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How are invoices generated from subscriptions?

Enrolling a student on a recurring payment plan creates a subscription, and the subscription does the billing from then on. Opus1 issues the first invoice at checkout, then creates each later invoice automatically as the cycle advances — there is nothing to generate by hand. Creating an invoice and charging it are separate steps: the invoice is the bill, and autopay or a manual payment is how it gets paid.

 Last updated: September 3, 2026
Applies to: Owner / Manager / Staff
Plan: All 

Table of Contents

  1. Overview
  2. Why this matters
  3. What creates a subscription invoice
  4. When the first invoice is created
  5. When the next invoices are created
  6. How the amount is calculated
  7. Creating an invoice vs charging it
  8. Where to find subscription invoices
  9. FAQ
  10. Related Articles

Overview

In Opus1, ongoing lessons and classes are billed through subscriptions. A subscription is created when a student is enrolled on a recurring payment plan — monthly tuition, term billing, full-session payment, and similar. The family stays enrolled, and Opus1 issues a new invoice for each billing period.

The payment plan on the service is a template. At enrollment, Opus1 copies those settings onto the subscription. From that point on, invoices come from the subscription, not from later edits to the plan on the service.

ℹ️ Note: One-time purchases — single visits, trials, drop-ins, and prepaid lesson packs — do not keep generating invoices. Opus1 charges those at purchase. Only recurring subscriptions produce a series of invoices.

Why this matters

Knowing where a subscription invoice comes from resolves most billing questions. Three come up constantly, and all three are the same misunderstanding from different angles.

An invoice looks missing. Someone checks a family's profile mid-month and next month's tuition isn't there. That is usually correct behavior — Opus1 creates the next period's invoice once the current one is paid or the next billing date arrives, not on a fixed day you can count on.

An invoice looks early. A family enrolls on the 14th, pays at checkout, and immediately has an invoice for next month sitting open. Also correct: paying the first invoice advances the subscription, and Opus1 prepares the following period.

A price change didn't take. An owner updates a payment plan on the service and expects existing families to be billed the new amount. They won't be. The plan is a template for new enrollments; existing subscriptions keep what they were created with.

Underneath all three: Opus1 does not run a monthly billing job you trigger. Enrollment starts the billing, and the subscription keeps it moving.

What creates a subscription invoice

An invoice is created when all of the following are true:

Requirement Details
Recurring plan The plan bills on a repeating interval, typically monthly, though some plans bill a one-time, upfront payment. One-time ("Once") plans do not generate follow-on invoices.
Active subscription The student is enrolled. Ended subscriptions stop producing new invoices after the end date.
A billing period is due The first invoice is created at enrollment. Later invoices are created for the next billing period as the cycle advances.
Due date is on or before the end date If a subscription has an end date, Opus1 does not create an invoice whose due date falls after it.

Each invoice is tied to that subscription and to the payer on it. A family with several students, or one student on several services, will usually have one invoice per subscription per period rather than one combined invoice for the household. Combined charges are a separate autopay feature and do not merge invoices — see Combined transactions.

When the first invoice is created

The first invoice is created at enrollment, when staff enroll the student or when a family completes self-booking.

That invoice:

  • Uses the payment plan's pricing, taxes, deposits, and first-payment-due rules
  • May be prorated when the plan prorates the first period, for example a mid-month start. See Overriding First-Month Proration for Appointments
  • May include a deposit, with the remainder due later, depending on the plan
  • Is linked to the new subscription, so later billing stays on the same record

If the first invoice is paid at checkout, the subscription is already set up for the next period. If the invoice stays open — due later via enroll & pay later — the subscription keeps it as the current bill until the cycle advances.

When the next invoices are created

There is no "generate invoice" button to press. Opus1 creates recurring invoices on its own.

The usual path: pay this period, get the next invoice

When an invoice is paid in full and closed, Opus1:

  1. Marks that billing period as paid
  2. Moves the subscription's next payment due to the following period
  3. Creates the invoice for that next period

For monthly plans, that next due date is the 1st of the following month in the location's timezone. For yearly plans (i.e. Annual Membership Fees), it is the next anniversary of the billing date.

