Billing Cycles
Executive Summary
Billing Cycles is the setup screen where administrators define the billing cycles used for invoicing (for example a calendar-month cycle or a weekly cycle) and maintain the billing periods inside each cycle. Create a cycle with a frequency, then open it to generate the periods for a year, add or correct individual periods, or remove periods in bulk. Funders assigned to a cycle are listed on the cycle for reference. Whenever a period is created, a matching period is also created for every funder that uses the cycle. The cycles are maintained inside the integration only; nothing on this screen is sent to AlayaCare.
Key Features
- Add billing cycles with a cycle code, description and frequency (Calendar Month, Weekly or Every 2 Weeks)
- Generate a whole year of periods automatically from a first start date and starting period number
- Add, edit and delete individual periods, or delete a range of periods for a year
- View the funders that use the cycle, with filter and sort
- Change a cycle's description
- Export the list of cycles to Excel
Typical Workflow
- Click Add, enter the Cycle, Description and Frequency, and click Save.
- Click the edit icon on the cycle (or right-click and choose Edit) to open it.
- On the Periods tab, click Create, choose the year, the first billing period start date and the starting period number, and click Save to generate the periods for that year.
- Use Add, Edit or right-click Delete to adjust individual periods, or Bulk Delete to remove a range.
- Check the Funders tab to see which funders use the cycle.
Available Permissions
The following permissions are available to be assigned to AlayaCare Roles:
| Attribute | What It Controls |
|---|---|
| View | Open the page |
Main Grid
Lists every billing cycle (14 rows per page).
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Cycle | Cycle code. |
| Description | Description of the cycle. |
| Frequency | Calendar Month, Weekly or Every 2 Weeks. |
| Manage Records | Edit icon that opens the cycle. |
Actions
| Button | Description |
|---|---|
| Add | Opens the Billing Cycle dialog to create a cycle (also available by right-clicking the grid and choosing Add). |
| Export | Exports the cycles to Excel with the columns Cycle, Description and Frequency. A warning "Nothing to export" is shown when there are none. |
| Edit (row icon, or right-click a row) | Opens the cycle's details dialog. |
Dialog Components
Billing Cycle (Add)
Opens from Add. Enter the Cycle code, Description and Frequency, then click Save or Cancel. A frequency is required ("Please select a valid Frequency"). The frequency cannot be changed after the cycle is created.
Billing Cycle Details
Opens from Edit. The title shows the cycle code, and the Cycle box shows the cycle and its description.
Tabs
| Tab | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Periods | Billing periods of the cycle, with buttons to create, add, edit and delete them. |
| Funders | The funders that use this cycle (read-only). |
| General | The cycle description, with an Edit button. |
Periods - Grid
Lists the periods of the cycle, newest first (12 rows per page).
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Year | Year of the period. |
| Period Number | Period number within the cycle. |
| From Date | First day of the period. |
| To Date | Last day of the period. |
Periods - Grid Actions
| Button | Description |
|---|---|
| Add | Opens the Billing Cycle Period dialog to add one period. |
| Edit | Edits the selected row. A warning "Please select a billing cycle period" is shown if no row is selected. |
| Create | Opens the Create Period Details dialog to generate a year of periods. |
| Bulk Delete | Opens the Bulk Delete Period Details dialog. |
| Add, Edit, Delete, Create, Bulk Delete (right-click) | The same actions from the right-click menu. Delete is available only here: it asks "Are you sure you want to delete this period?" and removes the period together with the funder periods created for it. |
Funders - Grid
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| AC ID | AlayaCare funder ID. |
| Code | Funder code. |
| Name | Funder name. |
| Description | Funder description. |
| Invoicing Model | Invoicing model of the funder. |
Funders - Grid Filters
| Filter | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Filter Code Includes | Shows only funders whose code contains the text. |
| Filter Name Includes | Shows only funders whose name contains the text. |
| Sort By | Orders the list by AC ID, Code or Name (default Code). |
Click Apply to refresh the list. Use Clear to reset filters.
General tab
Shows the Description. Click Edit to open the Billing Cycle dialog, change the Description (required) and click Save.
Billing Cycle Period
Opens from Add or Edit on the Periods tab. Year and Period (1 to 12) can be entered only when adding; they are fixed when editing. Choose the From/To Date range and click Save. When adding, a warning is shown if that year and period already exist. A new period is also created for every funder that uses the cycle.
Create Period Details
Generates a year of periods in one step. The cycle and its Frequency are shown for reference.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Year | Year to generate. Required. |
| First Billing Period Start Date | Start date of the first period. Required. |
| Starting Period Number | Number given to the first period; later periods count up from it. |
Rules by frequency:
- Calendar Month: the start date must be the first of a month ("Starting Date has to be first of the month"). One period is created per calendar month until the year ends.
- Weekly: each period is 7 days, starting from the start date, until the start date is no longer in the selected year.
- Every 2 Weeks: each period is 14 days from the start date. Periods stop at the last period whose end date is still in the selected year; a period that would begin in the selected year and end in the following year is not created.
If the starting period already exists for that year the dialog warns "Starting Period already exists" and nothing is created. Any individual period number that already exists is skipped. Each period created is also created for every funder that uses the cycle.
Bulk Delete Period Details
Deletes a range of periods for one year.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Delete For Year | Year of the periods to delete. Required. |
| Starting Period | First period number to delete. Required. |
| Ending Period | Last period number to delete. Required. |
Click Save to delete. The funder periods linked to each deleted period are deleted with it. There is no confirmation prompt.
Dependencies
The following tables must be configured for lookups on this view to work:
| Table | Description |
|---|---|
| Funders | Funders assigned to the cycle are listed on the Funders tab, and each new period is also created for those funders. |