An Irish MSP collects monthly contracts by SEPA direct debit by having each client sign a mandate once, then sending an invoice with the amount and collection date at least 14 calendar days before each collection, unless the contract agrees a shorter notice period. Seat changes are easiest to handle by fixing the count on the invoice date and carrying later changes into the next month's invoice. With Adfin, a contract collection of up to €2,000 costs no more than €2.20 by direct debit, as the 1% part of the 20c + 1% price tops out at €2 for direct debit and bank transfer, while cards have no cap.
In this article
The short version
- Send each invoice at least 14 calendar days before the collection date.
- Collect what you invoiced and carry seat changes into the next invoice.
- Charge new users pro rata for the part month on the following invoice.
- A contract of €200 to €2,000 costs €2.20 to collect by direct debit through Adfin.
- Overdue business invoices carry statutory interest of 10.4% from 1 July 2026.
The notice period in a monthly billing cycle
Your contracts probably bill a recurring amount each month, per user, per device or as a flat fee, with licences and support often folded in. Direct debit takes the effort out of collecting it, because the client signs a mandate once and nobody in their accounts team has to approve a transfer every month.
The SEPA Direct Debit Core rules give each client at least 14 calendar days' notice of a collection, unless you've agreed another period. The invoice can be that notice, so your billing date sets your earliest collection date.
If you bill in advance, an invoice raised on the 1st for that month can be collected on the 15th or any day after. If you bill in arrears, an invoice raised on 1 November for October's seats can be collected from 15 November. If you'd like to collect sooner after invoicing, write a shorter notice period into your master services agreement and have the client accept it when they sign the mandate.
Seat counts that change during the month
Seat counts move, but the notice gives the client a set amount and date. Changing a collection after the invoice has gone out means sending fresh notice, which pushes the collection back, so the simpler rule is to collect what you invoiced and carry any change into the next invoice.
Here's how that plays out for a client on €38 per user a month. On 1 November you invoice 22 users, €836, for collection on 15 November. On 6 November the client adds three users. The December invoice, raised on 1 December, charges 25 users at €38 (€950) plus three users for the 25 days from 6 to 30 November, which is 3 × €38 × 25 ÷ 30, or €95. The client sees €1,045 on the invoice, and that's what you collect on 15 December.
Users removed mid-month work the same way, as a credit on the next invoice. Listing the seat count and any pro-rata lines on each invoice gives the client's finance team what they need to check it before the money leaves their account. A collection the client disagrees with can be refunded through their bank within eight weeks, so it's quicker to settle a query about numbers before the collection date than after it.
What each contract costs to collect
Adfin charges 20c + 1% for each successful payment and nothing monthly, with no setup fee or contract. On direct debit the 1% part is capped at €2, which is reached at €200, so every contract between €200 and €2,000 costs €2.20 to collect that way. Card payments aren't capped, so the gap widens as the contract grows.
| Monthly contract | By SEPA direct debit | By standard card |
|---|---|---|
| €350 | €2.20 | €3.70 |
| €836 | €2.20 | €8.56 |
| €1,045 | €2.20 | €10.65 |
| €1,600 | €2.20 | €16.20 |
An MSP with 30 contracts in that range, all on direct debit, pays €66 a month to collect them, or €792 over a year. The same 30 clients paying an average contract of €1,045 by standard card would cost €319.50 a month.
Project invoices, late payers and clients already on direct debit
Migrations, hardware and one-off projects are usually invoiced outside the monthly contract, and a payment link suits them better than a mandate collection. A payment link sent by email, SMS or WhatsApp lets the client pay by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or bank transfer, and the payment is marked paid in Xero or QuickBooks automatically, because Adfin is a certified app for both with two-way sync. It works alongside your PSA, so invoices the PSA posts to your accounting software can be collected and chased from there.
Your clients are businesses, so overdue invoices carry statutory interest under S.I. 580 of 2012, at 10.4% a year from 1 July 2026 (the rate resets each 1 January and 1 July), with no reminder needed. On a €1,600 project invoice paid 20 days late, that's €9.12 in interest, plus €70 in fixed compensation. With Adfin's Enhanced credit control, at 0.3% per paid invoice and only when it's used, that interest is added to overdue business invoices automatically, with grace periods and waivers you set per client.
If some clients already pay you by direct debit through another provider, they don't sign new mandates when they move across. Their existing mandates carry over with the next collection, and they're told before it's taken.
Common questions
Can I collect a different amount each month from the same client? You can, provided each collection has its own notice at least 14 calendar days ahead, or within the shorter period your contract sets. Putting the amount and date on the invoice covers it.
What if a client adds users after the invoice has gone out? Collect the amount you invoiced and add the new users, with a pro-rata charge for the part month, to the next invoice. Changing the current collection would need fresh notice.
How much does it cost to collect an €836 contract by direct debit? Through Adfin it's €2.20, because 1% of €836 is €8.36 and the 1% part is capped at €2 on direct debit, plus 20c. By standard card, which has no cap, the same payment costs €8.56.
Can an MSP collect in arrears by direct debit? Yes, if you bill usage for the month just ended, raise the invoice early in the following month and collect at least 14 calendar days later, unless your contract agrees shorter notice.
Can a client take back a contract collection? A client's bank will refund any authorised SEPA collection on request within eight weeks, and an unauthorised one within 13 months.
Can I charge interest when a client pays a project invoice late? Between businesses, statutory interest of 10.4% a year from 1 July 2026 runs from the day after the payment date, and you can add €40, €70 or €100 in fixed compensation depending on the invoice amount.
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. 580 of 2012, European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012 (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2012/si/580/made/en/print
- Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment - Late payment interest rate (accurate as of November 2026) https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/what-we-do/supports-for-smes/late-payments/late-payment-interest-rate-
- 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-
