Charge for Visit lets you collect payment from patients at the time they book online. This article explains how to turn it on, what your patients see, and exactly what happens when a payment fails or a patient leaves the payment page.
Purpose
Use Charge for Visit to require payment when a patient books an appointment online. You control whether an appointment still goes onto your schedule when the payment does not go through, so you can decide between capturing every booking or only booking patients who have paid.
Definitions
Charge for Visit The setting that requires payment when a patient books a specific appointment type online. Set per Visit Purpose.
Create appointment when online payment fails The setting that controls whether an appointment is still created when a patient's payment is declined.
Payment in Progress An Inbox notification sent when a patient reaches the payment page. It means the patient started paying — not that the payment succeeded.
Payment Failed An Inbox notification sent when a patient's payment is declined. The message text tells you whether the appointment was booked.
Payment Status A column on the Online Appointments page that flags appointments with a failed payment.
Rules and Constraints
Charge for Visit requires a merchant processor integration with Fortis or CashPractice. The behavior described in this article is the same for both.
The price is set per Visit Purpose. An appointment type with no price entered will not ask the patient for payment.
A patient must enter a payment method and click Pay for the appointment to be created. Closing or leaving the payment page never books the appointment.
Time slots are not held while a patient is on the payment page. The slot stays open, and the same patient or a different patient can book it.
No pending or partial appointment record is created at any point. An appointment either exists or it does not.
Navigation Paths
Set the price: Extras (3 dots icon) > Scheduling > Settings > Visit Purpose
Set failed payment behavior: Extras (3 dots icon) > Scheduling > Settings > Site and Settings
Review booked appointments: Extras (3 dots icon) > Scheduling > Online Appointments
Step 1: Turn on Charge for Visit for an appointment type
Go to Extras (3 dots icon) > Scheduling > Settings.
Select the Visit Purpose tab.
Open the appointment type you want to charge for.
Check the Charge patients for a visit box.
Enter the Price.
Click Save.
Repeat for each appointment type you want to collect payment on.
Step 2: Choose what happens when a payment fails
Go to Extras (3 dots icon) > Scheduling > Settings.
Select the Site and Settings tab.
Find Create appointment when online payment fails (Charge for Visit) under Scheduling Preferences.
Check the box to keep the appointment on your schedule even when payment fails. Leave it unchecked to only book appointments that are paid for.
Click Save.
Which should you choose? Leave the box unchecked if you do not want unpaid appointments taking up slots on your schedule. Check the box if you would rather secure the booking and collect payment afterward.
What happens in each scenario
When a patient books an appointment type with a price, they fill out the form and click BOOK & PAY FOR APPOINTMENT. They are then sent to the payment page to enter their card details.
From there, one of three things happens.
The payment fails and the setting is turned off
Your patient sees a "Payment could not be processed" page letting them know their appointment was not scheduled and that your office has been notified. A Try scheduling again button lets them start over.
You receive a Payment in Progress notification followed by a Payment Failed notification in your Inbox. The Payment Failed message reads that the appointment was NOT scheduled.
The appointment is not created. It does not appear on the Online Appointments page and it is not sent to your EHR.
The payment fails and the setting is turned on
Your patient sees the normal Thank You for Scheduling page with a highlighted notice explaining that the appointment was scheduled but payment could not be processed, and that your office may contact them to complete payment. Intake form and calendar links appear as usual.
You receive a Payment in Progress notification followed by a Payment Failed notification. This time the message reads that the appointment has still been sent to the schedule.
The appointment is created. It appears on the Online Appointments page with a red warning icon in the Payment Status column so you can spot unpaid bookings at a glance.
The patient leaves the payment page
If a patient reaches the payment page and closes it, navigates away, or never enters a card, nothing is booked — regardless of how the Create appointment when online payment fails setting is configured.
You receive a Payment in Progress notification only. No Payment Failed notification follows, because no payment was ever attempted.
The appointment is not created. It does not appear on the Online Appointments page and it is not sent to your EHR. The time slot is not held, so the patient can go back and book it again.
Quick reference
What happened | Patient sees | Inbox notifications | Appointment created? |
Payment failed, setting off | Payment could not be processed | Payment in Progress, then Payment Failed ("NOT scheduled") | No |
Payment failed, setting on | Thank You page with payment notice | Payment in Progress, then Payment Failed ("sent to the schedule") | Yes, flagged in Payment Status |
Patient left the payment page | Nothing — they closed the page | Payment in Progress only | No |
Reading your Inbox: A Payment in Progress notification on its own only tells you a patient started the payment step. Whether it turned into an appointment depends on what came next — check the Online Appointments page to confirm before following up.
Collecting payment afterward
When an appointment is booked but unpaid, you can send the patient an invoice link directly from their conversation in the Inbox using the $ icon. How you follow up beyond that is up to your office — call, text, or collect at the visit, whatever fits your workflow.
Completion Criteria
Patients are asked to pay when booking the appointment types you have priced.
Failed payments produce a notification in your Inbox.
Appointments behave the way you expect based on your Create appointment when online payment fails setting.
FAQs
Why isn't the appointment showing on the Online Appointments page after a failed payment?
The Create appointment when online payment fails setting is turned off. With it off, a declined payment means no appointment is created anywhere. Turn it on in Extras > Scheduling > Settings > Site and Settings if you want failed-payment appointments to still appear.
A patient says they booked, but I don't see the appointment. What happened?
They most likely reached the payment page and left without paying. That sends your office a Payment in Progress notification but never books the appointment. Ask the patient to book again and complete the payment step.
Does the appointment get booked if the patient closes the payment page?
No. The patient must enter a payment method and click Pay. This is true even when Create appointment when online payment fails is turned on that setting only applies to payments that were attempted and declined.
Is the time slot held while the patient is paying?
No. The slot stays available until the appointment is actually created, so nothing is blocked if a patient abandons the payment page.
Can a patient try again after a failed payment?
Yes. The confirmation page includes a Try scheduling again button, and the original time slot is still open unless someone else has taken it.
How do I collect payment for an appointment that was booked but not paid?
Send the patient an invoice link from their conversation in the Inbox using the $ icon, or follow up however works best for your office.
Does this work the same way with Fortis and CashPractice?
Yes. Both merchant processors follow the same flow.
Do I need a merchant processor to use Charge for Visit?
Yes. Charge for Visit requires an active integration with either Fortis or CashPractice.