> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.yrka.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Billing and account lifecycle in Yrka

> Manage your plan, review your account lifecycle state, start or update billing through Stripe, and understand what each account state means for your workspace.

Billing in Yrka covers your plan, lifecycle state, employee capacity, invoice history, and any owner-controlled actions like export requests, reactivation, or account deletion. Everything related to your account's operational status — whether you are trialing, active, past due, or winding down — flows through the Billing Account page at `/admin/billing`. Only owners and billing-authorized admins can manage payment, plan changes, and account lifecycle actions.

## Opening Billing Account

Go to `/admin/billing`. You will see your current plan, lifecycle state, support tier, employee capacity, account notices, invoice summary, and a list of recent billing events.

<Info>
  Other admins may be able to see limited billing context, but cannot manage payment, cancellation, export, or deletion without billing authorization.
</Info>

## Account lifecycle states

Your account moves through a defined lifecycle from initial creation through active use and, eventually, possible suspension, cancellation, or deletion. The current state determines what you can do in Yrka and through the billing portal.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Demo" icon="flask">
    The account is active but limited before paid activation or managed approval. Some features may be restricted.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Trialing" icon="timer">
    A card-required trial is active. Review your trial end date and understand the cancellation path before renewal.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Active" icon="circle-check">
    Paid or managed access is fully active. All features within your plan limits are available.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Past due" icon="alert-triangle">
    A payment attempt failed. Resolve payment through the billing portal or contact support before sync writes are affected.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Suspended" icon="ban">
    Access is blocked until you resolve the underlying issue. Contact support or use the billing portal to recover.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Canceled" icon="x-circle">
    Paid access has ended. You may still be in an export retention window depending on when cancellation occurred.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Export retention" icon="archive">
    Data remains available for export or reactivation during the retention window. Use this time to download what you need.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Deletion requested" icon="trash-2">
    A verified owner has requested account deletion. This state is not proof that deletion has executed — wait for support or operator confirmation.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Starting or activating billing

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Billing Account">
    Go to `/admin/billing`. If you are on a demo or trial account, you will see an option to start checkout.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Start checkout">
    For self-serve accounts, click the checkout option and complete the Stripe checkout flow. You will need a valid payment method. After checkout completes, your account moves to an active or trialing state depending on your plan.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Managed activation">
    If your organization is on a managed billing path, contact support or your implementation owner for activation. Managed accounts use support-entered billing metadata instead of the self-serve Stripe portal.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Managing an active account through Stripe

When your account has Stripe billing attached, you can manage your subscription through the billing portal directly from `/admin/billing`.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the billing portal">
    From `/admin/billing`, click the option to open the billing portal. This takes you to the Stripe-hosted portal where you can update payment methods, view invoices, change your plan, or cancel.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Update payment information">
    Add or replace your payment method in the Stripe portal. Yrka does not store card details — Stripe handles all payment data.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review invoices">
    Invoice summaries appear in Yrka after Stripe sends verified billing events. For full invoice details, payment history, and receipts, use the Stripe portal directly.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Change your plan or cancel">
    Plan changes and cancellations are handled through the Stripe portal for self-serve accounts. Managed accounts use the support path shown in the app.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  Stripe is the source of truth for invoice content, payment methods, refunds, taxes, and charge details. Yrka reflects verified Stripe events — discrepancies should be resolved through the Stripe portal or support.
</Note>

## Handling past-due and suspended accounts

When a payment fails, your account moves to past due. Repeated failures or unresolved past-due status can lead to suspension.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Resolve payment in the billing portal">
    Open the Stripe portal from `/admin/billing` and update your payment method or complete the outstanding payment. Successful payment typically restores active status within a short processing window.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Contact support if the portal is unavailable">
    If the billing portal option is not available — for example, if the account is fully suspended — contact support using the path shown in the app. Do not clear browser data or create a new workspace while the account is in a degraded state.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Preserve any queued local work">
    Account state can block server-side sync writes. Keep any queued or unsaved work until the account is recovered, then confirm it synced correctly after recovery.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Managing employee capacity

Your plan includes a maximum number of active employees. Employees in active, leave, or seasonal statuses count toward this limit.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Review your current capacity">
    Open `/admin/billing` and check the employee capacity section. You will see how many active employees you have versus your plan limit.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Resolve a capacity warning">
    If you are near or at the limit, move inactive employees out of active, leave, or seasonal statuses, or upgrade to a plan with higher capacity. See [Understand Yrka billing status and plan limits](/setup/billing-status) for more detail.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Upgrade your plan">
    Upgrade through the Stripe billing portal for self-serve accounts, or contact support for managed accounts. Plan upgrades take effect after Stripe confirms the change.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Cancellation, export, and deletion

<Steps>
  <Step title="Cancel your subscription">
    Cancellation is handled through the Stripe billing portal. After cancellation, your account enters the canceled state and may transition to export retention.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Export your data during retention">
    While in export retention, you can request a data export from `/admin/billing`. Use this window to download any employee records, payroll history, schedules, or other data you need to preserve. Contact support if the export option is not visible.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Request account deletion">
    Verified owners can request account deletion from the billing page. Submitting a deletion request does not immediately delete the account — wait for support or operator confirmation before assuming data has been removed.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  Deletion requests are irreversible once executed. Do not submit a deletion request unless you have completed your data export and confirmed you no longer need the workspace.
</Warning>

## Boundaries

Support response windows are operating targets, not formal SLAs, uptime guarantees, or service credits. Yrka does not provide tax advice, payroll processing, or legal advice. Stripe remains the source of truth for hosted invoice content, payment methods, refunds, and charge details.