Discounts

Discounts are a function used to reduce the amount a resident is billed, either for a specific charge (such as Rent) or for an entire invoice. Discounts are primarily managed from the resident's profile and are applied automatically to invoices based on the Start Date and End Date you set. Discounts tend to be pre-planned and are ideal for handling promotional periods or rent concessions without manual intervention each month.

About Discounts

• Discounts automatically apply to any invoice that falls within the configured Start Date and End Date, which is commonly set prior to invoice generation.

• Discounts can be applied to:

  • A specific billing item (for example, “$100 off AL One Bedroom”), or
  • The entire invoice using an Invoice Level Discount (managed in Billing Settings).
• You can add discounts directly to the Discounts section of a resident’s profile to have them apply automatically to future invoices.
• By default, discounts prorate along with prorated charges. If needed, you can select Excluded from Proration to apply the full discount amount regardless of proration.
• Discounts can also be configured as Subsidies, allowing them to post to separate GL accounts for accounting and reporting purposes.
• Billing items, Discount GL Account #s, and discount eligibility are managed in Billing Settings.

For more information on monthly billing workflows, refer to the ALIS Monthly Invoicing guide. 

For assistance with settings configuration, contact your Account Manager or our ALIS Customer Success Team. 

Proactively apply a Discount 

This is the most common method for managing promotions and long-term concessions. The discount will automatically apply to all invoices that fall within the dates you set. 

1. Navigate to the Billing section of the resident's profile and expand Discounts.
2. Click the +Add Discount button.
3. Fill in the key details in the Create Discount pane:
   • Start Date and End Date determine which invoices will include the discount. Leaving the End Date blank will show as "Never" and continue applying automatically to future invoices indefinitely.
   • Apply To (Billing Item vs. Invoice Level):
     • Billing Item links the discount to a specific charge (e.g., "$100 off 'AL One Bedroom'").
     • Invoice applies the discount to the entire invoice total. This "Invoice Level Discount" is a setting that can be enabled if appropriate for your billing practices. Read this Billing Settings guide for more information.
   • Billing Item and Discount GL Account # are based on your Billing Settings. The Billing Item dropdown will conveniently place the given resident's Billable Items at the top for easy selection. 
     • In a less common scenario, you can select the checkbox Excluded from Proration. By default, if a charge is prorated, the discount prorates with it. Use this option to apply the full discount amount regardless. 
   • Type the correct Amount based on discount type:
     • Flat amount ($)
     • Percentage (%)
     • Per diem ($/day), if applicable
   • Add a clear Description for you team's future reference.
4. Click Save. 

💡Tip: Creating discounts with discreet start and end dates are useful for promotions on future months. For example, you can add two promotional discounts for a resident's third and fifth months of stay. As long as they are dated properly, they will apply automatically when future invoices are run.  

Apply a Discount to an existing invoice

You can apply a one-time discount directly to a charge on an existing, unpaid invoice to provide an immediate concession. 

1. Navigate to a resident's invoice you need to adjust, and click Options > Edit.
2. In the Transactions section of the Edit Invoice page, find the charge you wish to discount.
3. Either click DC for that line item, or select the Apply Discount option (which will require more manual steps). 
4. Fill in the details in the Create Discount pane as described in the above section.
5. Click Save to apply the discount. The invoice balance will be updated immediately. 

If a Discount was incorrectly applied

If you created a Discount incorrectly and it auto-applied to any previously generated invoices, you will need to first edit the existing discount and then remove it from the invoice(s). Follow these simple steps: 

1. On the existing discount, click Options > Edit. Make changes to the Start Date and/or End Date as well as other fields as needed. 
2. Click Save.
3. Next, navigate to the invoice(s) in which the discount was applied. Click Options > Edit. 
4. In the Transactions section of the Edit Invoice page, click the trash can icon on the discount you need to remove. 
5. In the Delete Discount pop-up that appears, you are required to write a note stating the reason for deletion. 
6. Click Delete.

Subsidies 

Subsidies allow discounts to post to specific GL accounts for accounting and financial tracking purposes.

Unlike standard promotional discounts that lower that total revenue (like a promotional discount), subsidies categorize the source of financial assistance and create a clearer audit trail.

The Subsidy feature must first be enabled by the ALIS team. Associated Subsidy GL Account #s must also be configured on the applicable billing items.  

When enabled, users can select a Subsidy GL Account # while creating or editing a discount. Subsidies display differently on invoices and reports.

For assistance configuring subsidies, contact your Account Manager or the ALIS Customer Success Team.

Rent Concessions

For rent concessions, select the applicable Rent billing item when creating the discount.

Short-Term Concessions

Add a discount with a specific Start Date and End Date. Do not select a subsidy account.

Long-Term Concessions

Add a discount and select the 410300 GL account in the Subsidy GL Account # field. You can start typing the number to quickly find it in the menu.

Per-Diem Discounts

If the selected billing item is configured as a per diem service in Billing Settings (such as Respite Care), the $/day discount option becomes available.

Per-diem discounts automatically recalculate based on the number of service days included on each invoice.

This may be useful for:

• Respite stays
• Daily care services
• Temporary services billed by day

Notable behavior:

• Per-diem discounts carry forward to future invoices automatically.
• The Exclude from Proration option is hidden because the discount already calculates by day.
• The Discounts Report displays per-diem discounts with a /day suffix (example: “$50.00/day”).

Related articles:

• Discounts vs. Credits

• ALIS Monthly Invoicing

• How to Set Opening Balances

For more assistance: 888.404.ALIS (2547)  |  support@go-alis.com