SEPA, iDEAL or bank transfer: which payment method?

There are three ways to collect membership fees. Each method has consequences for your workload, for the member's convenience and for the cost. You choose the method per subscription, so you can use them side by side.

The three methods

	SEPA direct debit	iDEAL	Bank transfer
Who starts the payment?	The system, automatically	The member, per instalment	The member, themselves
One-off action in advance	Signing a mandate	None	None
Work for the administrator	Hardly any	Hardly any	Ticking off manually
Service charge	€ 1.00 per payment	€ 1.00 per payment	None

SEPA direct debit

The member signs a mandate once. After that the system collects automatically each period. Before every collection the member receives a pre-notice, by default around fourteen days in advance.

This is the calmest method: you do not have to chase anyone. Do bear in mind that a member can only be collected from once the mandate is actually active — without a mandate the instalment stays outstanding.

iDEAL

The member pays per instalment through a payment link on their own membership fee page. They click Pay now and complete the payment in their banking environment.

Handy for members who do not want to give a mandate, but it asks something of the member every period.

Bank transfer

There is no automatic payment. The member transfers the amount themselves and you mark the instalment as paid once the money arrives. This is the only method without a service charge, but also the only one that gives you ongoing manual work.

Frequently asked questions

• Can I use a different method per member? Yes. The payment method belongs to the subscription, not to the plan.
• Can a member switch later? Yes, change the payment method on the subscription. When switching to SEPA the member still has to sign a mandate.
• Why is a SEPA instalment still outstanding? Usually the mandate is missing or no longer valid. The member automatically receives a reminder about this.