Payment on account is a payment method for business customers: they order now and pay within an agreed term (for example 30 days). Everybody else pays as before. Only customers you approve see payment on account; guests never do. Every such order becomes a receivable with a due date that both you and the customer can see.
Before you start
- a decision on how many days the default payment term should be,
- at least one test customer with an account in the shop, whom you approve for testing.
1. Turn the payment method on
Stores › Configuration › Sales › Payment Methods › Payment on account
This is where Magento keeps all payment methods. Set Enabled to Yes. Title only changes the label the customer sees. New Order Status decides the status in which the order is created, and Sort Order where the method sits in the list at the checkout. Click Save Config.
2. Set the payment terms
Stores › Configuration › Magelan › Payment terms
The General group holds the defaults that apply to approved customers who have no terms of their own:
Default term (days): the number of days until payment.
The term runs from: choose The invoice (the default: the due date is set when the invoice is created, because most shops invoice at shipping) or The order (the due date is known at once). The choice is written on the order when it is placed, so changing the setting later does not change orders already placed.
Purchase order number required: with Yes the customer must enter a purchase order number when paying on account.
"Due soon" within (days): how many days before the due date a receivable shows as "Due soon" to the customer. It is only a label for the customer, not a separate state.
The other fields are covered in the other guides: credit limit and reminders.
3. Test it in five steps
Approve a test customer (guide on approval).
Logged in as that customer, place an order and choose Payment on account at the checkout.
In the admin open Sales › Operations › Open receivables: the new receivable is in the list.
Invoice the order. If the term runs from the invoice, the due date is set now; until then the customer sees "30 days after the invoice" (or however many days you set).
When the money arrives, click Mark payment as received on the order. The receivable becomes Paid.
Common problems
The customer does not see the payment method
Payment on account is off by default for everybody. The customer, their company or their customer group must be approved, and the method must be enabled under Payment Methods. A guest never sees it.
The receivable is not in the list
A receivable is created when an order is placed with payment on account. If the order is older than this version, see the guide on upgrading.