Frequently Asked Questions

Yes! GoCardless Receipt Maker works for businesses anywhere in the world. We support all currencies that GoCardless handles, so whether you're processing payments in GBP, EUR, USD, CAD, AUD, or any other supported currency, your receipts will display the correct currency automatically. We also provide flexible tax and VAT settings that you can customize to match your local tax requirements. You can set custom VAT rates, tax labels (VAT, GST, Sales Tax, etc.), and configure how taxes are calculated and displayed on your receipts. You can also mark individual customers as VAT exempt from the Customers page, so those receipts are generated without VAT lines. No matter where your business is located, you can generate professional, compliant receipts that meet your local accounting and tax standards.

Yes. On the Pro plan you can turn on Auto Mode from your dashboard: when GoCardless marks a Direct Debit payment as confirmed, we generate a branded PDF receipt and email it—usually within minutes. There is no send-time calendar to maintain; failed, cancelled or pending payments do not trigger automatic sends. A periodic check also catches rare missed webhook events.

Auto Mode (Pro): After you enable it from the dashboard (including the short setup wizard), each newly confirmed payment gets a receipt automatically. We do not send for payments that were already confirmed before you turned Auto on, so you avoid a sudden backlog. You can snooze specific customers if you need to pause sending for them. Manual Mode: Automatic sends stay off. You send receipts when you choose—for example from the Customers page—after you have reviewed the payment. Ideal if you want every send to be a deliberate action. Which should I choose? Use Auto Mode when you want receipts to track confirmed money without babysitting a schedule. Use Manual Mode when you prefer to send yourself. You can switch any time from the dashboard (Auto Mode requires an active Pro subscription).

Open the Customers page, select the customer, and enable VAT Exempt. When VAT Exempt is enabled, receipts for that customer are still sent as normal, but they are generated as non-VAT receipts (no VAT line or VAT registration line on the PDF). Use Snooze only when you want to stop sending receipts to that customer entirely.

No, GoCardless does not automatically send receipt emails to customers. While GoCardless sends payment notifications, it doesn't provide detailed PDF receipts or invoices. That's why GoCardless Receipt Maker exists - to automatically generate and send professional receipts that include all payment details, custom branding, and are suitable for accounting purposes.

No! That's the beauty of GoCardless Receipt Maker - it's completely standalone and incredibly simple. Unlike complex accounting software that requires hours of setup, configuration, and training, we handle everything for you. Just connect your GoCardless account, add your business details, and you're done. No complicated accounting software integrations, no syncing headaches, no expensive subscriptions to QuickBooks or Xero. We simply pull payment data directly from GoCardless and automatically generate beautiful, professional receipts. Setup takes 5 minutes - not hours or days. It's the easiest way to send receipts to your GoCardless customers without all the complexity of traditional accounting platforms.

Yes! Pro plan subscribers can upload their company logo and customize brand colors. Your receipts will display your logo, company name, and custom colors, making them look professional and consistent with your brand identity.

We offer a free plan for up to 10 customers and 10 emails per month with basic receipt features. Paid plans start at £10/month when you send from your own mailbox, with unlimited customers, unlimited emails, custom branding, all receipt templates, and Auto Mode. You can also add Managed Email Sending for an extra £10/month (total £20/month) for fully managed delivery with no technical setup.

Simply sign up for a free account, go to your dashboard, and click "Connect GoCardless". You'll be redirected to GoCardless to authorize the connection. Once connected, we'll automatically fetch your customer data and payment information to generate receipts.

Each receipt includes the payment date, amount, currency, customer details, payment reference, mandate ID, and your company information. Receipts are generated as professional PDF documents suitable for bookkeeping and tax purposes.

Use Receipt Archive in Settings, under Receipt Management. Choose a date range (last month, last 3 months, last 12 months, or a custom range) and click Download ZIP Archive. Your ZIP contains every receipt PDF you have sent for that period, plus a CSV summary, so it is ideal for bookkeeping, VAT returns, and year-end accounts. It is an easy way to hand a complete set of records to your accountant. Large archives are prepared in the background and may take a few minutes — keep the tab open until the download starts.

Yes! We provide multiple professional receipt templates (Clean & Professional, Minimal, Compact, and Modern). Pro users can also customize brand colors and add their company logo. All templates are designed to look professional and include all necessary payment details.

Absolutely. We use industry-standard encryption for data in transit and at rest. Sensitive fields such as SMTP credentials and OAuth tokens are stored encrypted, not in plain text. We only access the GoCardless data required to generate receipts (for example customer names, emails, and payment amounts), and authentication is handled through secure OAuth flows.

We support two setup paths in Settings: Microsoft OAuth or SMTP. Microsoft (Outlook/Office365): Use Connect with Microsoft to authorize via OAuth. This is the recommended route for Microsoft accounts and works with modern Microsoft security controls. Google / Google Workspace: Configure via SMTP with an App Password (not Google OAuth in-app). Enter your SMTP details in the wizard and use an App Password from your Google account security settings. Other providers (iCloud, Yahoo, custom domain mailboxes, etc.): Use SMTP with your outgoing server host, port, username, and password or App Password, depending on your provider. Which method should I use? Use Microsoft OAuth for Microsoft mailboxes. For Google and all other providers, use SMTP (typically with an App Password). The setup wizard helps you detect and prefill the right SMTP settings where possible.

Yes, absolutely. GoCardless Receipt Maker works as a phone-first web app, so you can run everything without a computer: connect your accounts, review payments, preview receipts, and send in seconds. Receipts on the go in 3 quick steps: 1) Create your account 2) Connect GoCardless and connect your email 3) Open your dashboard, tap a payment, preview, and hit send Add to Home Screen: iPhone (Safari): Tap Share, then Add to Home Screen. Android (Chrome): Tap the menu (three dots), then Add to Home screen or Install app. Once added, it opens like an app so you can send receipts from anywhere, anytime.