Overview
Online Invoice Payments lets your clients pay your invoices by card, straight from the invoice email. When enabled, invoice emails include a Review and pay button that takes the client to a secure payment page — no Beeswax login needed. Payments are processed by Stripe using your own Stripe account, and recorded against the invoice in Beeswax automatically.
Key features:
- Pay now link in invoice emails — clients click through to a secure payment page showing the invoice number and amount due, then pay by card via Stripe Checkout.
- Automatic payment recording — when the client pays, Beeswax records the payment against the invoice and updates its status to Paid (or Partially Paid) for you.
- Per-invoice control — an Online Payment switch on each invoice decides whether that invoice's email carries a payment link.
- Per-client defaults — set a default on any client company or contact so new invoices for them switch the payment link on automatically.
Connecting Stripe
- Go to Settings → Connect (Accounting Integrations).
- On the Stripe card, click Connect. You'll be taken to Stripe to sign in to your own Stripe account (or create one) and approve the connection.
- Back in Beeswax, choose the bank account online payments should be recorded to. This is usually a dedicated "Stripe" bank account in your chart of accounts, so payouts are easy to reconcile.
Payment links stay hidden until both steps are done.
Online Invoice Payments uses your own Stripe account — money goes directly to you, and Stripe's standard card processing fees apply. Beeswax records the invoice as paid in full (the gross amount); Stripe deducts its fee from your payout, which you'll see when reconciling your bank feed.
Turning payment links on
On a single invoice: open the invoice and use the Online Payment switch (next to "Lines Include Tax"). When it's on, the invoice email includes the Review and pay button. The send-email window shows whether a link will be included.
By default for a client: edit the client company (or an individual contact) and switch on Online Payments?. Every new invoice created for that client starts with the payment link enabled — you can still switch it off on any individual invoice. Changing the default doesn't affect invoices that already exist.
When both a contact and their company have a preference, the contact's setting wins for invoices addressed to that contact.
What your client sees
The email's Review and pay button opens a payment page showing your business name, the invoice number, and the current amount due. Clicking Pay securely takes them to Stripe Checkout to enter card details. After paying they return to the payment page with a confirmation.
The page always shows the live amount due — if the client already paid part of the invoice, only the balance is charged, and a fully paid invoice shows "This invoice has been paid" instead of a payment button.
How payments are recorded
When Stripe confirms the payment, Beeswax automatically:
- Records a payment against the invoice, into the bank account you chose when connecting.
- Updates the invoice status to Paid (or Partially Paid if a balance remains).
- Logs an activity ("Paid online via Stripe") on the invoice.
If something prevents automatic recording (for example, no bank account is configured, or the invoice was deleted), the account owner is emailed so the payment is never silently lost — the money is still in your Stripe account.
Disconnecting
Use Disconnect on the Stripe card in Settings → Connect. Payment links on already-sent emails stop working immediately (clients see a message asking them to contact you instead), and no new links are included in emails. Reconnecting restores them.
Frequently asked questions
Which plans include this? Online Invoice Payments is available on paid plans (the same plans that include connected apps).
What currencies are supported? The payment is charged in the invoice's currency, provided your Stripe account supports it. The bank account you record payments to must be in the invoice's currency or your base currency.
Does the client need a Beeswax account? No — the payment page and Stripe Checkout are fully public; only the emailed link is needed.
What about Stripe's fees? Stripe deducts its processing fee from your payout. Beeswax records the gross invoice payment; account for the fee when reconciling the Stripe payout in your bank feed.