Annually
Annually billing (also yearly or annual) charges customers on a recurring 12-month schedule. The yearly price comes from the rate card package; how much is charged at creation or renewal and when invoices are generated depend on your billing rule, payment mode, and (for postpaid/manual) advance invoice settings.
| Duration | 12 months |
| Also called | Yearly, annual |
| Best for | Annual discounts, long-term commitment |
Configure pricing: Settings → Billing Setup → Rate Cards → [Rate Card] → Packages → [Service Type] → Billing cycle and pricing
| Topic | Summary |
|---|---|
| Cycle | Customer commits to a 12-month billing period (package yearly price on the rate card) |
| Charge amount | Billing rule — PRO_RATA, UNFIXED_PRORATA, DATE_TO_DATE, FIXED_CALENDAR_MONTH, UNFIXED_CALENDAR_MONTH (not always full year upfront) |
| When customer pays | Prepaid or manual recommended — not postpaid |
| Advance invoicing | Optional manual flags — see Monthly — invoice timing |
| Postpaid | ❌ Not recommended — revenue and fraud risk over a 12-month period |
| Early deletion | No refund for unused time in the committed period ❌ |
What annual billing means
Annually means the package’s yearly rate card price applies and the service renews every 12 months.
That does not mean CMP always charges the full year on the day the service is created. The charged amount and invoice timing depend on billing rule, payment mode, and advance invoice flags.
Under PRO_RATA, yearly billing aligns to the calendar year (January 1 – December 31) for period boundaries.
Charge amount by billing rule
Annual supports:
| Billing rule | Behaviour |
|---|---|
PRO_RATA | Partial start: daily pro-rata to month end, then full remaining months within the calendar year. See FIXED_PRORATA. |
UNFIXED_PRORATA | Pro-rata for creation month only; next invoice is a full 12-month period from the 1st of the following month. See UNFIXED_PRORATA. |
DATE_TO_DATE | Each period runs creation date → same date 12 months later − 1 day. Required for service contracts. See DATE_TO_DATE. |
FIXED_CALENDAR_MONTH | Calendar-aligned first invoice — see FIXED_CALENDAR_MONTH. |
UNFIXED_CALENDAR_MONTH | Full creation calendar month pro-rata, then rolling 12-month period — see UNFIXED_CALENDAR_MONTH. |
Pro-rata for partial years uses yearly package price ÷ 12 for monthly equivalent, then daily rate ÷ 30.5. See Quarterly — pro-rata example.
Invoice and charge timing
See Monthly — invoice and charge timing. Amounts follow the annual billing rules above.
| Mode | Supported? | Annual behaviour (high level) |
|---|---|---|
| Prepaid | ✅ Recommended | Wallet deducted at creation/renewal; amount per billing rule |
| Postpaid | ❌ Not recommended | Long outstanding period — revenue delay and fraud risk (unless using Service Contracts with monthly installments) |
| Manual | ✅ | Offline settlement; same invoice timing patterns as monthly |
Annual billing without contracts is not recommended with postpaid payment mode.
| Risk | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Revenue delay | You may wait up to a year before collecting payment for the committed period |
| Fraud exposure | A customer can consume services for the full year and leave before paying |
Use prepaid or manual. For postpaid long-term commitments, use Service Contracts where CMP splits the 12-month term into monthly installments.
Early deletion
No refund for unused months. Customer pays for the committed annual period even if the service is deleted before year end.
Standard Annual vs. Contract Annual
CMP provides two completely different operational models for 12-month yearly billing:
- Standard Annual (Normal Billing Cycle): Charges the full 12-month rate card price at creation/renewal. Recommended for PREPAID only (where payment is collected upfront).
- Contract Annual (Service Contract): Secures a 12-month binding commitment, but bills in predictable monthly installments with contract discounts. Designed to make annual commitments safe and viable on postpaid, manual, and prepaid.
Key Differences
| Feature | Standard Annual (Billing Cycle) (Recommended for Prepaid only) | Contract Annual (Service Contract) (Prepaid, Postpaid & Manual) |
|---|---|---|
| Recommended payment mode | ✅ Recommended for PREPAID only (payment collected upfront) | ✅ Prepaid, Postpaid, and Manual (installments collected monthly) |
| Invoicing & deduction | Full 12-month rate card price charged at create/renewal | Billed in monthly installments (Yearly price ÷ 12 minus discount) |
| Postpaid viability | ❌ Not recommended — up to 12 months unbilled credit exposure | ✅ Recommended — predictable revenue invoiced every calendar month |
| Customer deletion | Customer can delete instance anytime (no refund for unused months) | Customer deletion blocked — only scheduled cancellation permitted |
| Commitment lock-in | Subscription period; no legal lock or contract badge | Binding legal term; instance marked with Yearly Contract badge |
| Pricing & discount | Direct package Yearly rate card price | Baseline Yearly ÷ 12 minus configured Contract Discount % |
| Billing rule | Any supported rule (PRO_RATA, DATE_TO_DATE, calendar month) | DATE_TO_DATE only (runs creation date → anniversary) |
| Auto-renewal rules | Standard renewal based on balance / saved card | Compulsory auto-renewal for another 12 months if deadline is missed |
| Cancellation window | Cancel anytime before renewal date | Must request cancellation before the Cancellation Deadline (e.g. 1 month prior) |
| Early termination | Customer self-service deletion | Administrator only (admin deletes VM; manually bills buyout invoice) |
| Where to configure | Rate Cards → edit package Yearly price | Update Billing Rule → set Contract Status = Enable on Yearly |
Service contracts configuration
The Service Contracts system applies to quarterly and longer billing cycles only — not hourly or monthly.
| Requirement | Value |
|---|---|
| Billing cycle | Quarterly or longer (this page: annual = 12-month contract) |
| Billing rule | DATE_TO_DATE only |
| Payment mode | Prepaid, Postpaid, or Manual — configure per mode in Update Billing Rule |
When a customer selects yearly billing with contracts enabled, the service is marked as a contract service in the portal, customer self-deletion is blocked, and monthly installments are billed. See Calculations & Lifecycle.
Admin pricing reference
CMP does not auto-fill yearly prices from monthly. Use Yearly = Monthly × 12 when setting package prices — see Pricing Formulas. For contract services, CMP derives monthly installments from Yearly Price ÷ 12 minus the contract discount.