Looking to see your actual payouts in-product? Head to Track your payouts in the Transactions dashboard.
Introduction
Your customers can pay Adfin invoices and payment requests using direct debit, Pay by Bank, Adfin bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay and card. These payment methods use different payment schemes, so the time it takes for the money to reach your bank account (to settle) differs. This guide explains the payout timeline for each.
You can view all upcoming payout events in the Transactions tab in Adfin.
Direct debit
Direct debit payments are debited from your customer's bank account on the invoice due date (or the next available payment date - see below) and are usually settled to your bank account 2 working days later. Bank holidays are different - see below.
Direct debit standard timeline
Direct debit bank holiday timeline
Over a bank holiday, your direct debit payout arrives one working day later than usual. The collection still runs on schedule; only the payout to you shifts by a day.
Invoice payment status
Scheduled - the payment is scheduled but the process has not yet been initiated. The invoice can still be voided.
Submitted - the payment process has been initiated. Invoices move from Scheduled to Submitted shortly before 4pm UK time, 2 working days before funds are debited from your customer's bank account. Once an invoice is Submitted, it can no longer be cancelled or amended.
Settled - the payment has been paid out.
When direct debits may be delayed
We aim to debit on the invoice due date wherever possible. Payments may be delayed if:
The direct debit mandate (your customer's authorisation for payments to be collected from their account) has not yet been signed. New mandates take 3 working days for your customer's bank to confirm before any payments can be initiated.
We need more time to give your customer advance notice of the payment.
External factors apply, such as bank holidays or rare processing delays.
Adfin will keep you updated on any changes and help limit the impact of delays where needed.
Payouts
Your daily payout from Adfin is a combined payout of all payments ready for settlement. Funds are typically available in your bank at around 11am UK time - the exact time depends on your bank.
Tracking and reconciliation
If you raise invoices in Xero or QuickBooks:
If you use Xero, Adfin marks each invoice as paid when the payment is submitted, and reverses it automatically if the payment later fails. If you use QuickBooks, the invoice is marked paid only once the payment has been successfully collected.
When Adfin makes a payout, we initiate a ledger transfer in Xero / QuickBooks between the Adfin bank account and your external bank, for the total of all invoices collected that day. Reconcile the payout received on your bank statement against this ledger transfer.
You'll see the full breakdown of each day's payout in the Transactions dashboard.
Failures, retries and chargebacks
Due to the nature of direct debit payments, sometimes payments can fail and be reversed after they have already been settled to you. On these occasions, you will receive an email notifying you of the failure and the payment will be retried according to your setup.
Your customers can raise a chargeback (a claim through their bank to have a payment returned) on a direct debit payment. If this happens we will automatically cancel your customer's mandate to prevent any further chargebacks, and our support team will contact you.
There is no time limit for a customer to raise a chargeback and direct debit chargebacks cannot be defended - we will debit the funds for the chargeback from your next available payout.
If you wish to refund your customer, you should do this directly from your bank and void the invoice.
Cards (including Apple Pay and Google Pay)
Settlement
Card payments made on a given day (00:00 - 23:59) are settled in bulk to Adfin 2 working days later. Adfin then immediately initiates a payout to the bank account you provided us with during onboarding. If the payout falls on a bank holiday, it will reach your bank on the next working day.
Your payout for direct debit payments and cards on any single day will be combined into a single payout from Adfin.
The payout includes all payments made to you in a given day. For example, if 5 invoices were paid using cards on Monday with a total value of £500, you would receive a single payout from Adfin on Wednesday morning for £500.
Funds are typically made available in your bank at around 11am UK time - the exact time will depend on your bank account provider.
Invoice payment status explanation:
Paid - the card payment has gone through (authorised and captured), which guarantees that funds will be settled to you 2 working days later. This updates in real time after your customer completes the payment.
Tracking and reconciliation
If you raise the invoice using Xero or QuickBooks:
Adfin will mark each invoice as paid when the card payment has been authorised and captured (in real time).
