Best payment tools for trades and field service businesses in Ireland

Irish trades and field service businesses tend to need three things from a payment tool: a way to take a deposit before the job, a way for the customer to pay from a link as soon as the job's done, and direct debit for maintenance contracts. Options include payments built into job management software such as Tradify, payment providers such as Stripe and GoCardless, accounting software's pay buttons, and tools that combine payments with credit control, and they differ most on card fees as the job gets bigger.

In this article

The short version

• Trades need deposits, payment on completion and direct debit for maintenance contracts.
• Card fees grow with the job, while capped bank transfer fees do not.
• Tradify charges 1.7% plus €0.25 on standard cards through Stripe.
• Jobber Payments is not available to businesses in Ireland.
• Surcharging consumers for paying by card is banned in Ireland.

How trades and field service businesses get paid

Plumbers, electricians, heating engineers, builders, cleaners and other field service businesses tend to bill in a few distinct ways, and it helps if one tool can handle all of them.

• Small jobs and call-outs, paid when the work is done. The amounts are modest and there are a lot of them, so the time spent collecting each one matters as much as the fee.
• Larger jobs with a deposit up front and the balance on completion, such as a bathroom refit or a new boiler. The deposit commits the customer before you buy materials.
• Stage payments on longer projects, invoiced as each stage is finished.
• Maintenance contracts and service plans, billed monthly or yearly, where the customer has agreed to pay regularly.
• Work for businesses, such as main contractors, letting agents or facilities managers, invoiced on account terms rather than paid on the day.

Each of these suits a different payment method. A call-out suits a payment link the customer can pay by card or Apple Pay before you leave the driveway. A maintenance contract suits direct debit, so nobody has to remember anything each month. On a €1,800 balance on completion, card fees start to add up, and a bank transfer or direct debit with a capped fee can cost a fraction of a percentage-based card fee.

What a payment costs at different job sizes

Card fees are a percentage of the amount, so they grow with the job. This table compares Tradify's and Stripe's published Irish prices for a standard card on four example job sizes, with card and capped bank transfer pricing in the last two columns.

Tradify charges 1.7% plus €0.25 on a standard card and 2.1% plus €0.25 on a premium card. Stripe charges 1.5% plus €0.25 on standard European cards. Adfin charges 20c plus 1% per successful payment, with the 1% part capped at €2 on bank transfer and direct debit, which is why the last column stops at €2.20 once a job reaches €200. Card payments are not capped.

To see what that means over a month, say you're a plumber doing 40 jobs a month at an average of €250 each, all paid by standard card through Tradify. That's 40 payments at €4.50, or €180 a month. Through Adfin by standard card, the same 40 payments cost €2.70 each, €108 in total. If half your customers chose bank transfer from the payment link instead, 20 of those payments would cost €2.20 rather than €2.70, bringing the month to €98. On small jobs the cap makes little difference. It's on the bigger jobs, the €600 repairs and €1,800 installs, that the method your customer pays with changes the fee most.

Job management software with payments

If you run quotes, scheduling and invoices from job management software, it may take payments too, at its own published rates.

Tradify Ireland takes card payments through Stripe at 1.7% (standard card) or 2.1% (premium card) of the invoice total, plus €0.25 per successful charge, and sends automatic reminders before, on or after the due date.

Jobber's help centre lists the countries where Jobber Payments is available, and Ireland isn't among them. If you use Jobber in Ireland, you'll need a separate way to take payment.

Whatever job software you use, check what it charges per card payment, whether it offers direct debit for maintenance customers, and whether it chases unpaid invoices or only sends them. A separate payment tool can work alongside your job software, as long as your invoices end up somewhere it can read them, such as Xero or QuickBooks.

Payment providers and accounting software

If your job software doesn't take payments, or you'd rather keep payments separate, there are three other routes to look at.

• Stripe takes cards at 1.5% + €0.25 for standard European cards, and you can send payment links or invoices from it. Stripe Invoicing adds 0.4% or 0.5% per paid invoice on top of the payment fee, and Stripe can send automatic reminder emails.
• GoCardless collects by direct debit, which suits maintenance contracts, but it doesn't take card payments, so it won't cover call-outs where the customer wants to pay by card from a link there and then. It doesn't send invoice reminders, and its fees come out of your payouts.
• Xero Ireland offers invoice payments through Stripe and GoCardless, and QuickBooks Online Ireland can send up to three automatic reminders. If you invoice from either, a pay button on the invoice is a short step.

