A customer-scheduled invoice payment can support an expected collection date, but it is not observed cash. Include it as a dated forecast assumption, preserve the scheduled and estimated delivery dates, and require a settlement check before marking the invoice paid.

Stripe's scheduled-payment documentation explains that a customer can choose a future payment date, see an estimated delivery date, and change or cancel the schedule before the due date. Its retry documentation distinguishes a scheduled attempt from an executed payment and identifies hard declines that require a new payment method.

Keep three dates

Record the invoice due date, customer-selected initiation date, and provider's estimated delivery or settlement date. The due date is contractual. The scheduled date is customer intent or system configuration. The delivery date is the current operational estimate for cash movement.

The due-date comparison shows how to preserve the distinction without overwriting source dates.

Classify the evidence state

  • **Scheduled before an attempt:** expected cash supported by a current provider record.
  • **Processing:** initiated but not yet settled; retain as expected and monitor status.
  • **Succeeded and applied:** observed receipt; remove the settled amount from future collections.
  • **Canceled or missed:** expire the schedule as timing evidence and reassess.
  • **Failed with a retry date:** keep the failed event and evaluate whether the retry can actually execute.
  • **Hard decline:** do not use the retry schedule as cash evidence until the payment method changes.

Do not assume scheduled cash is certain. A customer can edit or cancel a future payment, and processing can fail.

Separate a fresh schedule from a retry

A future payment deliberately scheduled by a customer is not the same as a system retry after a failure. The failed-invoice retry guide records attempt count, failure class, next attempt, and payment-method state before deciding whether the retry date belongs in the four-week range.

Reconcile the amount

Compare the scheduled amount with the invoice's current remaining balance. If it covers only part, forecast that supported portion and keep the residual in a separate assumption. If several payments are scheduled, confirm their sum does not exceed the open balance.

After settlement, verify the payment applies to the intended invoice. Keep observed cash and remaining receivable separate. A successful provider payment does not automatically explain every accounting-source mismatch.

Add a review trigger

Set the next review for the scheduled or estimated delivery date. If no receipt appears, preserve the missed assumption and route the invoice for internal review. Do not keep rolling the same date forward without a new source record.

The pending-payment guide covers the processing boundary, and the uncollectible-invoice framework covers the later state when ordinary recovery expectations are withdrawn.

Decision rule

Scheduled payment is strong but reversible timing evidence. Forecast it as expected cash, not a receipt; cap it at the remaining invoice balance; and convert it to observed cash only after settlement and application.

AR Pulse analyzes authorized receivables exports for small B2B SaaS finance teams. It does not run billing automation or promise payment. Eligible teams can apply for AR Pulse for an invoice-level action list and four-week forecast.