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Set up fee items

Updated
The Goal: Set up the fee items that represent everything you sell (memberships, event registrations, sponsorships and more) with the right type and accounts, so they’re ready to use throughout billing.
Before You Begin:
  • Fee items are at Finance, Administrative section, Billing Settings, Fee Items (the page opens as Saleable Items). Use Download there to get a list of every fee item and its configuration.
  • At first setup, add the high-level categories of what you sell; add more any time.
  • This article covers standard fee items. For optional amounts members can choose to pay, see Set up Voluntary Fee Items.

Fee Items page with the Download option boxed

Create a standard fee item

Before You Begin:

  • You need Full Control access to Billing to edit the accounting type and GL accounts associated with a Fee Item.
  • Have your Chart of Accounts configured so that the correct income, receivables, deferred income, and deposit accounts are available for selection.
  • IMPORTANT: Fee Items should not be deactivated if there are open invoices attached. Instead, add OLD to the Fee Item name and create a new Fee Item. Run the Transactions by Contact Report to identify invoices that have not been satisfied. See Fee Items FAQ & Use Cases for more information.
  • NOTE: Once a Fee Item has been created, only those with Full Control access to Billing are allowed to edit the accounting type and GL accounts associated with a Fee Item. Additionally, if BP Mode is enabled, no changes can be made to the fee item after it is saved. See Best Practice Mode (BP Mode) for further information.

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. Go to Finance, Administrative section, click Billing Settings, and select Fee Items. The page opens as Saleable Items. A list of Fee Items currently configured in your system will be displayed.
    Fee Items page showing the list of configured fee items
  2. Click the New button.
    Fee Items page with the NEW button boxed
  3. On the Add Fee Item screen, configure the following:
    • Name: Provide a name for the Fee Item. This will be displayed when you are selecting Fee Items throughout the software.
    • Fee Item Type: Select a type from the drop-down list. It is important to choose the appropriate type, as this drives where the fee item is available in the software. For example, a fee item setup of Membership Type would not be available in the Events module. Type can also be used for filtering and reporting. See Fee Item Types for more information.
    • Product Category: Select a product category from the drop-down list. Product Category is used for filtering and reporting. You can select a previously configured product category from the list, or, to add a new product category, click the + sign.
    • Description: Enter a description of the Fee Item. This description is displayed in the Fee Items list and will be the line item included on invoices. If needed, you will be able to override the description provided here when adding a fee item to an invoice.
    • Product Description: This field may be used if you wish to track additional details about this fee item. It is for internal use only.
    • Default Price: Enter a default price for this Fee Item. This price will automatically display when adding this fee item to an invoice and may be overridden as needed. Leaving this at 0 is usually best, as setting it can require updating pricing in 2 places if/when prices change.
    • Default Quantity: Enter the default quantity for this Fee Item. This would be used if a minimum purchase is required for this fee item, and it may be overridden when you are assigning the Fee Item.
    • Accounting Type: Select either Cash or Accrual. If Accrual is selected, the Revenue Recognition Type drop-down list will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. The Accounting Type refers to when your association recognizes income: Cash is recognized only when it is received. Accrual is recognized as soon as it is rendered. Your accounting practices will determine your selection.
    • Income Account: Select the income account for this Fee Item. The drop-down list will be populated with the income accounts currently configured in your Chart of Accounts. You may add a new account by clicking the + sign. If you are unsure which account to select, check with your accountant, as this will affect your financial statements. This is the account that will be credited when this fee item is invoiced.
    • Receivables Account: Select the accounts receivable account for this Fee Item. When using accrual basis, this is the A/R account that will be used to “hold” the revenue until payment is received. The drop-down list will be populated with the receivables account configured in your Chart of Accounts. This is the account that will be debited when this fee item is invoiced. NOTE: If you are using QBO integration, set all fee items to your default AR account in QuickBooks.
    • Deferred Income Account: Select the deferred income account for this Fee Item. If using accrual accounting. The drop-down list will be populated with the deferred income accounts configured in your Chart of Accounts. If you have chosen to defer the revenue for this event to a specific point in time, the revenue will be held in the deferred income account until that point in time.
    • Deposit Account — Select the deposit account for this Fee Item. The drop-down list will be populated with the deposit accounts configured in your Chart of Accounts. IMPORTANT!! The deposit account selected here is for journal entry purposes. The physical bank account to which funds will be deposited is configured when setting up your gateway. IMPORTANT!! Undeposited Funds is the required Deposit Account selection for use with QuickBooks Online Integration - Getting Started.
    • Default Revenue Recognition Months — If the revenue for this Fee Item will be recognized over a period of time, enter the default number of months over which the revenue will be recognized.
    • Voluntary — Select this checkbox if the fees for this Fee Item are voluntary. A voluntary fee may be displayed on an invoice, and the member may choose to pay or not pay this fee. If they choose not to pay the fee, it will not be counted against them in any past-due invoice reports. Voluntary fees are designed so it is clear to your members when and if they opt into the additional fee. For example, on invoices, the amount of the invoice without the voluntary fee will always be shown first, and if voluntary amounts are included, it will be noted with the phrase (voluntary amount).
    • Taxes: Choose one option or the other
      • Product Tax Category: Set the product tax category if taxes vary from one contact to another. Tax will be calculated based on the tax set assigned on the contact’s billing tab OR
      • Tax Set: If the tax to be applied to this Fee Item will be the same for all contacts, choose the appropriate tax set. This tax will be applied across the board regardless of the set assigned to a contact. The only exception will be if the contact’s tax status is set to tax exempt.
    • Is Recurring Fee — Select this checkbox if this is a recurring fee for things like membership dues or fundraising campaigns.
    • Note: When creating a voluntary fee, you must select Membership as the Fee Item type. Additionally, when the Voluntary checkbox is selected, the Accounting Type will automatically be set to Cash and the Revenue Recognition Type will be set to Fully on Paid Date.
    • Revenue Recognition — From the Revenue Recognition Type, select how you will recognize the revenue for this Fee Item. For example, if this is an event-related fee, and you wish to defer revenue recognition until the start date of the event, you would select Fully on Event Start Date. NOTE: This option is only displayed if you have selected Accrual as Accounting Type for this Fee Item.
    • Is Active — Select this checkbox to activate this Fee Item. Only Active items may be billed, and only active items will be displayed when you need to select a fee item.
  4. Click Done to save the new Fee Item.

