Recurring pledges

Pour :Administrateur

Preview: Recurring pledges

A recurring pledge is a donation pledge whose fulfillment is delegated to an automatic subscription: Unisoft debits the donor at regular intervals (monthly, quarterly, annual) on their bank card or account. Each successful direct debit progressively feeds the balance of the pledge until it is paid in full.

The principle

Example: Sarah Lévy pledges €1,800 for the renovation of the prayer hall. She chooses to pay in 12 monthly installments of €150. You configure a subscription of €150/month on her card. Every month, Unisoft:

1. Debits €150 automatically
2. Creates a validated payment assigned to the pledge
3. Updates the remaining balance (- €150)
4. Issues a tax receipt for €150
5. Sends the receipt by email to Sarah

After 12 months, the pledge automatically switches to Settled.

When to use a recurring pledge?

Situation	Recurring relevant?
Substantial commitment that the donor cannot settle in one go	✅ Yes
Loyal donor who wants to secure their long-term donation	✅ Yes
Multi-year campaign (e.g., works spread over 24 months)	✅ Yes
One-time donation planned in one go	❌ Prefer a simple pledge + payment upon receipt
Donor reluctant to automatic direct debits	❌ Prefer manual reminders or payment links

How to set up a recurring pledge

The configuration of a recurring subscription is done from the Recurring payments module, not directly from Pledges.

1. 1

   Create the pledge

   Follow the usual procedure: Create a pledge with the total amount (€1,800 in our example).

2. 2

   Open the Recurring payments module

   Sidebar → Finance → Recurring payments.

3. 3

   Create a subscription

   Enter:

   • The donor (Sarah Lévy)
   • The amount of each installment (€150)
   • The frequency (monthly)
   • The reason: Donation pledge → select the created pledge
   • The payment method (card, SEPA direct debit)
   • The first installment date
4. 4

   Enable the subscription

   The subscription starts — Unisoft automatically debits at each installment.

👉 Complete procedure: Recurring payments

Visual indicator in the pledges list

When a pledge is covered by an active subscription, Unisoft displays a specific badge (recurring icon) next to the name in the list. You instantly identify "autopilot" pledges.

In the detail of the pledge, you additionally see:

• The subscription status (active, paused, ended)
• The next installment
• The direct link to the subscription profile in Recurring payments

Actions disabled on a covered pledge

To preserve consistency between the pledge and the automatic subscription, some actions are blocked:

Action on the pledge	Available if subscription active?
Edit the pledge	❌ Disabled
Cancel the pledge	❌ Disabled
Send a manual reminder	❌ Disabled
Automatic reminders	❌ Do not apply
Assign an additional payment	✅ Available (one-time payment in addition to the subscription)
View the detail	✅ Available
Copy the payment link	✅ Available

⚠

To intervene, manage the subscription first

If you want to edit the pledge, you must first pause the subscription from Recurring payments. Once the subscription is suspended, the actions become available again on the pledge.

Why this lock?

Without this lock, inconsistencies could appear:

• Editing the amount of a pledge while a subscription is debiting → the donor could pay more or less than expected
• Canceling a pledge while the subscription continues → future payments would no longer have a valid reason
• Manually following up a donor who is already automatically debited → confusion and loss of trust

The lock is a safety measure that forces the admin to handle the subscription before the pledge.

Failed direct debit

If an automatic direct debit fails (expired card, closed account, opposition):

1. The subscription stays active but marks the installment as errored
2. The pledge does not progress for that month
3. Unisoft automatically attempts several retries (according to the platform's configuration)
4. You receive a notification in Recurring payments to intervene

👉 See Recurring payments for failure management and follow-up.

Recurring pledge vs Standalone recurring payment

Aspect	Pledge + subscription	Subscription without pledge
Total commitment known	✅ Yes (the pledge amount)	❌ No (potentially infinite duration)
Balance tracking	✅ Yes — you know what percentage you are at	❌ No — you only have the payment history
Automatic end date	✅ Yes — when the pledge is settled	❌ No — the subscription continues indefinitely
Recommended for	Quantified commitment over a known duration	Recurring donation without limit (membership, ongoing support)

Go further

• Recurring payments (complete module)
• Understand a pledge
• Assign a payment to a pledge — for one-time payments in addition to the subscription