So in normal operation you see one open invoice on a subscription, for the current or upcoming period.

Bank payments (ACH)

When a family pays by bank transfer, the payment can sit in processing before the bank confirms it. Opus1 can still create the next period's invoice while that payment is processing, so billing does not stall waiting on settlement.

Subscription holds

A hold pauses lessons and adjusts billing for the hold window, often using per-visit pricing for partial months when the plan is configured that way. A hold can change open invoices covering the hold period. It does not rewrite closed invoices that were already paid. Once the hold ends, invoicing returns to the normal cycle.

A hold does not always mean no invoice — depending on the plan you may still see a reduced or per-visit invoice for that window. See How do I use subscription holds?

Ending a subscription

When you end a subscription in Opus1:

  • No new invoices are created for due dates after the end date
  • Unpaid open invoices due after the end date can be voided; invoices that already carry a payment are left for you to handle
  • Closed invoices are not changed

See How do I end a subscription?

How the amount is calculated

Opus1 calculates the amount when the invoice is created, from the subscription as it exists at that moment.

Plan style What the invoice charges
Flat monthly or yearly price The subscription's recurring price for that period, after any first-period proration already applied to the first invoice
Variable / per visit Plan price × number of scheduled visits in that billing month. Staff-canceled visits may count, depending on how you've configured your payment plan

Applied at generation time when they apply:

💡 Tip: Editing a payment plan on the service does not change subscriptions that already exist. To change what future invoices charge, update the subscription, or replace it. Changes to a subscription can update open invoices; closed invoices stay as they were when paid. For many families at once, use batch update.

Creating an invoice vs charging it

These are two separate steps in Opus1, and conflating them is the most common source of confusion on this topic.

Step What happens What you control
Generate Opus1 creates an open invoice with a due date and amount Plan type, start and end dates, discounts, holds
Collect The invoice is paid — autopay, family portal, front desk Autopay on or off, saved payment method, auto-pay timing

Auto-pay timing on the plan shifts when Opus1 attempts the card or bank charge, a set number of days before or after the due date. Timing does not move the invoice due date — monthly invoices are still due on the 1st. See How do I delay an auto payment?

Autopay only charges invoices that are open, due including the timing window, and tied to a payer with a valid payment method. Where combined payments are enabled, Opus1 can charge several such invoices in one processor transaction — but the invoices are still generated one per subscription per period.

Where to find subscription invoices

Place What you'll see
Client profile → Invoices All invoices for that person as payer or student
Subscription page Invoices linked to that enrollment, plus next payment due
Reporting → Invoices School-wide list, filterable by status, date, location, or client

Open invoices are bills not yet paid, or not fully paid. Closed invoices were paid. Voided invoices were canceled and will not be charged.

FAQ

Why don't I see next month's invoice yet? Opus1 usually creates the next invoice when the current one is paid, or when the next billing date arrives. If the current invoice is still open and the next period has not started, there is nothing to show yet. Check the subscription's next payment due date and whether the latest invoice is unpaid.

We enrolled someone today. Why is there already an invoice for next month? Because the first invoice was paid at enrollment. Opus1 advances the subscription and creates the following period's invoice so it is ready. This is expected.

Why does this family have two open invoices on the same subscription? An earlier period went unpaid and the next billing date arrived, so Opus1 created the later invoice anyway. Resolve the oldest open invoice first — subscription invoices are paid in chronological order.

Does autopay create invoices? No. Autopay pays invoices that already exist. In Opus1 the subscription creates the invoice, and autopay or a manual payment collects it.

Will changing the plan on the service stop invoices? No. You need to end the subscription. Editing or deleting a payment plan in Opus1 does not cancel enrollments that already exist.

Related Articles

Managing a subscription

Plans and pricing behind the invoice

Payment and collection

Reporting