#ley_checkout-deferred-subscription
broken oysterBOT
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- ley_api, 1 hour ago, 4 messages
white rain
Hi, from the scenario, it seems like upgrading the price on an existing subscription might be a better solution: https://docs.stripe.com/api/subscriptions/update#update_subscription-proration_behavior. You can set proration behavior set to none so the entire amount gets billed on the update.
We document a bit more about it here: https://docs.stripe.com/billing/subscriptions/change-price
cunning crow
Thanks for the suggestion! However, this doesn't quite fit our use case.
The current subscription is already cancelled (has an end_date), so we can't update it. We need to create a new subscription that starts billing on the future end date of the cancelled one.
The key requirement is that the customer should pay on the future start date (not immediately when subscribing).
Any way to achieve deferred billing start with Checkout?
white rain
Even of the subscription has a cancellation date in the future, you should be able to update the subscription
When you say Checkout are you referring to Stripe Checkout Sessions?
cunning crow
Regarding updating the cancelled subscription:
I understand it's technically possible, but there's a business logic issue.
Current flow:
Customer cancels Plan A → sets end_date, stops auto-renewal
Customer wants Plan B → should start when Plan A ends
Problem with updating cancelled subscription:
-
Plan A is cancelled because customer wanted to stop it
-
Plan B is a different plan/features the customer specifically chose
Updating Plan A to Plan B feels like changing the customer's cancellation decision
Business requirement: Create a separate Plan B subscription that starts billing on Plan A's end date.
Is there a way to schedule a new subscription's billing start date in Checkout Sessions without "free trial" messaging or proration ?
Yes, I'm referring to Stripe Checkout Sessions.
white rain
I see. As you noted, you could use a free trial: https://docs.stripe.com/api/checkout/sessions/create#create_checkout_session-subscription_data when you create the subscription. You could pass: https://docs.stripe.com/api/checkout/sessions/create#create_checkout_session-subscription_data-billing_cycle_anchor
Can you try this please?
simple maple
Hi there 👋 I'm jumping in as my teammate needs to step away soon. It is not possible to use Checkout Sessions to create deferred Subscriptions. You will either want to create the Subscription object directly at the desired time, or use a Subscription Schedule to schedule the creation of a Subscription to happen in the future:
https://docs.stripe.com/billing/subscriptions/subscription-schedules#start-subscription-future
If you want to use a Checkout Session to collect payment method details from your customer, then you can use a Checkout Session with a mode of setup for that. But let me know if that gives you any trouble during testing!
broken oysterBOT
ley_checkout-deferred-subscription
cunning crow
Perfect! Thank you so much! 🙌
The Subscription Schedule approach is exactly what I needed. Using Checkout Sessions in setup mode to collect payment details, then creating a Subscription Schedule to start billing on the future date is the ideal solution.
Thanks for the excellent support and for pointing me to the right Stripe feature! This is much cleaner than the workarounds I was considering.
Appreciate the help! 🎉👏👏