> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tilta.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Payment terms

> Overview of Tilta's available payment term ENUMs, how due dates are calculated from invoice capture, and supported payment methods for buyer repayment.

Payment terms define when a buyer must repay a financed invoice. Rather than paying at point of purchase, the buyer receives a credit period – ranging from 3 to 90 days – during which they can use the goods or services before settling their obligation. You configure which payment terms to make available. Buyers then select from your configured options at checkout.

## How due dates are calculated

The repayment due date is always calculated from the moment of **Invoice capture** – not the order creation date, and not the delivery date. This distinction matters: if a buyer authorizes an order today but the merchant doesn't ship for two weeks, the due date clock starts on the day the invoice is created, not the day the order was placed.

For example, if an invoice is captured on **1 June** with `DEFER_30D` payment terms, the buyer's payment is due on **1 July**, regardless of when the order was originally authorized.

<Tip>
  Communicate this clearly to your merchants. A merchant who delays creating an invoice is effectively giving the buyer more time to pay, which may affect the merchant's own cash flow planning.
</Tip>

***

## Available payment terms

Tilta supports the following payment term options. Each is identified by an ENUM value that you use in API requests when creating orders and invoices.

| Payment term     | ENUM         | Due date                                     |
| ---------------- | ------------ | -------------------------------------------- |
| Prepayment       | `PREPAYMENT` | Payment required before goods are dispatched |
| Deferred 3 days  | `DEFER_3D`   | Due 3 days after invoice capture             |
| Deferred 7 days  | `DEFER_7D`   | Due 7 days after invoice capture             |
| Deferred 14 days | `DEFER_14D`  | Due 14 days after invoice capture            |
| Deferred 21 days | `DEFER_21D`  | Due 21 days after invoice capture            |
| Deferred 30 days | `DEFER_30D`  | Due 30 days after invoice capture            |
| Deferred 45 days | `DEFER_45D`  | Due 45 days after invoice capture            |
| Deferred 60 days | `DEFER_60D`  | Due 60 days after invoice capture            |
| Deferred 90 days | `DEFER_90D`  | Due 90 days after invoice capture            |

<Note>
  `PREPAYMENT` is included for completeness and platform configurability but does not involve deferred financing. It is typically used for platform-specific workflows where upfront payment is required for certain product categories or new buyers.
</Note>

***

## Configuring payment terms for your platform

You decide which of the above terms to offer on your platform. Your configuration is set up during onboarding with your Tilta integration manager. To retrieve your current configured payment terms programmatically:

```http theme={null}
GET /v1/platform/payment_terms
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
```

This returns a plain array of payment term ENUMs your platform is enabled to use. Only terms in this list can be submitted in order and invoice requests.

```json theme={null}
["DEFER_14D", "DEFER_30D", "DEFER_60D"]
```

***

## Buyer-specific payment terms

Some buyers may have a restricted set of available payment terms based on their credit facility risk tier or underwriting outcome. To retrieve the payment terms available for a specific buyer:

```http theme={null}
GET /v1/buyers/{external_id}/payment_terms
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
```

The response pairs each available term with the payment method it applies to, plus the fee and any installment breakdown:

```json theme={null}
{
  "payment_terms": [
    {
      "payment_method": "TRANSFER",
      "payment_term": "DEFER_30D",
      "fee": { "net": 1700, "tax": 323, "gross": 2023 },
      "installments": []
    }
  ]
}
```

Always use the buyer-specific endpoint to populate your checkout payment term selector. A buyer whose credit facility only supports up to 60 days should not be offered `DEFER_90D`, even if your platform is configured to offer it.

<Warning>
  Submitting an order or invoice with a payment term that is not available to the specific buyer will return a validation error. Fetch the buyer's available terms before presenting options at checkout.
</Warning>

***

## Displaying payment terms at checkout

Use the following pattern to build a reliable checkout payment term selector:

1. Fetch the buyer's available payment terms via `GET /v1/buyers/{external_id}/payment_terms`.
2. Intersect with your platform's configured terms from `GET /v1/platform/payment_terms`.
3. Display only the intersection to the buyer.
4. On selection, submit the chosen ENUM as the `payment_term` field in `POST /v1/orders`.

This two-step check ensures you never present a term that is either not enabled on your platform or not available to the specific buyer.

***

## Supported payment methods

Tilta supports the following payment methods for buyer repayment. The available methods depend on the buyer's country of registration and banking setup.

| Payment method                    | Description                                     | Region         |
| --------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------- | -------------- |
| **SEPA Credit Transfer**          | Standard bank transfer within the SEPA zone     | Europe         |
| **SEPA Instant**                  | Real-time SEPA credit transfer (within seconds) | Europe         |
| **SEPA COR Direct Debit**         | Consumer/general SEPA direct debit (SEPA Core)  | Europe         |
| **SEPA B2B Direct Debit**         | Business-to-business SEPA direct debit          | Europe         |
| **FPS (Faster Payments Service)** | UK real-time interbank payments                 | United Kingdom |

<Info>
  You do not need to implement payment method handling on your side. Tilta manages the repayment process directly with the buyer. The supported methods listed above determine how Tilta will collect repayment from each buyer based on their banking setup.
</Info>

Tilta automatically selects the most appropriate payment method for each buyer based on their registered country and the mandate information collected during onboarding. Buyers are notified of their repayment details in Tilta's automated confirmation emails.