Overview

This article explains the Automatic Retry feature for Automated Recurring Billing (ARB) in Authorize.net. It describes how Automatic Retry works, its current availability status, its effect on scheduled payment occurrences, and the steps to take when a subscription payment fails.

This article applies specifically to merchants using Authorize.net's ARB feature. It does not apply to other payment gateways, manual billing workflows, or non-recurring transactions. Support teams should use this article when assisting merchants with failed recurring payments, suspended subscriptions, or questions about payment retry behavior within Authorize.net.

What Is Recurring Billing Automatic Retry?

Automatic Retry is a feature within Authorize.net's ARB that automatically attempts to collect failed payments on active recurring billing subscriptions.

Key behaviors of this feature include:

• When a payment fails, the subscription is suspended, not cancelled.
• The subscription remains suspended until the payment details are updated and the subscription is reactivated.
• Once the subscription is reactivated, the system automatically retries the failed payment

Enabling Automatic Retry

Automatic Retry is a legacy feature and can no longer be enabled on new Authorize.net accounts. The following conditions apply:

• Merchants who previously enabled Automatic Retry will retain access to the feature and can view whether it is active on their account.
• Once Automatic Retry has been enabled on an account, it cannot be disabled.
• New accounts are not eligible to activate this feature.

Understanding the Impact on Scheduled Payment Occurrences

Failed payments that cause a subscription to be suspended do not count against the total number of scheduled payment occurrences.

Only successfully authorized transactions count toward the subscription's occurrence schedule. This ensures that a payment failure does not unintentionally reduce the total number of billing cycles a subscription is configured to complete.

Managing a Subscription When a Payment Fails

Follow these steps when a recurring billing subscription fails due to a declined payment:

1. Review the failed transaction to identify the reason for the decline.
2. Note that if the first payment on a subscription declines, ARB will prompt for a revised start date. The original failed transaction will not be re-run.
3. Update the subscription with corrected payment details to un-suspend and reactivate it.
4. Confirm that the reactivated subscription has entered the queue for the next day's Recurring Billing run.
5. Monitor the next scheduled transaction. If it fails, the subscription will be suspended again and the process repeats from step 3.
6. Be aware that if the subscription is not reactivated before the next interval payment date, Automatic Retry will not bill twice for missed payments. It will continue following the normal payment schedule starting from the next successful transaction.

Troubleshooting

Scheduled Occurrence Count Appears Reduced After a Failed Payment

If a failed payment appears to have reduced the total scheduled occurrence count, confirm that the transaction was not recorded as a successful authorization. Failed payments do not reduce the total number of scheduled payment occurrences. Only successfully authorized transactions are counted toward the occurrence schedule.

Subscription Remains Suspended After Payment Details Are Updated

If a subscription remains suspended after payment details have been updated, confirm that the subscription has been explicitly reactivated. Updating payment information alone does not automatically reactivate a suspended subscription. The subscription must be reactivated to re-enter the billing queue.

Missed Payment Interval — Concern About Double Billing

If a subscription was not reactivated before the next scheduled payment interval, Automatic Retry will not attempt to collect payments for missed intervals. The subscription will resume on its normal schedule starting with the next successful transaction. No double billing will occur for missed payment periods.

Potential Client Questions

• Will my subscription be cancelled if a payment fails?
  • No. When a payment fails, the subscription is suspended, not cancelled. It will remain suspended until payment details are updated and the subscription is reactivated.
• Can I enable Automatic Retry on my new Authorize.net account?
  • No. Automatic Retry can no longer be enabled on new accounts. It is only available to merchants who previously enabled the feature. If you are unsure whether your account has Automatic Retry enabled, log in to your Authorize.net account to check the feature status.
• Can I turn off Automatic Retry if I no longer want to use it?
  • No. Once Automatic Retry has been enabled on an account, it cannot be disabled.
• Does a failed payment count as one of my scheduled payment occurrences?
  • No. Failed payments do not count against the total number of scheduled payment occurrences. Only successfully authorized transactions are counted toward the subscription's occurrence schedule.
• Will I be charged twice if I miss a payment interval and then reactivate my subscription?
  • No. Automatic Retry does not bill twice for missed payment intervals. Once the subscription is reactivated, it will resume on the normal scheduled payment cadence starting from the next successful transaction.
• What happens if the very first payment on my subscription fails?
  • If the first payment on a subscription declines, ARB will prompt for a revised start date. The original failed transaction will not be re-run. You will need to provide updated payment details and confirm a new start date.
• How do I reactivate a suspended subscription?
  • Log in to your Authorize.net account, navigate to the suspended subscription, update the payment details, and reactivate the subscription. Once reactivated, the subscription will enter the queue for the next day's Recurring Billing run.

Glossary

• ARB (Automated Recurring Billing): A feature within Authorize.net that enables merchants to set up and manage automatically recurring payment subscriptions on a defined schedule.
• Automatic Retry: A legacy ARB feature that automatically attempts to collect failed recurring payments after a subscription has been suspended and reactivated with updated payment details.
• Suspended Subscription: A recurring billing subscription that has been temporarily halted due to a failed payment. A suspended subscription is not cancelled and can be reactivated once payment details are updated.
• Occurrence Schedule: The defined number of billing cycles configured for a recurring subscription. Only successfully authorized transactions count toward this schedule.
• Recurring Billing Run: The daily automated process in which Authorize.net processes all scheduled recurring billing transactions for that day.