Schools set their fee policy once, then let the system create challans on a fixed date each month, apply late fines after the due date and send defaulter reminders. In EDUBase this is Fee Automation, which previews every run before it acts.
What does it mean to automate monthly fee challans?
Most school offices repeat the same routine every month: generate challans, wait for the due date, add fines to late payers and then chase families who have not paid. Automation turns that routine into a schedule that runs by itself.
The idea is simple in any system. The school fixes its rules first (fee plans, due date, late fee policy), and the software applies those rules on the chosen dates instead of a clerk doing it by hand.
What must be in place before automation is switched on?
Automation only repeats what you have already defined, so the foundations need to be correct. If fee plans are wrong, automation will repeat the error every month.
In EDUBase, the Fee Management module holds these foundations.
- Fee plans built from your own fee heads (tuition, transport, exam, admission) with per-month amounts.
- Per-student fee changes and concessions recorded against the plan.
- A late fee policy that the automation will apply as it stands.
- A Holiday Calendar in School Setup, which lists the school's closed days.
- Old dues loaded correctly, so arrears carry forward into the next challan.
How does scheduled challan generation work?
With Scheduled challan generation you set the generation day, due date, expiry, campus and class scope once. The challans are then created every month on that date.
School-wide runs are queued in the background, so nobody waits at the screen, and you are notified in-app when they finish. You can also choose to send the school's own SMS template and a Parents App notification when the challans are created.
How are late fees applied automatically?
Late fee automation applies your existing late fee policy on the due date, the day after, or after a grace period. Per-day fines keep accruing up to the policy limit.
The runs are holiday-aware. Fines never land on a weekly off or a Holiday Calendar date; they move to the next working day. This avoids the common complaint from parents that a fine was added on a Sunday or a public holiday.
How can you stay in control of an automated run?
Every automation ships switched off, so nothing happens until the school enables it. Each one has a preview that shows exactly which children would be affected and by how much, charging nothing.
Each run is logged in the run history with what it did, so a missed or double month can be traced in seconds. Because discounts and payments can wait for a manager's approval, sensitive changes still have a second pair of eyes.
How are defaulters chased automatically?
Automatic fee defaulter reminders go out monthly by themselves. You pick the day, the hour, the channels (SMS, WhatsApp, branded SMS, app) and the recipients.
You also choose between two defaulter definitions: chase everyone with a balance, or ignore families who have paid something this month. The Fee Reports module then shows defaulters by total amount, by family or by month.
How does manual work compare with automation?
The table below sets the monthly routine side by side, so you can see which steps move from a person to a schedule.
Monthly fee routine: manual office work versus scheduled automation
| Task | Manual routine | With Fee Automation |
|---|---|---|
| Creating challans | Clerk generates them each month in bulk | Created on the set date for the chosen campus and class scope |
| Telling parents | Staff send messages by hand | Optional school SMS template and Parents App notification on generation |
| Late fines | Fines added by hand after the due date | Existing late fee policy applied on the due date, next day or after a grace period |
| Holidays | Easy to fine on a closed day | Fines move to the next working day |
| Checking before acting | Depends on the clerk | Preview shows affected children and amounts, charging nothing |
| Chasing defaulters | Lists printed and calls made | Reminders sent monthly by SMS, WhatsApp, branded SMS or app |
| Tracing a mistake | Search through registers | Run history shows what each run did |
Related modules
- Fee Automation — Let the system generate challans, apply late fees and chase defaulters on schedule.
- Fee Management & Challans — Fee plans, monthly challans, discounts, family payments and receipts, without spreadsheets.
- Fee Reports & Defaulters — Know what was billed, what was collected and who still owes, per class, family or month.
- Bank Fee Collection — Parents pay at the bank, in their banking app or at a kiosk; EDUBase posts it automatically.
- SMS, WhatsApp & Notifications — Reach parents by SMS, WhatsApp, branded SMS or app notification, from every screen that matters.
- School Setup & Multi-Campus — Campuses, classes, sections, sessions, academic year and reference lists, set once and reused everywhere.