Overview
Payment at Purchase is a VoucherCart feature that automatically records gift voucher sales and the associated customer payments in Oracle OPERA Cloud PMS at the time the purchase is made, rather than waiting until the gift voucher, gift card, membership or ticket is redeemed.
This provides finance and operations teams with better visibility of voucher sales, simplifies reconciliation, improves reporting accuracy, and helps support tax and accounting requirements.
Why use Payment at Purchase?
Without Payment at Purchase, voucher transactions may only become visible in OPERA when the voucher is redeemed.
With Payment at Purchase enabled:
Gift voucher sales are recorded immediately in OPERA Cloud.
Customer payments are reflected in the PMS at the point of sale.
Discounted sales are tracked.
Reconciliation between VoucherCart, your payment provider, and OPERA becomes easier.
Voucher revenue and liability reporting can be managed more effectively.
How it works
When a customer purchases a gift voucher, gift card, membership, or ticket through VoucherCart:
1. VoucherCart posts the sale to OPERA
The full price of the purchase before discounts is posted as a charge against a nominated House Posting Account using a designated Gift Voucher Sales Transaction Code.
Example: Customer purchases a $100 gift voucher.
VoucherCart posts:
Type | Amount |
Gift Voucher Sale Charge | $100 |
2. VoucherCart records the payment
VoucherCart then posts a payment against the same account using the configured Payment Method.
Example:
Type | Amount |
Customer Payment | $100 |
This reflects the actual funds received from the customer.
3. Discounts are recorded separately (if applicable)
If a promotion or campaign is applied, VoucherCart records the discount using a separate Gift Voucher Adjustment Transaction Code.
Example: Customer buys a $100 voucher with a $20 discount and pays $80.
VoucherCart posts:
Type | Amount |
Gift Voucher Sale Charge | $100 |
Discount Adjustment | -$20 |
Customer Payment | $80 |
This creates a clear audit trail showing:
Original voucher value
Discount given
Amount collected
and keeps reconciliation balanced.
End result
After setup, every VoucherCart purchase automatically creates corresponding sales and payment transactions in OPERA Cloud PMS at the moment of purchase.
This gives teams:
Centralised voucher sales recording
Improved financial reporting
Easier reconciliation
Better visibility of discounts and promotions
Cleaner audit trails
More accurate tax and liability tracking
In short, Payment at Purchase bridges VoucherCart and OPERA so voucher sales are reflected in the PMS immediately, rather than only when vouchers are redeemed.
Need more help?
Speak to our support team via live chat, call us on +44 (0) 131 608 0111 or email us at help@vouchercart.com
For more video tutorials, FAQ's, and self-help guides go back to the Help Center