Makeup Lessons and Billing
Makeup lessons are never charged under calendar based billing — this is automatic. But the more important concept is why : makeup lessons are the mechanism by which the platform maintains fairness for missed lessons. Und
What Is a Makeup Lesson?
A makeup lesson is a lesson scheduled to replace one that was previously missed or cancelled. For example, if a student cannot attend their usual Tuesday slot, you might schedule a makeup lesson on Thursday of the same week or the first Tuesday of next term.
In the platform, makeup lessons are marked as such when they are created. This flag is how the billing system knows that the lesson is a replacement — not a new billable slot. When you run an invoice generation that covers the period in which the makeup lesson is scheduled, it will not be included in the invoice charges.
The Entitlement Layer: How the Platform Tracks Fairness
As explained in How Your Lessons Are Counted, the platform separates four concerns: scheduling, attendance, entitlements, and billing. The entitlement layer is the mechanism that ensures students are treated fairly when they miss lessons, without requiring the billing system to look at attendance records.
Here is how it works step by step:
| Step | What Happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Student misses a lesson | Attendance is marked (e.g. 'Absent'). The billing system takes no action. |
| 2. Makeup credit is created | If your attendance status for 'Absent' is configured to generate a makeup credit, the platform records that this student is owed one replacement lesson. This is the entitlement. |
| 3. Makeup lesson is scheduled | You schedule a makeup session. The lesson is flagged as a makeup in the system. |
| 4. Makeup lesson is attended | The student attends. The entitlement (makeup credit) is consumed. |
| 5. Invoice is generated | The makeup lesson is automatically excluded from any invoice — because the entitlement shows it is already accounted for. No double charge. |
The end result is that the student was charged for their regular lesson slot and received a fair replacement — all tracked cleanly without the invoice calculation needing to know anything about attendance.
What If My Studio Does Not Offer Makeups?
Not every studio offers makeup lessons. If your policy is that missed lessons are forfeited, simply configure your absence attendance status to not create a makeup credit. No entitlement is recorded, no makeup lesson needs to be scheduled, and the invoice for the period is unchanged.
This is controlled entirely through your attendance status settings — not through billing.
Makeups Are Excluded Across All Billing Models
The rule that makeup lessons are never billable applies across every billing model in the platform — not just calendar-based billing:
- Under calendar billing: makeup lessons are excluded from the scheduled lesson count.
- Under PAYG: makeup lessons are excluded from attendance-driven charge generation.
- Under lesson packs: makeup lessons do not consume lesson pack credits.
A makeup lesson cannot generate a charge under any billing model. This is a system-wide rule.
What If I Want to Charge for a Session Scheduled as a Makeup?
In some studio arrangements, extra sessions are offered as paid add-ons. If that is your situation, schedule the session as a regular lesson — not marked as a makeup. Only mark a lesson as a makeup when it is genuinely a replacement for a missed session and should not generate an additional charge.
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