How to handle upfront payments (credit or deposit) for pre-paid services

Some clients prefer to pay upfront and use that payment as credit or a deposit for future appointments. For example, an aesthetic GP might have clients who regularly come in for treatments and prefer a credit system rather than paying each time.

Bookem makes it easy to allocate this credit or deposit and apply it as sessions occur.

How it works

  • You capture and allocate an upfront payment (deposit or credit) to the client’s account

  • This amount is then automatically applied to invoices for each session as it happens

  • The process continues until the credit is fully used

Example

A client pays an aesthetic GP upfront for a series of regular treatments. Instead of paying after each session, the client uses credit from the pre-paid deposit. After every booking, an invoice is issued and the credit is applied until it’s depleted.

Steps to allocate credit or deposit

  1. Go to Accounts > Payments

  2. Manually capture and allocate the upfront payment to the client’s account

  3. The client can now be invoiced using this credit

  4. After each booking:

    - Issue an invoice for a single session, or

    - Click +Add booking to include multiple bookings and their line items

  5. That’s it

Tip: Avoid sending an invoice before the service has occurred.

  • This is because clients can't claim from medical aid for future services

  • It’s best practice to issue the invoice only after the booking ends

Learn more