Subscriptions and recurring billing in Arca
This guide shows you how to set up a subscription that charges a customer automatically on a schedule, how renewals and failed payments are handled, and how to cancel — plus fixes for the issues that come up most often.
How to create a subscription
In your Arca dashboard, open Subscriptions and choose Create. You'll need:
- One or more recurring products. Every product on a subscription must use the same billing period (for example, all monthly). One-time products can't be used on a subscription.
- A customer.
- A payment method (recommended). Attach a card or bank account so renewals charge automatically. Without one, the subscription becomes email-only — Arca will email invoices but won't charge anything automatically.
Options you can set
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Start date | When billing begins. A future date creates a Scheduled subscription. |
| Trial length | A free period before the first charge. |
| Grace days | How long after an invoice is issued the customer has to pay (minimum 4 days). |
| Charge method | Automatic, email then automatic, or email only. |
| Installments | Split each charge (credit card only). |
| Cancel if past due | If on, the subscription cancels itself after repeated failed charges. Off by default — see the note below. |
How billing cycles work
Subscriptions can renew daily, weekly, monthly, every three months, every six months, yearly, or on a custom interval. Renewals are processed by a once-daily batch that runs in the early morning (UTC) — not at the exact time of day you created the subscription. A renewal due "today" is charged on that daily run, so the charge may appear a few hours off from the original sign-up time.
Subscription statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Scheduled | Created with a future start date; hasn't begun billing yet. |
| Trialing | In a free trial; first charge happens when the trial ends. |
| Active | Current and paid. |
| Unpaid / Past Due | A renewal invoice is outstanding. |
| Paused / No Collection | Temporarily paused; billing resumes on the set date. |
| Canceled | Ended; no further charges. |
What happens when a renewal payment fails
If an automatic renewal is declined, Arca:
- Retries the charge automatically — up to 3 attempts, roughly one per day.
- Marks the invoice past due and emails the customer a payment-failure notice.
How to cancel a subscription
Open the subscription and choose Cancel. You can:
- Cancel immediately — leave the date empty.
- Schedule a cancellation — set a future date; the subscription stays active until then.
If you issue a refund as part of the cancellation, the refund amount must equal either the prorated remaining amount or the full amount of the last paid invoice. A canceled subscription can be restored with Uncancel if you change your mind.
Common subscription problems
"The customer keeps getting billing emails even though payment failed"
-
Cause
This is the default behavior: after 3 failed automatic attempts the subscription stays past due (it doesn't auto-cancel) and keeps emailing reminders.
SolutionUpdate the customer's payment method so the next daily run can charge it, or cancel the subscription manually. To avoid this in future, enable Cancel if past due at creation.
Renewal declined — card expired or insufficient funds
-
Cause
The bank declined the renewal charge.
SolutionUpdate the saved card on the customer's payment method. Because there are only 3 automatic attempts (about one per day), update it within a few days so the next run succeeds.
The renewal never charged at all
-
Cause
No payment method is attached, or the charge method is set to email only — so Arca invoices but never charges automatically.
SolutionAttach a valid card or bank account and set the charge method to automatic (or email then automatic).
The customer was charged at an unexpected time
-
Cause
Renewals run on a single daily batch in UTC, not at the exact moment the subscription was created.
SolutionThis is expected. The charge date is correct; only the time of day differs.
"Invalid refund amount" when cancelling
-
Cause
The refund entered doesn't match an allowed value.
SolutionThe refund must equal either the prorated remaining amount or the full amount of the last paid invoice. Enter one of those exact amounts.
"Must have the same billing period"
-
Cause
The products added to the subscription don't all share the same billing period (e.g. mixing a monthly and a yearly product).
SolutionUse products that all bill on the same period, or split them into separate subscriptions.
Error message reference
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Must have same billing period | Mixed billing periods on one subscription | Use products with the same period |
| Customer payment method not found | The selected payment method doesn't exist | Add or re-select a valid payment method |
| Trial end must be a date after today's | Trial end date is in the past | Set a future trial end date |
| The current value falls below the threshold for installment payments | Amount too low to split into installments | Raise the amount or reduce installments |
| Subscription already canceled | It's already in a canceled state | Use Uncancel if you want to restore it |
| Subscription invalid refund amount | Refund doesn't match an allowed value | Enter the prorated or full last-invoice amount |
Still having trouble?
Contact Arca support and include:
- The subscription ID and the affected customer
- The exact message you see (a screenshot helps)
- Whether the issue is with creating, renewing, or cancelling the subscription