Direct Charges

Overview

Direct Charges allow you to bill for items that are not linked to a specific task or scheduled support. This is useful for situations such as:

• Respite
• Centre Capital Costs
• Non-face-to-Face work
• Direct charges for Supported Independent Living

Direct Charges come in two types:

• One-Off Direct Charges – For single, standalone charges.
• Recurring Direct Charges – For charges that repeat on a set schedule (daily, weekly, or monthly).

You can access Direct Charges by going to Finance > Direct Charges.

Creating Direct Charges

Direct Charges allow you to bill for items not linked to a specific task or scheduled support — such as respite, centre capital costs, non-face-to-face work, or SIL charges.

To create a direct charge:

• Go to Finance > Direct Charges.
• Select 'Create Direct Charge'

• Select the Participant.
• Date of the Direct charge
• Enter the Charge Item, Quantity, and Claim Type.
• Add a Description (appears on the invoice) and any Additional Details for internal use.
• Click Create to save.

Recurring Direct Charges

You can also create recurring direct charges. This will create a charge based on the parameters selected for this recurring charge. This recurring charge will be generated until the end date you select.

To create a recurring direct charge simply;

• Click 'create recurring direct charge'

To create a recurring charge you will need to:

• Select the Participant.
• Enter the Charge Item, Quantity, and Claim Type.
• Add a Description (appears on the invoice) and any Additional Details for internal use. On a recurring charge you can also add a date range to the Description.
• Set the Recurrence details, they are the;
  • Start Date
  • End Date
  • Repetition interval and period (Day, Week, Month)
• Click Create to save.

Adding a Date Range to the Description

A recurring direct charge repeats the same Description on every charge it creates, so an invoice can end up with several identical lines. To show the period each charge covers, insert the Date Range placeholder into the Description — particularly useful for SIL, where the invoice needs to show which week was billed.

Placeholders are included with Astalty Premium, so there is nothing to switch on.

When you create or edit a recurring direct charge, select Insert placeholder above the Description field and choose Date Range. This adds ${DateRange} to the Description, and you can type your own wording around it — for example ${DateRange} Weekly SIL.

The Description keeps the ${DateRange} text on the recurring charge and on every charge it generates. The real dates are filled in when the invoice is generated, so the invoice line reads something like 02/01/2026 - 08/01/2026 Weekly SIL.

Backdating a Recurring Direct Charge

You can set the Start Date of a new recurring direct charge to a date that has already passed. Astalty backfills the charges you missed: every occurrence from the start date up to today is generated immediately, then charges continue on the normal schedule from today onwards. Previously you had to add each missed period by hand as an individual one-off direct charge.

As soon as you choose a past start date, the form confirms what will happen:

The start date is in the past. Any missed charges up to today will be generated automatically, and future charges will be created as scheduled.

Backfilled charges are no different to any other charge the recurrence produces. They carry the same Charge Item, quantity, claim type, description and any ratio or item total you set, and each one is dated to the day it would have fallen on — so they land in the invoice period they belong to rather than today's.

Applying a Ratio

When creating or editing a direct charge, you can apply a ratio to apportion the total automatically instead of editing the item total by hand. This is handy for charges you only want to bill a portion of — for example, a shared support split between Participants.

Once you've selected a Participant, Charge Item, and quantity, a Charge Summary appears at the bottom of the form. By default it shows the calculated Total with a pencil to set it manually, alongside an Apply ratio option.

Select Apply ratio to enter a ratio as a Numerator and Denominator (for example 1 : 2). The Charge Item price is apportioned by that ratio and the percentage is shown as you type — so 1 : 2 applies 50% of the price, and the total updates instantly.

Select Remove ratio to clear it and return to the standard total.

Ratios work for both one-off and recurring direct charges wherever Direct Charges is enabled — there's no separate setting to switch on. For a recurring direct charge, the ratio is applied to every charge it generates and is shown on the charge details.

Cloning a Charge

When you need a charge that's almost identical to one you already have — the same Participant and Charge Item, with a different date or recurrence — clone it instead of filling in the form from scratch. Cloning opens the normal create form with the original's details already filled in, so you only change what's different. The original charge is left untouched, and the clone is saved as a brand new charge.

Cloning a Recurring Direct Charge

To clone a recurring direct charge:

• Go to Finance > Direct Charges > Recurring Direct Charges
• Click the actions menu (⋮) at the end of the charge's row
• Select 'Clone Charge'

The Create Recurring Direct Charge form opens pre-filled from the original, including the:

• Participant, Charge Item, quantity and claim type
• Description and Additional Details
• Manually set total or applied ratio, if the original had one
• Linked Site, if the original was tied to one
• Recurrence details — start date, end date, repeat interval and period, and the days or day of the month it repeats on

Change whatever you need, then click Create Recurring Direct Charge to save the clone.

You can clone a recurring charge from a site as well — open the site, go to the Recurring Charges tab and use the same actions menu on the row. Cloning from a site keeps the new charge on that same site. See Sites - Recurring Charges for more.

Cloning a One-Off Direct Charge

To clone a one-off direct charge:

• Go to Finance > Direct Charges
• Click the charge in the list to open it
• Open the Actions menu at the top of the charge and select 'Clone Charge'

The Create Direct Charge form opens pre-filled with the original's Participant, date, Charge Item, quantity, claim type, description, additional details, any manual total or ratio, and the linked Site.

Direct Vs Recurring Charges

Searching for Direct Charges

The search bar in both Direct Charges and Recurring Direct Charges allows you to search by Participant or Charge Item, helping you quickly refine results and more easily identify active Direct Charges.

Watch Direct Charges in Action