---
title: "Invoices, taxes, and payments"
description: "How Outpost bills each month, invoice statuses, sales tax, due dates, overdue invoices and suspension, and the console's Settings > Billing page."
url: "https://support.outpostplatform.com/account/invoices/"
product: "platform"
type: "reference"
status: "draft"
ai_summary: "Outpost bills monthly in arrears: the plan fee and the period's usage, plus sales tax. The default payment method is charged at issue; overdue invoices may lead to suspension 30 days after the due date. Invoice recipients (up to 5) are self-service in the portal's Account details or the console's Settings > Billing. Covers invoice statuses and the console's Billing page."
source: "https://gitlab.com/outpostplatform/docs/-/edit/main/src/content/docs/account/invoices.md"
license: "CC BY 4.0"
---

# Invoices, taxes, and payments

This page explains how Outpost bills, what each invoice status means, how
sales tax is worked out, what happens when an invoice is not paid, and what
each part of the console's **Settings** > **Billing** page shows. Prices are on
[Plans and limits](/account/plans-and-limits/).

## How billing works

| Topic | How it works |
| --- | --- |
| Billing period | One month, from your billing day to the same day of the next month. In a month without that day, the period turns over on the last day of the month. |
| When you are billed | Monthly in arrears. Each invoice covers the plan fee and the usage of the period that has ended. |
| What is on an invoice | The plan or platform fee, metered usage such as [active endpoints](/account/plans-and-limits/#active-endpoint), unmanaged devices, and Outpost Cloud Storage beyond what your plan includes, and sales tax. |
| Partial periods | The plan fee for a first or last period, or a period in which you change plan, is split by day. Storage is already measured over time and is charged as used. |
| Free plans | Home Lab is never invoiced. Nothing is invoiced during a free trial. |
| Contracts | None. There are no annual contracts or minimum terms. |
| Currency | US dollars. |

## How you are charged

When an invoice is issued, Outpost charges your default payment method for the
full amount automatically. A card payment usually completes at once. A bank
payment can take a few business days to clear.

If a charge fails, Outpost emails a link to pay the invoice another way, and
retries the charge. If your bank asks you to confirm
the payment, Outpost emails a link to do that.

To pay an invoice yourself, such as with a different card:

1. Sign in to the Outpost portal and open the **Billing** page. See
   [Manage payment methods and billing address](/account/payment-methods/#open-the-billing-page).
2. On the **Invoices** card, select **Pay** beside the invoice. Stripe's page
   opens.
3. Complete the payment. You return to the **Billing** page, which says
   **Thank you. Your payment was received and is being applied. A bank payment
   can take a few business days to clear.**

**Pay** appears only on an invoice with a balance and no payment already in
progress.

## Where invoices go

- **By email.** When an invoice is issued, Outpost emails it as a PDF to your
  account's invoice recipients. The email states the period, the issue date,
  the due date, the total, and the amount due. At sign-up, the account owner's
  verified email address is the first recipient. You choose the rest yourself,
  as described in [Choose who receives invoices](#choose-who-receives-invoices).
- **In the Outpost portal**, on the **Billing** page's **Invoices** card, with
  each invoice's **Issued** and **Due** dates, **Total**, **Balance**, and
  **Status**. Select an invoice number to download its PDF.
- **In the console**, on **Settings** > **Billing**. See
  [The console's Billing page](#the-consoles-billing-page).

## Choose who receives invoices

Invoices, receipts, and payment reminders go to every confirmed invoice
recipient. You manage the list on the **Invoice recipients** card, in either
of two places:

- In the Outpost portal, on **Account details**. Only the account owner sees
  the card.
- In the console, on **Settings** > **Billing**. You need `billing:manage`.
  Without it, the card reads **Invoices go to the recipients chosen by your
  account owner.**

To add a recipient:

1. On the **Invoice recipients** card, in **Email address**, enter the address.
2. Select **Add recipient**.

The new address receives an email with a confirmation link that works for 24
hours. Its row shows **Waiting for confirmation** until someone at that address
confirms, and nothing is sent to it before then. If the link expires, the row
shows **Link expired**. Select **Resend link** to send a new one.

To stop sending to an address, select **Remove** on its row and confirm. The
last confirmed recipient cannot be removed. Add and confirm another one first.

An account can have up to 5 recipients, 3 of them waiting for confirmation at
once. Confirmation emails are also limited per day. When a limit is reached,
the card says which one, for example **Too many confirmation emails have been
sent today. Try again tomorrow.**

## Invoice statuses

The portal shows the label in the second column. The console shows the status
value in the first.

| Status | Portal label | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `draft` | **Draft** | Being prepared. Not final and not payable yet. |
| `issued` | `issued` | Final and awaiting payment. |
| `sent` | **Sent** | Final, sent, and awaiting payment. |
| `partial` | **Partially paid** | Part paid. The balance is still owed. |
| `paid` | **Paid** | Paid in full. |
| `past_due` | **Past due** | The due date has passed with a balance still owed. |
| `void` | **Void** | Canceled. Nothing is owed on it, and it keeps its number. |

## Sales tax

Sales tax is calculated by Stripe from your billing address and added to the
invoice before it is issued. An invoice is never issued without tax, so an
invoice on a paid plan waits until a valid billing address is on file. Add or
correct the address on the portal's **Billing** page. See
[Manage payment methods and billing address](/account/payment-methods/#add-or-change-the-billing-address).

