Payment Collection

February 2026 · 7 min

Overview

Bio-Ecko supports a comprehensive set of payment methods -- cash, UPI, credit/debit card, bank transfer (NEFT/RTGS/IMPS), cheque, and patient wallet/advance deposits. The system handles split payments, partial payments, advance adjustments, refunds, and daily reconciliation.

Every payment creates a numbered receipt, posts to the general ledger in real-time, and maintains a complete audit trail. This eliminates end-of-day surprises and ensures your books balance at every shift close.

Supported Payment Methods

Cash -- Drawer-based with shift opening/closing balances and denomination tracking. The system calculates change due.

UPI -- Generate dynamic QR codes per bill (configurable with your UPI VPA). Patients scan and pay; auto-verification via payment gateway webhook confirms the transaction.

Credit / Debit Card -- Integrates with POS terminals. The system captures the approval code, last-4 digits, and settlement batch ID. Card data is never stored locally (PCI-DSS compliant).

Bank Transfer (NEFT/RTGS/IMPS) -- Capture UTR number for reconciliation. Useful for large pre-admission deposits.

Cheque / DD -- Record instrument number, bank name, and date. Mark as cleared or bounced after realization.

Patient Wallet / Advance -- Internal credit from advance deposits or refund credits. Applied at the payment screen.

Split Payment -- Combine multiple modes in a single transaction (e.g., INR 5,000 cash + INR 3,000 UPI). The system validates that the total matches the bill amount before confirming.

Collection Workflow

Step 1 -- Bill Selection: Search by patient name, UHID, bill number, or encounter ID. Outstanding bills appear sorted by date.

Step 2 -- Amount Entry: Enter the full amount or a partial amount. Partial payments update the bill status to 'Partially Paid' and track the remaining balance.

Step 3 -- Mode Selection: Choose one or more payment modes. For card, the POS integration auto-fills the approval code. For UPI, a QR appears on-screen or on a patient-facing display.

Step 4 -- Verification: For amounts above the configurable threshold, a supervisor PIN or biometric may be required.

Step 5 -- Receipt: A numbered receipt prints automatically (A4, A5, or thermal). Digital receipts can be sent via WhatsApp/email with one click.

Step 6 -- Ledger Posting: The payment posts to the cash/bank GL account and reduces accounts receivable instantly. No manual journal entry needed.

Advance Deposits

Advance deposits are collected at admission (IPD) or for prepaid packages:

• Collect -- Enter amount and mode; the system issues an advance receipt with a unique deposit ID.
• Track Balance -- The patient's advance balance is visible on billing, admission, and discharge screens.
• Adjust Against Bill -- At final billing, select 'Adjust Advance'. If the advance exceeds the bill, the remainder stays as credit or can be refunded.
• Forfeit / Lapse -- Configurable rules for un-utilized advances after a set period (e.g., 180 days) with automated notifications before forfeiture.
• Reporting -- Advance Deposit Report shows collected, utilized, and outstanding deposits across all patients.

Refunds

Refunds follow an approval workflow configurable by amount threshold:

• Below threshold (e.g., INR 500) -- Cashier processes directly with a reason code.
• Above threshold -- Requires supervisor approval from the Refund Approvals queue.

Refund modes can be restricted: cash refunds only against cash payments, card refunds only to the original card. The system creates a negative receipt linked to the original payment and posts a reverse GL entry.

Cancellation vs. Refund: Cancelling an unpaid bill simply voids it. Refunding a paid bill creates a credit note. Both are tracked separately in reports.

Daily Reconciliation

Shift Close: Each cashier closes their shift to generate a summary -- total collections by mode, refunds issued, and expected drawer balance. Cash denominations are entered for physical verification. Discrepancies are flagged.

Daily Collection Summary: Aggregates all shifts across all counters. Department-wise, mode-wise, and operator-wise breakdowns.

Bank Reconciliation: Card and UPI settlements from the payment gateway are matched against recorded transactions. Unmatched items appear in an exception report for investigation.

End-of-Day Auto-Report: Configurable to email the Daily Collection Summary to the finance team at shift close.

Payment Receipts

Every payment generates a sequentially numbered receipt automatically. Receipts are important for patient records, audit compliance, and tax purposes.

Receipt Contents:

• Hospital name, address, and GSTIN
• Receipt number (auto-generated, e.g., REC-2026-00123)
• Patient name, UHID, and contact details
• Bill number being paid against
• Amount received (in figures and words)
• Payment mode and transaction reference
• Received by (cashier name)
• Date and time
• Signature line

Printing & Sharing:

• Print via the Print button on the receipt screen (A4, A5, or thermal)
• Send digital receipt via WhatsApp or email using the Share button
• Reprint from Billing > Receipts by searching receipt number
• PDF download available via the Print API endpoint

Receipt Types:

• Payment Receipt -- Against a specific bill
• Advance Receipt -- Deposit collected before/during admission
• Refund Receipt -- Issued when a refund is processed (shows original receipt reference)

GST & Tax Invoice

Bio Ecko generates GST-compliant tax invoices for all billed services.

Configuration:

• Set your hospital's GSTIN in Settings > Organization Profile
• Assign HSN/SAC codes to each service in the Fee Schedule (e.g., SAC 999311 for medical services)
• Set GST percentage per service item (commonly 5%, 12%, or 18%; many hospital services are exempt)

Tax Invoice Fields:

• Supplier GSTIN, name, and address
• Patient/recipient details
• Bill date and invoice number
• Item-wise: Description, HSN/SAC code, quantity, rate, taxable value
• CGST and SGST amounts (for intra-state) or IGST (for inter-state)
• Total tax and grand total
• Amount in words

GST Breakdown:

For every bill, the system can compute a full GST breakdown:

• Taxable amount per item
• CGST (half of GST rate) and SGST (half of GST rate) per item
• Summary totals for CGST, SGST, and total tax

Compliance Notes:

• Hospitals with turnover above INR 20 lakh must register for GST
• Most healthcare services are exempt under SAC 9993 (except cosmetic surgery and hair transplant)
• Room rent above INR 5,000/day attracts 5% GST
• Keep HSN/SAC codes updated as per GST council notifications

Notes

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