In the Membership Type section, you will be able to see the membership types that are tied to this Fee Item.
Membership Types section of a saved fee item, listing the membership types tied to it

Realtor Specific

In the Realtor Edition of the software, you will have fields to configure for your NAR Ecommerce splits and your financial record mapping.
Realtor Edition fields on the Add Fee Item screen — the NAR Ecommerce split and financial record mapping fields boxed

See M1 Financial Record Initial Setup and NAR E-Commerce Initial Setup - Dues Split for further information on these settings.

NOTE: If adding a new fee item related to membership, be sure to complete the financial mapping for splits under the Real Estate Finance Settings.

NOTE: When BP Mode is enabled, no changes may be made to the financial mapping or dues split configuration once the fee item is saved. If you wish to make changes, you will need to create a new Fee Item. Learn more about Best Practice Mode (BP Mode).

Common Pitfalls

  • Deactivating a Fee Item with open invoices: Do not deactivate a Fee Item that still has open invoices attached. Instead, add OLD to the name and create a new Fee Item.
  • Setting a Default Price you will have to maintain: Leaving the Default Price at 0 is usually best, since setting it can force you to update pricing in two places when prices change.
  • Choosing the wrong Fee Item Type: The type drives where the fee item is available, so picking the wrong one can make it unavailable where you need it.
  • Skipping the QuickBooks Online side of the setup: If you are using the QBO integration, be certain to create the item(s) within QuickBooks Online and map the items appropriately.

Fee item types: where each can be used

Before You Begin:

  • You need billing/finance permissions to create and manage Fee Items.
  • Decide where the Fee Item needs to be available (memberships, events, the store, single invoices, etc.) before selecting its type, because the Fee Item Type cannot be freely changed after the item is in use.

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. When creating a new Fee Item, you will need to choose a Fee Item Type. The Fee Item Type drives where the software can use the Fee Item.

  2. To understand where the various Fee Item Types can be used throughout the database, refer to the following table. 

    Fee Item Type Where the fee item can be used Possible uses
    Sponsorship Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership Add-ons, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Manual Single Invoice
    Add-on Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership Add-ons, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership Application (version 2)
    Digital Product Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Store Store
    Educational Registration Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Events, Sponsors Events
    Event Sponsorship Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Events, Sponsors Events
    Event No-show Fee Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Event Settings No-Show Fee Event Settings No-Show Fee
    Event Registration Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Events, Sponsors Events
    Fund Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership, Single Invoice
    Fundraising Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Fundraising Donations, Contributions, Single Invoice
    List/Committee Memberships Unpaid Tab Membership
    Initiation Setup Charge Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership, Single Invoice
    Late Fee Voluntary Fee, Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership
    Membership dues Voluntary Fee, Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership Add-ons, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Events, Web Content, Store, Sponsors Varied
    Miscellaneous Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership Add-ons, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Web Content Single Invoice, Web Content, Add-ons
    Non-Dues Voluntary Fee, Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership, Single Invoice
    PAC Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice, Store Store
    Physical Product Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership Add-ons, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership, Single Invoice
    Processing Fee Fundraising Fundraising Fees
    Professional Service Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership, Single Invoice
    Program Contacts (Individuals), Contacts (Business), Membership Recurring Fee (if marked as recurring), Membership Recurring Once Per Term, Membership One Time Fees, Billing Sales/Invoice Membership, Single Invoice
    Surcharge — —
    Unit — —
  3. Select the Fee Item Type that matches where you intend to use the item, then complete the rest of the Fee Item setup. For step-by-step setup, see Setup Standard Fee Items.

Common Pitfalls

  • Forgetting to select the membership on a single invoice: When creating a single invoice that is tied to a membership type fee item, you will need to select the membership.
    single invoice line item for a membership type fee item, with the Membership selection field boxed. Cropped to the line item area only
  • Choosing the wrong type: The Fee Item Type controls where the item is available across the database, so picking the wrong type can prevent the Fee Item from appearing where you need it. Confirm the intended use against the table above before saving.

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