Subscription renewals without Reference Transactions

Hi @prettyboyelias

Thank you for using the plugin!

We are currently in the process of developing the feature (here is the PR), and it is expected to be released in the next feature update around the end of March.

This feature is still undergoing verification with our partners at PayPal, but it will essentially provide a new setting that lets you choose either Vaulting or the Subscriptions API for subscription payments.

When the Subscriptions API feature is selected, your subscription type products will be synchronized to PayPal with a billing plan, so PayPal can handle the renewal payments. The payment experience for the buyer will remain almost identical with similar looking PayPal smart buttons, and the main difference will be that the customer can see the subscription billing details within the PayPal popup window during the payment.

We will be able to share more details about this in the coming weeks. If you are interested in potentially gaining early access for testing (it will still take a bit more time), you could send us a private message from here: https://paypal.inpsyde.com/docs/request-support/
When sending a private message, please include a link to this thread.

Thanks!

Kind regards,
Niklas

So for us as merchants it would be possible to capture renewals without enabling reference transactions? Meaning we won’t have to go through this difficult process to enable Reference Transactions?

Reference Transactions are only needed when renewal payments are managed externally, e.g. via Vaulting in the WooCommerce Subscriptions plugin.
Reference Transactions are not needed for this new functionality because PayPal is directly managing the subscription interval and renewal payments, and not WooCommerce Subscriptions. The subscription will be mirrored to WooCommerce and updated through webhooks. So when a subscription is changed at PayPal, these changes will also be reflected in the subscription in WooCommerce.

Do we need to setup anything extra to start using this feature? Or perhaps apply for this feature on the PayPal side?

No, every PayPal account (casual and business seller accounts) can use this functionality without the need to apply for anything. But consequently, this feature also has a few more limitations compared to Vaulting.

Sorry for many questions. We just was ineligible for the Reference Transactions feature, therefore, would like to know if it’s possible to use for us (usual merchants)

Meeting PayPal’s requirements for Reference Transactions can be challenging, which is why we are investing development efforts into this new feature. With the new Subscriptions API integration, automatic PayPal renewals are possible without requiring Reference Transactions, which is currently not available with any other PayPal integration on the market except for the no longer supported PayPal Standard.
So this will allow many more users to take advantage of recurring PayPal payments.

Kind regards,
Niklas

Hello,

It has been quite some time since our last communication, so we will mark this thread as resolved. Please open a new thread if you are still facing issues or have questions that you need us to answer.

Kind regards,
Joost

Hi @prettyboyelias

The feature is undergoing internal testing and will be included in the upcoming update in early May.

But initially, this functionality will be opt-in, meaning it must be specifically enabled to use it. This allows us to get more feedback before it is rolled out to everyone. Instructions on testing the feature will be listed on this page in the GitHub wiki within the coming week.

Kind regards,
Niklas