PayPal tweaks its invoicing service so you can make partial payments

PayPal is updating its invoicing service so users can make partial payments to bills. The new update reflects an industry trend toward making payments more flexible.

PayPal invoice receivers will now be able to make incremental payments on an invoice as well as view their unpaid balance. Additionally, PayPal is making its invoice form more detailed to account for a wide variety of businesses.

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In addition to partial payments, PayPal’s new invoicing service can now account for the quantity of an item sold, the number of hours worked, or price only. Users will also be able to download a PDF of their invoice and CC multiple parties when an invoice is sent. Lastly PayPal will now create a link to the invoice. Rather than hitting a button that says “send an invoice,” business owners have access to a short-form link that can be attached to an email.

Other invoicing services have rolled out similarly versatile payment functionalities in recent years. For instance, Viewpost allows businesses to work out deals with vendors where they can collect money owed in advance of the due date in exchange for taking less than the total amount owed. Similarly, the service allows contractors to ask businesses for an extended deadline on bill payment in exchange for the full amount of bill plus interest.

PayPal says it may eventually offer a service similar to Viewpost, but in the meantime, it actively markets PayPal Capital (its business loan service) on invoice forms. If a business or vendor needs extra cash, it can borrow it directly from PayPal.

The new invoicing service will be available in the U.S. first and will roll out more broadly over the next several months.