If your organization is exempt from sales tax,
[contact support](/support/contact/) with a current exemption certificate.

## Overdue invoices and suspension

Pay each invoice by the due date it shows.

| Stage | What happens | What you see |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A payment fails or the due date passes | The invoice becomes past due. Outpost sends reminders and may retry the payment. | The portal's **Billing** page says **This account has an overdue invoice. Pay it below to keep your service running.** |
| 30 days after the due date | Outpost may suspend access until the invoice is paid. Outpost emails the account owner. | The console refuses most actions. **Settings** > **Billing** shows **This account is suspended for non-payment. Pay the overdue invoice in the Outpost portal to restore it.** |
| Payment | Access is restored as soon as the payment clears. | The notices go away. |
| Still unpaid | Outpost may end the subscription. The data export and deletion schedule then applies. | Outpost emails the account owner the dates. See [Cancel your subscription and export your data](/account/cancel-and-export/#after-cancellation-takes-effect). |

While suspended for non-payment, you can still sign in to the console and open
**Settings** > **Billing**, and you can sign in to the Outpost portal to pay.

To dispute a charge, contact support within 30 days of the invoice. Undisputed
amounts remain due.

## The console's Billing page

In the console, select **Settings** > **Billing**. You need the
`billing:read` permission, which owners hold. Changing the billing date needs
`billing:manage`. See
[Permissions](/reference/permissions/).

The page shows these cards, top to bottom. Some appear only in the situation
described.

| Card | What it shows |
| --- | --- |
| Notice at the top | Only when something needs attention: the trial and its pause date, a paused or suspended account in Outpost's words, or **This account is closing.** with a link to export your data. |
| **Plan** | The plan and its status, **Includes** (the plan's limits, such as **15 endpoints, 10 unmanaged devices, 1 console user, own storage only**), **Suspended** with the reason when the account is suspended, the **Platform fee**, and whether a **Payment method** is on file. |
| **Published rates** | The rates your invoices apply to your usage, with any included quantity and the date they took effect. |
| **Current period** | The **Period** in progress, **Active endpoints** and **Active unmanaged devices** so far, **Storage so far** in GB-months, and **Endpoints reporting now**. A count reads **Not reported yet** until your Outpost has reported it. It also gives the date the next invoice is expected. Nothing here is final until the period closes. |
| **Pioneer AI** | Only when Outpost Cloud AI was used this period: an estimate by model. AI through your own provider is not billed by Outpost. |
| **Trial** | Only during a trial: **Days remaining**, **Endpoint allowance**, and the date of your first invoice. See [Free trials](/account/free-trials/). |
| **Balance and statement** | Your current balance. Select **Show statement** for every charge, payment, and credit, oldest first. |
| **Invoices** | Each invoice's number, **Period**, **Issued** date, **Active endpoints**, **Unmanaged devices**, **Total**, **Status**, **Balance**, and a **PDF** link. Select a number for the invoice's charges and totals. An invoice marked **Held: waiting for usage counts** is waiting for your Outpost to report the period's counts. |
| **Export account data** | Only for owners, and only while the account is closing. See [Cancel your subscription and export your data](/account/cancel-and-export/). |
| **Billing date** | The day of the month your billing period turns over, and the one-time change described below. |
| **Invoice recipients** | The addresses that receive invoices, receipts, and payment reminders. With `billing:manage` you can add and remove them here. See [Choose who receives invoices](#choose-who-receives-invoices). |

Paying an invoice and managing payment methods happen in the Outpost portal,
not the console.

### Change the billing date

You can move your billing date once, for example to line up with your own
accounting month.

1. On the **Billing date** card, select **Change billing date**.
2. In **New billing day**, select a day from 1 to 31.
3. Read the note, which gives the date your current period will end.
4. Select **Confirm**.

The current period is shortened to end on the new day, and its plan fee is
split by day. The change cannot be made again. A second change goes through
[support](/support/contact/).

The change is refused in these cases, with the message shown:

| Message | Cause |
| --- | --- |
| **This account is already billed on day** followed by the day | The day you chose is the current one. |
| **This billing period is about to close. Please try again on or after** a date | The period is too close to its end. |
| **This account has an unpaid invoice past its due date. Please settle it before changing the billing date.** | An invoice is overdue. |
| **This account has no active subscription, so there is no billing date to change.** | There is no running subscription. |

### When the Billing page does not load

| Message | Cause |
| --- | --- |
| **Billing is unavailable: this deployment is not connected to Outpost.** | Your Depot cannot reach the Outpost service. |
| **This organization is not linked to an Outpost account, so there is no billing to show.** | The organization you are signed in to is not the one the account is billed under. |
| **You do not have permission to view billing.** | You do not hold `billing:read`. |
| **Could not reach billing. Please try again.** | A temporary failure. Reload the page. |

## Related

- [Plans and limits](/account/plans-and-limits/)
- [Manage payment methods and billing address](/account/payment-methods/)
- [Free trials](/account/free-trials/)