Important - Line Details And Tax Data Per Invoice On Webpage

[wavesource]

I have been wrangling with my bank for over a month now over a live gateway for client payments via Blesta.

 

I was able to sign up for an eWay account in a few days, and they are ready to take live payments for me using the Blesta eWay module, and it works nicely.

 

However, my bank has blocked payments via eWay pending a review of the Blesta system for compliance to their own internal guidelines, and they appear about to not approve my website for any live payment gateway based on the fact that line detail for all invoices is only available by viewing a PDF.

 

Yes, I would agree, an electronic document is surely legally binding in whatever form, but they need to see the same detail visible live on the webpage as is visible on the invoice - linking to the PDF copy is insufficient for compliance.

 

They need to be able to see line details - item quantities, tax (if applicable) sub totals, and grand total - per invoice.

 

So ideally I would like to see customers to be able to click on any individual invoice and open that as we can see in the admin section. That should guarantee compliance with any bank.

 

This is the full transcript of recent discussion from them (Bank of SA, Australia):

 

My compliance team have come back to me with one thing that they need to see on your website.

• please provide a copy of the Payments Page - this must detail the total price of goods and also in AUD /services, taxes, shipping and other charges. I will need to take the screen shot on your website can you please advise me once they are on the website.

 

After pointing them to the attached screenshot, the reply was:

 

 

We can not use the invoice as the payment page it will need to be on your website, we can not proceed until the payment page (shopping cart) is on the website.

 

[Michael]

So a "Payment completed" page? I do like the idea and +1 if it helps people however I like stripe myself.

[wavesource]

Can't use Stripe in Australia yet, otherwise I would

 

I am not sure it's a payment completed page they are looking for, but itemisation on the webpage of full invoice contents prior to payment. Unless that's what you mean. 

[wavesource]

Further to this, the issue is not the interface between Blesta and whatever payment gateway, it's about whether the bank will accept payments taken through your website, regardless of which 3rd party gateway you are using. So it's not about Stripe, or eWay, but about Blesta compliance with banking guidelines.

 

BTW, I just looked up and Stripe is now available in beta for Australia. Thanks for the poke, I had emailed them a few months ago and they said, not yet...

[Cody]

Sounds to me like your bank simply wants to see the payment page, not an invoice. Just send them a screen of the final pay page a client sees after clicking the "Pay" link in Blesta.

[wavesource]

Perhaps so, Cody, but what I can see is that tax, while included in the full amount shown on the Bleta Payment page, is however not separately itemised. So it falls at that point at least. Who knows with these bank gnomes whatever else will come up...

 

this must detail the total price of goods and also in AUD /services, taxes, shipping and other charges

 

we can not proceed until the payment page (shopping cart) is on the website

 

By payment page, they mean the full detail of each invoice, on a web page, not just in PDF format.

 

I can see how throwing everthing to a PDF is nice an simple, but once again, that is where my bank is drawing the line.

 

I have already turned to them and said, paraphrasing, "hey, Blesta is a well known, highly secure and trusted script for taking payments online used all around the world, these guys know their shit, all the details are THERE, in the PDF - it's all electronic, isn't it?" and they just don't give a shit - they want to see a traditional webpage output per invoice with details. They are troglodytes, for sure. But I am at an impasse.

[wavesource]

Any indication if this is entering your minds for looking at?

[Cody]

I  haven't seen your entire conversation with the bank, but again, from the snippets you've provided it sounds like all they want to see is the payment page.

 

we can not proceed until the payment page (shopping cart) is on the website

 

That sounds like any easy enough request to satisfy.

 

If they're requesting something Blesta does not do, which again doesn't appear to be the case, then likely your only option is to find another bank.

[wavesource]

By querying the data to construct the PDF, Blesta has everything in place except for the fact it pushes the output to the PDF library rather than to a web page, so on the surface, to provide a link to View the sale data on the client payment page, and rename (for example) the View link to Download Invoice, would do the trick.

 

Meantime I will just look into hacking Blesta to do what I need it to do. 

 

As to "changing banks": that's easy to say, but harder to do. Maybe in other countries it is a simpler process to change, but I'm a sole operator. Over the years, to have had my company set up, then get the manual payment gateway, and now this process of "upgrading" the gateway to allow for live payments through Blesta - then change banks? I prefer to focus on work, and invoice clients! It's just not cost effective for me to spend time stuffing around like that.

[Cody]

By querying the data to construct the PDF, Blesta has everything in place except for the fact it pushes the output to the PDF library rather than to a web page, so on the surface, to provide a link to View the sale data on the client payment page, and rename (for example) the View link to Download Invoice, would do the trick.

 

Meantime I will just look into hacking Blesta to do what I need it to do. 

 

It's definitely possible to create an HTML invoice as a substitute for PDF invoices. For that, take a look into the /components/invoice_templates/ directory. Unfortunately, documentation on invoice templates is sparse at the moment.

 

As for displaying invoice details on the client pay page, you may need to modify /app/controllers/client_pay.php to pass invoice details to the appropriate views (/app/views/client/default/client_pay.pdt, client_pay_method.pdt, client_pay_confirm.pdt). Since Blesta allows a single payment to pay multiple invoices, Blesta doesn't display or set individual invoice details in the view (/app/views/client/default/client_pay_multiple_invoices.pdt).

 

 

As to "changing banks": that's easy to say, but harder to do. Maybe in other countries it is a simpler process to change, but I'm a sole operator. Over the years, to have had my company set up, then get the manual payment gateway, and now this process of "upgrading" the gateway to allow for live payments through Blesta - then change banks? I prefer to focus on work, and invoice clients! It's just not cost effective for me to spend time stuffing around like that.

 

Yup, no doubt changing banks is easier said than done. Hopefully you have more than one banking option available to you, as this bizarre requirement may be only the beginning of their torturous business dealings.

[wavesource]

OK - I've coded up my own solution:

 

 

Note the highly visible View Invoice button, plus I've tarted up those other links as well so the bank nobs know where to click. Only a very small hack to the client_invoices.pdt template.

 

The View Invoice page shows full individual invoice in site chrome very similar to PDF version (but with more, as I've added my own terms and custom payment options data), with option to further open same inline invoice layout in new window as printable version without site chrome - shown below, with ubiquitous Print button.

 

 

Fingers crossed, that should get me over the line with the bank.

[Cody]

OK - I've coded up my own solution:

 

_ss_1.jpg

 

Note the highly visible View Invoice button, plus I've tarted up those other links as well so the bank nobs know where to click. Only a very small hack to the client_invoices.pdt template.

 

The View Invoice page shows full individual invoice in site chrome very similar to PDF version (but with more, as I've added my own terms and custom payment options data), with option to further open same inline invoice layout in new window as printable version without site chrome - shown below, with ubiquitous Print button.

 

_ss_2.jpg

 

Fingers crossed, that should get me over the line with the bank.

 

Whoa! That didn't take long.