Overview
This article explains how recurring payments are processed through your payment gateway and recorded in Vega.
You'll learn:
- How recurring payments are processed.
- When a recurring payment is eligible to be processed.
- What happens when a payment is successful.
- How failed payments and retries are handled.
- How recurring payment settings affect processing.
In this article:
How Recurring Payment Processing Works
How Vega Determines Which Recurring Payments to Process
What Happens on the Payment Due Date?
When Will a Recurring Payment Be Processed?
Failed Payment Processing Options
Viewing Suspended and Closed Recurring Payments
How Recurring Payment Processing Works
Recurring payments are automatically processed according to the recurrence schedule (for example, Weekly, Monthly, or Annually).
For payment gateway processing, the recurring payment must contain a valid Plan ID/Token.
The token is supplied by your payment gateway and allows Vega to securely process future payments without storing the donor's credit card details.
Supported gateway processing includes:
- Credit Cards (all supported gateways)
- Stripe AU BECS Direct Debit (Australia)
- Flo2Cash Direct Debit (New Zealand, no retries available)
How Vega Determines Which Recurring Payments to Process
Recurring payments are generated when the finance server runs and identifies recurring payments that are due for processing.
When processing a recurring payment, Vega checks Admin > Financial Settings > Recurring Payment Settings to determine the appropriate processing rules. These settings are matched based on the recurring payment’s Pay Type Subtype and Frequency.
If multiple settings match the same Pay Type Subtype, Vega will first look for a setting with an exact Frequency match. If no matching frequency setting is found, Vega will use the All frequency option.
What Happens on the Payment Due Date?
When the finance server runs, Vega searches for all recurring payments that are due.
For each eligible recurring payment Vega will:
- Process the payment through the payment gateway.
- Receive the payment result.
- Update the recurring payment based on the gateway response and your recurring payment settings.
When Will a Recurring Payment Be Processed?
A recurring payment will only be processed when all of the following conditions are met.
| Requirement | Description |
|---|---|
| Status | The recurring payment status is Payment Open. |
| Next Take Date | The Next Take Date and Time has been reached. |
| Contact Status | The contact account is Active. |
| End Date | The End Date is blank, in the future, or Until Further Notice is selected. |
| Total Amount | The recurring payment has not exceeded the Total Amount Reached (if applicable). |
| Plan ID / Token | A valid Plan ID/Token exists. |
| Date Range | The Next Take Date is within the last two months. |
If the Payment is Successful
When a payment is successfully processed:
| Action | Result |
|---|---|
| Payment created | A Payment Successful record is created. |
| Linked to recurrence | The payment is linked to the recurring payment schedule. |
| Dates updated | The Due Date and Next Take Date are advanced according to the payment frequency. |
If the Payment Fails
A payment may fail for reasons such as:
- Insufficient funds
- Expired credit card
- Invalid card details
- Bank decline
When this occurs:
| Action | Result |
|---|---|
| Payment created | A Payment Declined record is created. |
| Linked to recurrence | The declined payment is linked to the recurring payment schedule. |
| Gateway response | The payment gateway's decline message is recorded in the payment details. |
| Retry cycle | A retry cycle is created to track subsequent retry attempts. |
Vega then checks your configured Recurring Payment Settings to determine how the failed payment should be handled.
These settings are located in Admin > Financial Settings > Recurring Payment Settings
Failed Payment Processing Options
The behaviour after a declined payment is controlled by:
Admin > Financial Settings > Recurring Payment Settings > On Payment Failure
There are two available options.
Continue on Schedule
The recurring payment continues as normal.
The Due Date and Next Take Date are updated to the next scheduled payment and no retry attempts are made.
Set Retry Schedule
Retry attempts are made according to your configured settings.
The following settings control the retry process:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| No. of Payment Failures | The maximum number of retry attempts before the retry failure action is followed. |
| Days Before Retry | The number of days Vega waits before attempting another payment. |
Each retry attempt is linked to the original failed payment and is included in the Failed Recurring Payments report.
Retries continue until:
- a payment succeeds, or
- the maximum number of retry attempts is reached.
If the number of failed payment attempts in the current retry cycle is less than the value configured in No. of Payment Failures, Vega schedules another payment attempt based on the Days Before Retry setting.
In the example above, the first payment attempt has failed. Because the maximum number of failed payments has not yet been reached, Vega schedules the next payment attempt for the following day. The recurring payment will display 1/3 failed payments, indicating that one of the three allowed retry attempts has been used.
If a Retry is Successful
If one of the retry attempts succeeds, Vega records the successful payment against the retry cycle.
Vega then checks: On Successful Retry
There are two options.
Continue on Schedule
The recurring payment continues using its original schedule.
Example
| Original Due Date | Successful Retry | Next Due Date |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Jan 2026 | 23 Jan 2026 | 20 Feb 2026 |
Set Schedule to Next Iteration
The recurring payment skips to the next full payment cycle.
Example
| Original Due Date | Successful Retry | Next Due Date |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Jan 2026 | 23 Jan 2026 | 20 Mar 2026 |
Note: Retry attempts are recorded against the original failed payment cycle. This information is used in the report under Insights > Recurring Management > Failed Recurring Payments when the Exclude Successful Retries option is selected.
If All Retry Attempts Fail
Once the maximum number of retry attempts has been reached, Vega follows the option configured under:
On Retry Failure
Available options are:
| Option | Result |
|---|---|
| Suspend Recurrence | Changes the recurring payment status to Payment Suspended. |
| Close Recurrence | Changes the recurring payment status to Payment Closed. |
| Continue on Schedule | Leaves the recurring payment open and schedules the next payment according to the normal recurrence. |
Viewing Suspended and Closed Recurring Payments
Suspended and closed recurring payments can be easily located from the Recurring Payments area.
Navigate to:
Money → Recurring Payments → Suspended
Money → Recurring Payments → Closed
Flowchart
The diagram below illustrates the complete recurring payment gateway process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I update the donor's credit card during a retry cycle?
Yes. Updating the donor's credit card or direct debit details before the next retry attempt may allow the payment to process successfully.
Can Vega automatically notify donors when a payment fails?
Yes.
Create a recurring payment workflow under Admin > Workflow Maintenance using the Send on Failure rule to automatically email the donor whenever a payment attempt is declined.
“Some content in this article may have been developed with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed by staff.”
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