For monthly managed service contracts, SEPA direct debit tends to suit Irish MSP clients, because the client signs a mandate once and each month's fee is collected on its due date. Card or bank transfer from a payment link fits one-off project and hardware invoices, where there's no regular amount to collect. Offering both, and letting the type of invoice decide, means you don't push a client onto a method that doesn't fit the bill.
In this article
The short version
- SEPA direct debit suits monthly MSP contracts collected on a set date.
- Each collection needs 14 days' notice unless you agree a shorter period.
- Card or bank transfer from a payment link suits one-off project invoices.
- Through Adfin, direct debit of up to €2,000 costs at most €2.20.
- Card payments cost 20c plus 1% at the standard price, with no cap.
How the two methods compare for MSP billing
| SEPA direct debit | Card | |
|---|---|---|
| What the client does | Signs a mandate once | Pays from a link or enters card details each time |
| When you're paid | Collected on the due date you set | When the client acts on the invoice |
| Amounts that change monthly | Allowed, with pre-notification at least 14 calendar days before unless agreed otherwise | Any amount, paid as invoiced |
| Cost through Adfin | 20c + 1%, with the 1% part capped at €2 (cards are not capped) | 20c + 1% at the standard price, not capped |
The table points to a split between recurring and one-off billing, since recurring fees suit a method the client sets up once, and irregular invoices suit a method the client can use on the spot.
Monthly contracts and direct debit
Direct debit fits the way you're likely to sell managed services, with a recurring fee agreed in a contract and collected whether or not anyone at the client remembers to pay it. The conditions come from the SEPA Direct Debit Core rules, and two of them, on notice and refunds, shape how you bill.
Before each collection, the client must get a pre-notification at least 14 calendar days ahead, unless the two of you agree another period, and that notice can be printed on the invoice. If your fee changes with user or device counts, you have a choice to make. You can collect a fixed monthly amount and adjust it each quarter, which keeps every collection predictable for the client, or collect the actual amount each month, which needs each invoice out early enough to carry the notice.
On refunds, a client can ask their bank to refund a collection within eight weeks with no questions asked, or within 13 months if they say it wasn't authorised. If a client is unhappy about a month's bill, sorting it out before collection day makes a refund and a second conversation less likely.
A collection can still be returned, for example when the client's account has insufficient funds or has been closed, so plan how you'll follow up a month that doesn't arrive. If your contract clients already pay by SEPA direct debit through another provider, they keep their existing mandates when you move to Adfin and don't sign again; the switch happens with the next collection, and clients are told before it.
Projects, hardware and card payments
Your project invoices for migrations, hardware or one-off work are irregular, often larger and paid once, so asking your client to set up a mandate for a single payment adds a step for little gain. A payment link on the invoice lets the client choose between card, Apple Pay, Google Pay and bank transfer when they pay.
Running both methods doesn't have to mean you use two providers. GoCardless collects SEPA direct debits but doesn't take card payments, so a project invoice paid by card would need a second provider alongside it. With Adfin, contracts and project invoices go through one provider: clients can pay by SEPA direct debit, card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or bank transfer, links go out by email, SMS or WhatsApp, and it works alongside whichever PSA you run. As a certified Xero app and certified QuickBooks app, it marks payments taken through it as paid in your books automatically.
What each method costs to collect
Say you have a client on a €1,600 monthly contract. Collected by SEPA direct debit through Adfin, each month costs €2.20, because 1% would be €16 but on direct debit and bank transfer the 1% part is capped at €2, plus 20c. Paid by card at the standard price, the same fee costs €16.20, since card payments aren't capped. Over a year that's €26.40 by direct debit against €194.40 by card.
You'll see a smaller gap on a one-off invoice, because it only happens once. A €1,900 hardware invoice paid by bank transfer from a payment link costs €2.20, and €19.20 by card at the standard price.
In practice, that points you to direct debit for your contracts and a payment link for your project work, with card there for clients who prefer it. There's no monthly fee, setup fee or contract on top of the per-payment price.
Common questions
What notice does a client need before a variable monthly direct debit? At least 14 calendar days before each collection under the SEPA rules, unless you've agreed a different period with the client. The notice can go on the invoice.
Can an MSP pass card fees on to business clients? Surcharging consumer card payments is banned under Regulation 86 of S.I. 6 of 2018, but commercial cards are outside the ban. Where a charge is allowed, it can't exceed your direct cost of accepting that card, and you must tell the client before they pay.
Can a client get a direct debit refunded? A client can ask their bank for a refund within eight weeks of any SEPA direct debit, no questions asked, or within 13 months if they say it wasn't authorised.
Is direct debit cheaper than card on Adfin? A direct debit of up to €2,000 costs at most €2.20, because the 1% part is capped at €2 on direct debit and bank transfer. Card payments cost 20c + 1% at the standard price, with no cap.
Do I need two providers to take both card and direct debit? GoCardless doesn't take card payments, so with it you'd need a second provider for cards. A provider that takes both, as Adfin does, keeps them in one place.
What happens if a monthly direct debit comes back unpaid? Collections can be returned for reasons such as insufficient funds or a closed account. Treat that month's invoice as overdue and follow it up like any other.
Sources
- European Payments Council - 2025 SEPA Direct Debit Core Rulebook (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.europeanpaymentscouncil.eu/node/26581
- 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
- Houses of the Oireachtas - Dáil written answer on card surcharges, 6 March 2018 (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/question/2018-03-06/50/
- GoCardless - Credit card payments (accurate as of November 2026) https://support.gocardless.com/hc/en-gb/articles/18170477922204-Credit-card-payments
