Auto-renew subscriptions before they lapse

Answers "does a plan renew itself?": until now, no — and that was a silent revenue
leak, not merely a missing convenience. A club whose period ended with its last due
PAID owes nothing, so dues_overdue() is empty, so archive_overdue_clubs never fires.
The club kept using the platform for free and no dashboard number went red, because
nothing was ever billed. The safety net only caught clubs you remembered to invoice.

`renew_subscriptions` (cron) issues the next period 30 days before the current one
ends, so the invoice lands before the period lapses and grace only matters for
genuine non-payers. It is idempotent by construction: a just-renewed club has a
latest period a year out, past the horizon, so a second run is a no-op.

It ACTS by default and previews with --dry-run — the opposite asymmetry to
archiving, and deliberately so. Archiving switches off a customer, so not-acting is
safe there; here, not-acting is the expensive failure, because an unbilled club is
also an unchased one. An unpriced tier fails that one club loudly (non-zero exit, so
cron mails you) without stopping the rest.

Opt-out per club via Subscription.auto_renew, mirroring auto_archive: off means you
invoice that club by hand. The dashboard gains a "renewals pending" count that
should sit at ~0 — a number here means cron has died and a club is about to go free,
which no other metric would reveal.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>

billing/admin.py

@@ -25,8 +25,8 @@ class TierPriceAdmin(admin.ModelAdmin):
 
 @admin.register(Subscription)
 class SubscriptionAdmin(admin.ModelAdmin):
-    list_display = ["club", "tier", "auto_archive"]
+    list_display = ["club", "tier", "auto_renew", "auto_archive"]
-    list_filter = ["tier", "auto_archive"]
+    list_filter = ["tier", "auto_renew", "auto_archive"]
     search_fields = ["club__name"]
 
 

billing/management/commands/renew_subscriptions.py

@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+"""Issue the next billing period for clubs whose current one is running out.
+
+Unlike archive_overdue_clubs, this ACTS by default and only previews with --dry-run. The
+asymmetry is deliberate and runs the other way: archiving switches off a paying customer, so
+not acting is the safe failure. Here, not acting means a club keeps using the platform for
+free — and because nothing is owed, no dashboard number goes red and the archive job never
+fires either. A missed renewal is silent, and silence is the expensive failure.
+"""
+
+from django.core.management.base import CommandError
+
+from billing.models import RENEWAL_LEAD_DAYS
+from billing.services import BillingError
+from billing.services.dues import renew, subscriptions_due_for_renewal
+from features.commands import MaintenanceAwareCommand
+
+
+class Command(MaintenanceAwareCommand):
+    help = "Open the next billing period for clubs whose current period ends soon."
+
+    def add_arguments(self, parser):
+        parser.add_argument("--dry-run", action="store_true", help="Report what would be issued, and issue nothing.")
+        parser.add_argument("--lead-days", type=int, default=RENEWAL_LEAD_DAYS, help=f"Issue this many days before the period ends (default {RENEWAL_LEAD_DAYS}).")
+
+    def handle(self, *args, **options):
+        due_for_renewal = subscriptions_due_for_renewal(lead_days=options["lead_days"])
+
+        if not due_for_renewal:
+            self.stdout.write(self.style.SUCCESS("Nothing to renew."))
+            return
+
+        failures = []
+        for subscription in due_for_renewal:
+            club = subscription.club
+
+            if options["dry_run"]:
+                self.stdout.write(f"would renew {club} — {subscription.tier}, current period ends {subscription.latest_period_end or 'never opened'}")
+                continue
+
+            try:
+                due = renew(subscription)
+            except BillingError as error:
+                # One unpriced tier must not stop every other club from being billed.
+                failures.append(f"{club}: {error}")
+                self.stdout.write(self.style.ERROR(f"{club} — {error}"))
+                continue
+
+            self.stdout.write(self.style.SUCCESS(f"{club} — {due.period_start} to {due.period_end}, {due.amount} ({due.invoice.number})"))
+
+        if options["dry_run"]:
+            self.stdout.write(self.style.WARNING(f"\nDry run: {len(due_for_renewal)} club(s) would be renewed."))
+            return
+
+        if failures:
+            # Non-zero, so cron mails you: a club that could not be billed is revenue quietly
+            # not being collected.
+            raise CommandError(f"{len(failures)} club(s) could not be renewed:\n  " + "\n  ".join(failures))

billing/migrations/0002_subscription_auto_renew.py

@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+# Generated by Django 6.0.6 on 2026-07-14 22:35
+
+from django.db import migrations, models
+
+
+class Migration(migrations.Migration):
+
+    dependencies = [
+        ('billing', '0001_initial'),
+    ]
+
+    operations = [
+        migrations.AddField(
+            model_name='subscription',
+            name='auto_renew',
+            field=models.BooleanField(default=True, help_text='Issue the next period automatically before this one ends. Off means you invoice this club by hand.', verbose_name='auto renew'),
+        ),
+    ]

billing/models.py

@@ -22,6 +22,11 @@ ZERO = Decimal("0.00")
 #: A club stays live for six weeks past the end of an unpaid period before it is archived.
 GRACE_DAYS = 45
 
