Sometimes a renewal cannot be charged: the card has expired, the bank declines it or there is not enough money on the account. This article explains what you see when that happens, how to pay the open invoice and what happens if the payment cannot be collected at all. It is about what you pay memberarea. When one of your own members misses a payment to you, that is handled under Payments.
What you see when a payment fails
If Stripe cannot collect a payment for your plan, the status next to your current plan changes to Past due. At the top of the Billing page a red notice reads Your last payment failed. with the line Update your payment method to keep your subscription active. The same applies to the first charge after your trial if you ordered a plan during the trial.
The invoice shows up in the Invoices list with the status open, so you can see which amount is outstanding.
The account owner also receives an email titled "Your subscription payment failed". It shows the Amount due and a button that leads to Billing. The email is sent once when the payment first fails, not again for every retry.
Your workspace keeps running
While the status is Past due, nothing changes for you or your members. Your plan, its limits and admin access stay as they are, and your public checkout keeps taking orders.
Stripe retries the charge automatically over the next few days. As soon as one of the retries goes through, the invoice is marked Paid and your plan is back to Active. You do not have to do anything in that case, but waiting is a risk: if every retry fails, your workspace is locked.
Paying the open invoice with a new card
The quickest way out is a working card:
- Click Update payment method in the red notice or next to your plan.
- The Payment method dialog opens. Enter the card and click Save card. Your bank may ask you to confirm the card when you save it.
- The new card becomes your default card, and the open invoice is charged on it right away.
If the charge goes through, the page updates to the status Active and the red notice disappears. If the new card is declined as well, the page shows The card was declined. Use a different card or contact your bank. and the status stays Past due. Try another card or ask your bank why the charge was refused.
Only the account owner can change the card. Other admins see the red notice without the button and need to ask the owner.
Billing: invoices and payment method
Cancelling while a payment is open
Cancel plan stays available while a payment is Past due. Confirm with Cancel subscription and your subscription does not renew after the current period. Cancelling does not pay the open invoice, so if it is never paid, your workspace is locked as described below.
When the payment cannot be collected
If the last retry fails too, your subscription ends in one of two ways:
- Cancelled: The subscription is closed. The account owner receives an email titled "Your subscription has been cancelled".
- Unpaid: The subscription stays open, but the invoice is still not paid. The red notice now reads The open invoice is still unpaid. Update your payment method to pay it and restore full access.
In both cases admin access to your workspace is paused at once. There is no extra grace period, because the period you would be using has not been paid for.
If the plan you ordered during your trial never had a charge collected, your workspace returns to the restricted state from the end of your trial instead, the same as a trial that ran out without a plan.
What the locked workspace looks like
Every admin page now leads to Your subscription has ended. The page says that admin access to your workspace is paused and that your content and data stay safe. It offers two ways forward: Reactivate plan takes you to Billing, and Log out signs you out. The Billing page itself stays open, so you can fix the payment from there.
Nothing is deleted while your workspace is locked. Your content, members and settings are all still there when you come back.
What your members see
Your members are not affected by the lock. It only applies to the admin area, so members can still log in and use your member area, their courses and your community as before.
The one thing that changes is new sales. Shortly after the lock, your public checkout stops accepting new orders and shows "This shop is currently not accepting new orders." to anyone who tries to buy.
Getting going again
How you get back in depends on the status on the Billing page:
- Unpaid: Click Update payment method and save a working card. The open invoice is charged on it, and once it is paid, full access returns.
- Cancelled: Choose a plan on the Billing page and confirm it in Review your order. A new subscription starts and is charged right away. Your workspace unlocks as soon as that first payment goes through.
With an Unpaid subscription you can also choose a plan instead of paying the open invoice. The old subscription is then closed and the new one takes its place.
Only the account owner can choose a plan. If you are not the owner, ask them to reactivate the plan.