Contractors & Tradespeople
High ticket sizes mean large fee amounts per transaction. Pass the processing cost on $5K+ jobs and protect the margin on every project.
Pass credit card fees to customers — automatically
Invoicing software that doesn't eat your margin.
Most invoicing software with fee pass-through doesn't exist. Most tools quietly accept that you'll lose 3% on every card payment. KoPay was built on a different premise: that fee belongs on the customer's total, disclosed upfront, not deducted from your payout.
Keep 100%
Of your invoiced amount
Disclosed upfront
Shown as line item before payment
Automatic
Calculated on every invoice
Who pays the fee is a business decision
Most invoicing software made that decision for you — and chose the wrong answer.
Card processing fees are a fact of accepting payments. Stripe charges 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. Square charges 2.6% + $0.10 for invoices. This isn't changing. What's negotiable is who absorbs that cost — you, or the customer who chose to pay by card.
Most invoicing software platforms are designed around the assumption that you absorb it. The payment integration reports a net deposit, the fee disappears into the background, and you discover the impact at tax time when your revenue is less than you invoiced for. Over time, this is one of the most consistent and least visible margin leaks a service business faces.
KoPay is invoicing software built around fee pass-through as a first-class feature. Not an add-on. Not a workaround. It's built into every invoice automatically — no configuration needed. The calculation happens automatically. The fee is shown as an itemized line item before the customer pays. Your payout matches what you invoiced for.
This model — called surcharging or a convenience fee — is legal in most US states for service businesses and B2B transactions, provided the fee is disclosed before payment. KoPay handles the disclosure automatically by showing it on the invoice. We built this specifically because no major invoicing platform does it well. We're a US-based team, and we heard this need from real business owners repeatedly before we built it in.
2.9% + $0.30
Standard Stripe processing rate per card transaction
$3,220
Lost annually on $100K in card-paid invoices — without fee pass-through
$16,100
Lost over five years — real money that most invoicing software quietly accepts as gone
Who it's for
Invoicing software with fee pass-through for any service business
Any service business that regularly accepts card payments and has calculated — or estimated — how much is disappearing in processing fees. KoPay is designed for the businesses where that number is large enough to matter.
Field Service Businesses
High call volume with consistent card payment rates. Fee pass-through across dozens of weekly invoices adds up to thousands per year back in revenue.
Consultants & Agencies
Large monthly retainer invoices where 3% is a significant dollar amount. Pass the fee transparently on every client invoice without awkward conversations.
Cleaning & Janitorial
Recurring clients on regular billing cycles. Fee pass-through applies automatically to every invoice in your workflow — built in from day one.
Landscaping & Outdoor Services
Seasonal high-revenue periods where card fees compound quickly. Protect margin on installation and maintenance invoices across the whole season.
Any B2B Service Business
Business clients paying by card are the most accepting of disclosed processing fees — they understand and expect it. KoPay makes it professional and automatic.
The real math on fee pass-through
What switching to fee pass-through invoicing actually means over time
Take a service business billing $200,000 per year with 65% of revenue collected by card — about $130,000 in card-paid invoices annually. At standard Stripe rates, that's approximately $3,800 in annual processing fees disappearing from revenue.
With KoPay, that $3,800 is added to customer totals rather than deducted from payouts. Over five years: $19,000 in recovered revenue. That's not a rounding error — it's real money that most invoicing software frameworks were designed to make invisible to you.
The objection is usually: "Will customers push back?" The honest answer is: occasionally, but rarely. Customers understand that accepting cards has a cost. When it's shown clearly on an invoice before they pay — rather than appearing as a surprise on their statement — the pushback rate is low. For businesses that have already tested it, the recovered revenue far outweighs any lost jobs due to the fee.
The fee is clearly disclosed on the invoice before the customer confirms payment — which keeps it transparent, compliant, and professional.
$200K
Annual billing (example service business)
65%
Card payments = $130,000 in card-paid invoices
$19,000
Recovered over 5 years by passing fees to customers instead of absorbing them
How fee pass-through works in KoPay
Automatic. Accurate. Disclosed on every invoice.
Built Into Every Invoice
KoPay automatically adds the processing fee to every invoice you create — no setup required. The fee is included in the customer's total and shown as a disclosed line item from the very first invoice.
Automatic Calculation
KoPay calculates the exact fee based on your configured rate. No manual math, no spreadsheet formulas — the number is right on every invoice, every time.
Transparent Line Item
The fee appears as a separate line on the invoice — labeled clearly before the customer pays. This is what makes it both legally defensible and customer-friendly.
Precise Per-Invoice Calculation
KoPay calculates the exact fee for each invoice based on its line items and total — so every customer pays the right amount, automatically.
Full Invoicing Platform
Fee pass-through is one feature in a complete invoicing platform — estimates, signatures, payment tracking, customer records, team access, and revenue reports all included.
Stripe-Powered Payments
Every invoice includes a Stripe pay link. Customer clicks, pays by card — fees included in the total — and you receive the full invoiced amount in your Stripe account.
How KoPay compares
KoPay vs other invoicing software for fee pass-through
Most mainstream invoicing platforms were not built around fee pass-through. Here's how KoPay's approach compares to the tools most service businesses end up using.
| Feature | KoPay | QuickBooks | FreshBooks | Wave | Stripe Invoicing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Built-in fee pass-through | Yes — automatic | No | No | No | Manual config only |
| Disclosed as invoice line item | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Fee pass-through built-in | Yes — automatic | No | No | No | No |
| Estimate → Invoice conversion | Yes (1-click) | Manual | Yes | No | No |
| Digital estimate signatures | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Stripe-native payments | Yes | Add-on | No | Stripe/Square | Yes |
| Free to start | Yes (beta) | No | No | Free tier | No |
How it works
From invoice creation to full payout in three steps
Create your invoice
Add line items and taxes. KoPay automatically calculates the exact processing fee and adds it to the customer's total as a transparent line item.
Customer sees the fee before paying
The invoice shows the processing fee as a line item. Customer reviews the full total including the fee, then pays via the Stripe link in the email.
You receive your full amount
Payment clears through Stripe and lands in your account. The fee was covered by the customer's total — your deposit matches what you invoiced for.
Related guides
Also relevant for businesses reducing fees
FAQ
Common questions about fee pass-through invoicing
Is it legal to pass credit card fees to customers on invoices?
Yes, in most states for service businesses and B2B transactions. The legal requirement is disclosure before payment. KoPay shows the fee as a line item on every invoice, satisfying this requirement automatically.
Will customers complain about the processing fee?
Rarely, especially when it's disclosed upfront as a clear line item rather than a surprise. Many business clients expect it. Businesses that switch to fee pass-through typically see far more revenue recovered than jobs lost.
Does KoPay's fee pass-through apply to every invoice automatically?
Yes. KoPay automatically adds the processing fee to every invoice as a transparent line item — customers see the exact charge before they pay, and you collect your full quoted price every time.
What rate does KoPay use to calculate the fee?
KoPay defaults to standard Stripe processing rates — 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. You can configure this in company settings to match your actual processor rates.
Do I need a Stripe account to use KoPay?
Yes. Stripe handles all card payments inside KoPay. Connect an existing account or create one during setup — it takes a few minutes and Stripe manages all card data securely.
What else does KoPay include beyond fee pass-through?
The full invoicing workflow: professional invoices, estimates with digital signatures, one-click estimate-to-invoice conversion, customer CRM, team permissions, payment tracking, and revenue reporting — all included.
Stop donating margin to payment processors.
KoPay passes the processing fee to your customer on every invoice — automatically, transparently, and built in from day one. Free during beta. Built in the USA.
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