+#: The next period is issued this long before the current one ends, so the invoice reaches the
+#: club — and can be paid — before the old period lapses. Grace then only matters for genuine
+#: non-payers, rather than for everyone who takes a fortnight to pay a bank transfer.
+RENEWAL_LEAD_DAYS = 30
+
 
 def add_one_year(day: date) -> date:
     """The day one year on. 29 February has no counterpart in a common year, so it falls
@@ -93,6 +98,7 @@ class Subscription(UUIDModel):
 
     club = models.OneToOneField("club.Club", on_delete=models.CASCADE, related_name="subscription", verbose_name=_("club"))
     tier = models.ForeignKey(Tier, on_delete=models.PROTECT, related_name="subscriptions", verbose_name=_("tier"))
+    auto_renew = models.BooleanField(_("auto renew"), default=True, help_text=_("Issue the next period automatically before this one ends. Off means you invoice this club by hand."))
     auto_archive = models.BooleanField(_("auto archive"), default=True, help_text=_("Archive this club when a period goes unpaid past its grace period."))
     notes = models.TextField(_("notes"), blank=True)
 

billing/services/dues.py

@@ -6,17 +6,17 @@ from datetime import date, timedelta
 from decimal import Decimal
 
 from django.db import transaction
-from django.db.models import Sum
+from django.db.models import DateField, OuterRef, Subquery, Sum
 from django.utils import timezone
 
-from billing.models import ZERO, Due, DuePayment, Subscription, Tier
+from billing.models import RENEWAL_LEAD_DAYS, ZERO, Due, DuePayment, Subscription, Tier
 from billing.services import BillingError
 from billing.services.invoices import issue_invoice
 
 
-def subscribe(club, tier: Tier, *, start: date | None = None, auto_archive: bool = True) -> Subscription:
+def subscribe(club, tier: Tier, *, start: date | None = None, auto_archive: bool = True, auto_renew: bool = True) -> Subscription:
     """Put a club on a tier and open its first period."""
-    subscription, _created = Subscription.objects.update_or_create(club=club, defaults={"tier": tier, "auto_archive": auto_archive})
+    subscription, _created = Subscription.objects.update_or_create(club=club, defaults={"tier": tier, "auto_archive": auto_archive, "auto_renew": auto_renew})
     open_period(club, start=start)
 
     return subscription
@@ -151,3 +151,36 @@ def reactivate(club, *, start: date | None = None) -> Due:
     club.restore()
 
     return open_period(club, start=start)
+
+
+def subscriptions_due_for_renewal(today: date | None = None, lead_days: int = RENEWAL_LEAD_DAYS):
+    """Clubs whose next period should be issued now.
+
+    Idempotent by construction: a club that has just been renewed has a latest period ending a
+    year out, which is past the horizon, so it cannot be picked up twice. Running the job twice
+    a day is harmless.
+
+    A subscription with no period at all (its only due was cancelled) counts too — a club on a
+    plan and billed for nothing is the leak this whole job exists to close.
+    """
+    today = today or timezone.localdate()
+    horizon = today + timedelta(days=lead_days)
+
+    latest_period_end = Subquery(
+        Due.objects.filter(club=OuterRef("club")).exclude(status=Due.Status.CANCELLED).order_by("-period_end").values("period_end")[:1],
+        output_field=DateField(),
+    )
+
+    subscriptions = (
+        Subscription.objects.filter(auto_renew=True, club__archived_at__isnull=True)
+        .select_related("club", "tier")
+        .annotate(latest_period_end=latest_period_end)
+        .order_by("club__name")
+    )
+
+    return [subscription for subscription in subscriptions if subscription.latest_period_end is None or subscription.latest_period_end <= horizon]
+
+
+def renew(subscription: Subscription) -> Due:
+    """Open the club's next period, continuing from the last one."""
+    return open_period(subscription.club)

billing/tests.py

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ from io import StringIO
 from unittest import mock
 
 from django.core.management import call_command
+from django.core.management.base import CommandError
 from django.test import TestCase
 from django.utils import timezone
 