Balance will accrue in the Adfin bank ledger on Xero / QuickBooks until funds are paid out by Adfin (2 working days later).
When Adfin makes a payout, we will initiate a ledger transfer on Xero / QuickBooks between Adfin bank and your external bank.
This transfer amount will be for all invoices paid in a given day.
You should reconcile the payout received from Adfin on your bank statement to the transfer between Adfin bank and your external bank ledger on Xero / QuickBooks.
You will see details of the payout for a given day for cards and direct debit in the Transactions dashboard.
Chargebacks and refunds
Your customers can raise a chargeback on a card payment, up to 120 days after the payment. Card chargebacks are handled case by case: if one is raised, our support team will contact you, explain what has happened and work through the next steps with you.
If you wish to refund your customer, you should do this directly from your bank and void the invoice.
Pay by Bank
Settlement
Pay by Bank payments are settled directly from your customer's bank account to the bank account you provided us with during onboarding.
Funds will typically appear in your account instantly after your customer has initiated the payment, but can take up to 2 hours.
There may be occasions where, for higher value payments, your bank performs risk and anti-money-laundering (AML) checks on the incoming payment. This can add up to 48 hours to settlement or result in funds being returned to your customer.
Payment status explanation:
Paid - funds have been sent from your customer's bank account. This updates in real time after your customer completes the payment.
Tracking and reconciliation
If you raise the invoice using Xero or QuickBooks:
Adfin will automatically mark each invoice as paid when the funds are sent from your customer's bank account.
Adfin will immediately initiate a ledger transfer between Adfin bank and your external bank on Xero for each individual invoice payment.
You should reconcile each individual invoice payment that is received in your bank account with the transfer from Adfin bank to your external bank on Xero.
Each Pay by Bank payment will appear as an individual payout on the Transactions dashboard.
Chargebacks and refunds
There are no chargebacks for Pay by Bank payments.
If you wish to refund your customer, you should do this directly from your bank and void the invoice.
Adfin bank transfer
Settlement
Payments received on a given day (00:00 - 23:59) are settled 2 working days later. If the payout falls on a bank holiday, it will reach your bank on the next working day.
Invoice payment status explanation:
Paid - funds have been received, guaranteeing that funds will be settled to you (2 working days later). This updates in real time after your customer completes the payment.
Tracking and reconciliation
If you raise the invoice using Xero or QuickBooks:
Adfin will mark each invoice as paid when the funds have been received (typically around 20 minutes after your customer sends the funds).
Balance will accrue in the Adfin bank ledger on Xero / QuickBooks until funds are paid out by Adfin (2 working days later).
When Adfin makes a payout, we will initiate a ledger transfer on Xero / QuickBooks between Adfin bank and your external bank.
This transfer amount will be for all invoices paid in a given day.
You should reconcile the payout received from Adfin on your bank statement to the transfer between Adfin bank and your external bank ledger on Xero / QuickBooks.
Chargebacks and refunds
There are no chargebacks for Adfin bank transfers.
If you wish to refund your customer, you should do this directly from your bank and void the invoice.
Summary table
Payment method | Payout settlement time | Payout type | Reconciliation with Xero and QuickBooks | Chargebacks |
Pay by Bank | Instant | Each payment is paid separately into your bank account | Reconcile per customer payment | No chargebacks |
Cards (including Apple Pay and Google Pay) | 2 working days after the payment is made by your customer. | Payments on a given day are batched together and you receive a single payout from Adfin for all payments into your bank account | Reconcile per batch payout | Handled case by case with our support team |
Direct debit | 2 working days after the funds leave your customer's account.
There is an additional 1 day delay if the payment is processed over a bank holiday. | Payments on a given day are batched together and you receive a single payout from Adfin for all payments into your bank account | Reconcile per batch payout | Chargebacks that cannot be defended |
Adfin bank transfer | 2 working days after the funds are received, typically the same day the payment is made by your customer. | Payments on a given day are batched together and you receive a single payout from Adfin for all payments into your bank account | Reconcile per batch payout | No chargebacks |