Workflow Sample: Episode 541: Easy Billing Operation by Connecting with PayPal Invoice (2)

Automatize billing

In the previous article, we created a workflow in which "PayPal Invoice" is automatically sent, by placing two automatic Steps "PayPal Create" and "PayPal Send".

That is, "billing data" which has been checked and approved in the human Step is automatically POSTed to PayPal side and then "PayPal invoice" is generated. And at the specified time (send command is delivered), it will be sent by email. After all, since it can be defined with only "Addon Service Task" ("Script Task" is not used), it is attractive to be able to build an "automatic billing system" according to your business even if you had no programming knowledge.

However, it was "out of scope" for "work of checking whether 'PayPal invoice' was settled".

Automatize throughout deposit confirmation

In the following Business Process, an automatic Step called "PayPal Check" (Addon Service Task) has been added furthermore. In other words, this Workflow system is set to continuously check the settlement status for "PayPal invoice" that has been sent, periodically and automatically.

Specifically, an Issue which is staying at "(3. Unpaid retention)" will arrive at "PayPal Check", each time when

the accounting staff proceeds the Issue, or
retention time of 12 hours passes.

So, the settlement status is inquired via secure communication (OAuth 2 communication / PayPal Invoicing API). If the status is "settled (PAID)", it will store "Settled time" and "Settled amount", and the entire process end, without returning to "(3. Unpaid retention)".

[PayPal Invoice Issuance-PayPal Check]

Current status of bank settlement in Japan

However, if you consider well, "payment confirmation" might be a work that requires know-how the most among accounting works.

Particularly in the case of inter-company transactions in Japan, since "bank remittance fee from 216 to 864 yen will be charged per a transaction", contract conditions such as "month-end closing, the following-month-end bank transfer" are still mainstream. Also, since all financial institutions use one system ("on-line processing of domestic customer transfers"), we still have to rely solely on "single-byte KataKana", cipher like information, to identify the business partner.

A. Business partner with a difficult-to-read company name (Katakana information does not match Kanji information)
B. Business partners who remits under different name, such as parent company name or individual name
C. Suppliers with large number of transaction and remits in monthly-sum
D. Suppliers who deposit always delaying for several days on the due date
E. Clients who disregard the contract, and remit with the transfer fee deducted

In order to be able to smoothly process various remittance patterns, despite that even you can check it on-line or it is (finally) becoming cooperative with cloud accounting such as "MoneyForward" or "Freee", yet some kind of training is required.

Therefore, a huge administrative cost arise in Japan, every each month end.

# I think that the terms and conditions like the relics of the last century, such as the "end of the month closing month-end issued, draft at 90 days after sight", are being almost eradicated.

Settlement in global age

If you use a PayPal invoice (a new form of electronic invoice) as in this Workflow example, it will be managed in 'per credit (per invoice)', instead of 'per business partner'.

Certainly, the credit card transaction fee (credit transfer loss) in Japan is never cheap such as "3.6% + 40 yen" or "3.9% + 40 yen". However, it can be said that already worth recounting if it is up to about 50,000 yen (transaction fee is about 1840 yen) for domestic transactions, or overseas transactions to about 1 million yen (transaction fee is around 40,000 yen). Even if it says anything, it is an extremely great advantage that mistakes and rework are eliminated by "unmanned".

In addition, on the day when "Bank API" became a reality in the near future, or the day when payment with point such as "WeChat Pay" or virtual currency such as "BitCoin" can be used, it is expected that management in credit units (per invoice) will become mainstream. So it may be good to adopt sequential settlement by PayPal Invoicing, considering as part of the advance investment / learning cost for that.

# By the way PayPal's settlement log can also be linked to cloud accounting such as "MoneyForward" and "Freee". (at last)

[PayPal Invoice Issuance-PayPal Check:"3. Unpaid retention" screen]