@@ -12,7 +13,7 @@ from club.models import Club
 
 from .models import GRACE_DAYS, Due, Invoice, Subscription, Tier, TierPrice, add_one_year
 from .services import BillingError
-from .services.dues import archivable_clubs, dues_in_grace, dues_overdue, next_period_start, open_period, reactivate, record_payment, remove_payment, subscribe, waive
+from .services.dues import archivable_clubs, dues_in_grace, dues_overdue, next_period_start, open_period, reactivate, record_payment, remove_payment, renew, subscribe, subscriptions_due_for_renewal, waive
 from .services.invoices import invoice_pdf, issue_invoice, render_pdf
 
 
@@ -335,3 +336,124 @@ class ModelStringTests(BillingTestBase):
         self.assertIn("10.00", str(payment))
         self.assertIn("INV-", str(due.invoice))
         self.assertIn("Standard", str(subscribe(Club.objects.create(name="PSV"), self.tier)))
+
+
+class RenewalTests(BillingTestBase):
+    """The leak this closes: a club whose period lapses with its last due PAID owes nothing,
+    so dues_overdue() is empty, so archive_overdue_clubs never fires — and the club keeps
+    using the platform for free while every number on the dashboard stays green."""
+
+    def ending_in(self, days, **kwargs):
+        """A club whose current period ends `days` from now."""
+        club = Club.objects.create(name=f"Club {days}")
+        subscribe(club, self.tier, start=self.today - datetime.timedelta(days=365 - days), **kwargs)
+        return club
+
+    def test_a_club_nearing_its_end_date_is_picked_up(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+
+        due = [s.club for s in subscriptions_due_for_renewal()]
+
+        self.assertIn(club, due)
+
+    def test_a_club_with_a_period_beyond_the_horizon_is_left_alone(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(200)
+
+        self.assertNotIn(club, [s.club for s in subscriptions_due_for_renewal()])
+
+    def test_renewing_continues_from_the_last_period(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+        first = club.dues.first()
+
+        renew(club.subscription)
+
+        latest = club.dues.order_by("-period_start").first()
+        self.assertEqual(latest.period_start, first.period_end + datetime.timedelta(days=1))
+        self.assertEqual(club.dues.count(), 2)
+
+    def test_running_twice_does_not_bill_twice(self):
+        # Idempotent by construction: once renewed, the club's latest period ends a year out,
+        # which is past the horizon.
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+
+        call_command("renew_subscriptions", stdout=StringIO())
+        call_command("renew_subscriptions", stdout=StringIO())
+
+        self.assertEqual(club.dues.count(), 2)
+
+    def test_a_club_that_opted_out_is_not_renewed(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(20, auto_renew=False)
+
+        self.assertNotIn(club, [s.club for s in subscriptions_due_for_renewal()])
+
+    def test_an_archived_club_is_not_renewed(self):
+        # Reactivation is the way back, and it opens a period of its own.
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+        club.archive()
+
+        self.assertNotIn(club, [s.club for s in subscriptions_due_for_renewal()])
+
+    def test_the_new_period_is_billed_at_the_price_in_force_then(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+        TierPrice.objects.create(tier=self.tier, active_from=self.today, amount=Decimal("900.00"))
+
+        due = renew(club.subscription)
+
+        self.assertEqual(due.amount, Decimal("900.00"))  # the new rate
+        self.assertEqual(club.dues.order_by("period_start").first().amount, Decimal("500.00"))  # the old one, untouched
+
+    def test_the_new_period_is_invoiced(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+
+        due = renew(club.subscription)
+
+        self.assertTrue(due.invoice.number.startswith("INV-"))
+
+    def test_a_dry_run_issues_nothing(self):
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+        out = StringIO()
+
+        call_command("renew_subscriptions", "--dry-run", stdout=out)
+
+        self.assertEqual(club.dues.count(), 1)
+        self.assertIn("would renew", out.getvalue())
+
+    def test_the_command_issues_by_default(self):
+        # The opposite asymmetry to archiving: NOT acting is the expensive failure here,
+        # because a club that is never billed is never chased either.
+        club = self.ending_in(20)
+
+        call_command("renew_subscriptions", stdout=StringIO())
+
+        self.assertEqual(club.dues.count(), 2)
+
+    def test_an_unpriced_tier_fails_loudly_without_stopping_the_others(self):
+        priced = self.ending_in(20)
+        broken = Club.objects.create(name="Unpriced FC")
+        subscribe(broken, self.tier, start=self.today - datetime.timedelta(days=350))
+        # Its next period starts beyond the last price... by removing every price, it cannot bill.
+        TierPrice.objects.all().delete()
+        cheap = Tier.objects.create(name="Cheap")
+        TierPrice.objects.create(tier=cheap, active_from=self.today - datetime.timedelta(days=1200), amount=Decimal("100.00"))
+        priced.subscription.tier = cheap
+        priced.subscription.save()
+
+        with self.assertRaises(CommandError):
+            call_command("renew_subscriptions", stdout=StringIO(), stderr=StringIO())
+
+        # ...and the club that COULD be billed still was.
+        self.assertEqual(priced.dues.count(), 2)
+
+    def test_a_subscription_with_no_period_at_all_is_renewed(self):
+        club = Club.objects.create(name="Orphan FC")
+        Subscription.objects.create(club=club, tier=self.tier)
+
+        self.assertIn(club, [s.club for s in subscriptions_due_for_renewal()])
+
+    def test_it_says_so_when_there_is_nothing_to_renew(self):
+        self.assertIn("Nothing to renew", self.run_renewal())
+
+    def run_renewal(self, *args):
+        out = StringIO()
+        call_command("renew_subscriptions", *args, stdout=out)
+        return out.getvalue()

