š Overview
Some businesses like to keep charging a small fee while a customer's membership is on hold, for example a weekly amount to hold their place. When you place a membership on hold, billing for that membership is paused, so the hold itself does not collect a fee. To charge one, you set up a separate hidden recurring membership that bills the fee on the schedule you want, and add it to the customer alongside the hold.
This guide walks you through setting up and applying a hold fee using that method.
š” For how holds affect billing in general, see Membership Holds & Payment Rescheduling here.
š ļø How to Charge a Hold Fee
The method has two parts: a hidden recurring membership that bills the fee, and the hold on the customer's main membership. You create the fee membership once, then reuse it for any customer you need to charge a hold fee.
Click the arrow to learn how to set up and apply a hold fee
Click the arrow to learn how to set up and apply a hold fee
1ļøā£ Create a hidden recurring membership for the fee
Create a recurring membership priced at the fee you want to charge, billing on the cadence you want, such as weekly. Set its visibility so it is hidden, so customers cannot see or buy it themselves and you add it only when needed.
š” For the full steps, including the visibility setting and the payment plan, see Add a Recurring Membership here.
2ļøā£ Place the customer's main membership on hold
Put the customer's main membership on hold as you normally would. This pauses billing and class access on that membership for the length of the hold.
š” For the full steps, see How to put a customer's membership on hold here.
3ļøā£ Add the hidden fee membership to the customer
Add the hidden recurring membership to the customer's profile. It then bills the fee on its own schedule while the main membership stays on hold. When the hold ends and the main membership resumes, cancel the fee membership so the customer is no longer charged it.
š§ Example:
A customer wants to pause their membership but keep their place for a Ā£10 weekly hold fee.
You create a hidden recurring membership priced at Ā£10 billing weekly, place their main membership on hold, and add the Ā£10 membership to their profile. They are charged Ā£10 a week during the hold, and you cancel that membership once their main one resumes.
ā Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Find answers to common questions or additional details that may not be covered in the main instructions.
Click the arrow to view frequently asked questions
Click the arrow to view frequently asked questions
Is there a built-in hold fee setting?
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Click the arrow to see the answer
Placing a membership on hold pauses its billing, so the hold itself does not charge a fee. To keep charging a customer during a hold, you use a separate hidden recurring membership for the fee, as described above.
Can I charge the fee weekly, or on another schedule?
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Click the arrow to see the answer
Yes. The fee is charged by the recurring membership you create, so it follows whatever billing cadence and amount you set on that membership, such as weekly or monthly.
How do I stop charging the fee when the hold ends?
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Click the arrow to see the answer
Cancel the hidden fee membership on the customer's profile once their main membership comes off hold. As long as it is active, it will keep billing the fee, so removing it stops the charges.
Will customers see the fee membership in my Store or booking pages?
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Click the arrow to see the answer
No, as long as you set its visibility to hidden when you create it. A hidden membership is not shown to customers and cannot be bought by them, so you stay in control of who it is added to.