Adfin takes card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfer and SEPA direct debit in one place, with payment links sent by SMS, WhatsApp or email so the customer can pay from their phone while you're still on site. It has no monthly or setup fee and no contract. It's a certified Xero app and a certified QuickBooks app with two-way sync, so a job paid through Adfin is marked paid in your books without you touching it, and the free Essential credit control sends unlimited reminders by email, SMS and WhatsApp.

Deposits, stage payments and maintenance contracts

A deposit protects you from buying materials for a job that doesn't go ahead. Put the deposit amount and when it's due on the quote, then send a payment link as soon as the customer accepts. A link they can pay by card, Apple Pay or bank transfer from the message takes less effort than asking them to set up a transfer to your account details.

For stage payments, agree the stages and amounts in writing before you start, and invoice each stage the day it's done. Invoicing on the day keeps the bill next to the work the customer has just seen finished.

Maintenance contracts and service plans are the natural fit for SEPA direct debit. The customer signs a mandate once, and each payment is collected on the due date. Under the SEPA rules, you give at least 14 calendar days' notice before each collection unless you agree a shorter period, and the notice can go on the invoice. Customers can ask their bank for a refund of an authorised collection within eight weeks, so direct debit works best for payments the customer expects and has agreed to.

Household customers and business customers

The rules on late payment and card charges depend on who your customer is, and you may well work for both.

For household customers, the statutory late payment rules don't apply, because they cover transactions between businesses and with public bodies, not consumers. Your protection is in getting paid on the day, taking a deposit for bigger jobs and having clear terms on the quote. You also can't add a surcharge when a household customer pays by debit or credit card, because Regulation 86 of S.I. 6 of 2018 bans surcharging on consumer cards. Commercial cards are outside that ban, but any charge can't exceed your direct cost of taking the card.

For business customers, such as main contractors or property managers, the European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012 apply. If they pay late, you're entitled to interest at 10.4% a year from 1 July 2026 (the rate is reset each January and July) and fixed compensation of €40 on invoices up to €1,000, €70 up to €10,000 and €100 above that, without having to send a reminder. If no payment date was agreed, payment is due 30 days after the later of receiving your invoice or delivery. With Enhanced credit control, at 0.3% per paid invoice and only when used, Adfin can add statutory late payment interest to overdue business invoices automatically, with grace periods and waivers for individual customers.

Common questions

Can I charge a customer extra for paying by card? You can't surcharge consumers for paying by debit or credit card in Ireland, under Regulation 86 of S.I. 6 of 2018. Commercial cards are outside the ban, but any charge can't exceed your direct cost and you have to tell the customer before they pay.

Is Jobber Payments available in Ireland? Jobber's help centre lists the countries where Jobber Payments is offered, and Ireland isn't one of them. Irish Jobber users need a separate way to take payment.

What does Tradify charge for card payments in Ireland? Tradify Ireland takes cards through Stripe at 1.7% for a standard card or 2.1% for a premium card, plus €0.25 per successful charge.

Can I charge late payment interest to a household customer? The statutory late payment interest and compensation rules only cover transactions between businesses, or with public bodies. Consumers are excluded, so for household jobs your protection is a deposit and clear terms.

What's the easiest way to collect a maintenance contract payment? Direct debit collects each payment on the due date once the customer has signed a SEPA mandate. You give notice of each collection, at least 14 calendar days unless you both agree a shorter period.

Should I take a deposit before starting a job? A deposit is a matter for you and your customer to agree, so put the amount and due date on the quote where you both can see them. Sending a payment link as soon as the quote is accepted makes it easy to pay.

Sources

• Tradify - Credit card payments with Stripe, Ireland (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.tradifyhq.com/ie/credit-card-payments-with-stripe
• Jobber - Jobber Payments basics (accurate as of November 2026) https://help.getjobber.com/en/articles/jobber-payments-basics/
• Stripe - Pricing, Ireland (accurate as of November 2026) https://stripe.com/ie/pricing
• Irish Statute Book - S.I. No. 6 of 2018, European Union (Payment Services) Regulations 2018 (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2018/si/6/made/en/print
• Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment - Compensation for recovery costs (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.enterprise.gov.ie/en/What-We-Do/Supports-for-SMEs/Late-Payments/Compensation-for-Recovery-Costs-
• European Payments Council - 2025 SEPA Direct Debit Core Rulebook (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.europeanpaymentscouncil.eu/node/26581