controlpanel/forms.py

@@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ class SubscriptionForm(forms.ModelForm):
 
     class Meta:
         model = Subscription
-        fields = ["tier", "auto_archive", "notes"]
+        fields = ["tier", "auto_renew", "auto_archive", "notes"]
 
     def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
         super().__init__(*args, **kwargs)

controlpanel/services/statistics.py

@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ from waffle import get_waffle_flag_model
 
 from authentication.middleware import ELEVATED_ROLES
 from billing.models import Due, DuePayment, Subscription
-from billing.services.dues import dues_in_grace, dues_overdue
+from billing.services.dues import dues_in_grace, dues_overdue, subscriptions_due_for_renewal
 from club.models import Club, ClubMembership, ClubRole, Season
 from events.models import Attendance, Event
 from members.models import Member
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ def onboarding_funnel():
     return [
         {"label": "Clubs", "count": total, "icon": "building-2"},
         {"label": "With members", "count": sum(1 for club in clubs if club.member_count), "icon": "users"},
-        {"label": "With a team", "count": sum(1 for club in clubs if club.team_count), "icon": "shield"},
+        {"label": "With a team", "count": sum(1 for club in clubs if club.team_count), "icon": "trophy"},
         {"label": "With events", "count": sum(1 for club in clubs if club.event_count), "icon": "calendar-days"},
     ]
 
@@ -172,6 +172,10 @@ def platform_attention():
         "dues_in_grace": dues_in_grace().count(),
         "dues_overdue": dues_overdue().count(),
         "clubs_unbilled": Club.objects.active().filter(subscription__isnull=True).count(),
+        # Normally ~0: the renewal job keeps it there. A number that sits here means cron is
+        # dead, and a club is about to use the platform for free — silently, because nothing is
+        # owed, so no other number on this page would go red.
+        "renewals_pending": len(subscriptions_due_for_renewal()),
     }
 
 

controlpanel/templates/controlpanel/club_detail.html

@@ -234,6 +234,11 @@
             {% else %}
                 <p class="text-sm opacity-70">
                     On <strong>{{ subscription.tier.name }}</strong>.
+                    {% if subscription.auto_renew %}
+                        Renews automatically 30 days before the period ends.
+                    {% else %}
+                        <span class="badge badge-warning badge-sm">Auto-renew off</span> — you must open each period by hand, or this club uses the platform for free.
+                    {% endif %}
                     {% if subscription.auto_archive %}
                         Archived automatically when a period goes unpaid past its grace period.
                     {% else %}

controlpanel/views.py

@@ -414,7 +414,7 @@ class SubscribeClubView(PlatformStaffRequiredMixin, FormView):
                 subscription.save()
                 messages.success(self.request, f"{club} is now on {subscription.tier}. The current period keeps the amount it was billed at.")
             else:
-                subscribe(club, form.cleaned_data["tier"], start=form.cleaned_data.get("start"), auto_archive=form.cleaned_data["auto_archive"])
+                subscribe(club, form.cleaned_data["tier"], start=form.cleaned_data.get("start"), auto_archive=form.cleaned_data["auto_archive"], auto_renew=form.cleaned_data["auto_renew"])
                 messages.success(self.request, f"{club} is on {form.cleaned_data['tier']}. Its first period is open.")
         except BillingError as error:
             messages.error(self.request, str(error))