What happens if payment fails?
If payment fails, we immediately email the client about the issue. The email includes a link to make the payment using a different card. Once the client makes the payment, the booking is confirmed and the meeting proceeds as planned.
If the payment remains unresolved, we will continue emailing the client until the free cancellation period is reached. When the free cancellation period is over, we will cancel the pre-booking, and that time slot will become available for someone else to book.
Managing saved payment methods
For pre-booked sessions that have not yet been charged, clients can update, add, or remove the card on file through the Stripe Customer Portal. See Managing customer payment methods through Stripe in recurring meetings for details.