Billing readiness is the point in the AgentFlow pipeline where a qualified, operator-approved lead transitions from a scored record into a customer with a payment step in front of them. Rather than manually following up with an invoice or payment link after approval, AgentFlow connects the operator decision directly to your payment provider — so checkout triggers automatically when a lead is approved and your configuration says it is ready to proceed. This page explains what that connection looks like, which providers AgentFlow supports, and what you need to have in place before you go live.
What billing readiness means
Billing readiness is a state, not just a feature. A lead reaches billing readiness when two conditions are true: the AI qualification stage has returned a score, and an operator has explicitly approved the lead for progression. Only then does AgentFlow trigger the checkout flow.
This sequencing is deliberate. Checkout does not trigger on a high AI score alone — it requires a human approval. This keeps your payment flow under operator control and prevents automated scoring from initiating financial transactions without oversight.
Supported payment providers
AgentFlow supports two payment providers at the billing readiness layer:
| Feature | Stripe | PayPal |
|---|
| Checkout session type | Stripe Checkout (hosted) | PayPal Orders API |
| Test mode support | Yes — full Stripe test environment | Yes — PayPal sandbox environment |
| EU VAT handling | Stripe Tax (configurable) | Managed through PayPal configuration |
| Webhook event handling | Server-side signature verification | Server-side signature verification |
| Supported currencies | 135+ currencies | 25+ currencies |
| Recommended for | Most SaaS and service businesses | Buyers who prefer PayPal checkout |
EU VAT compliance posture
AgentFlow’s billing layer is designed with EU VAT compliance in mind. For Stripe, this means the integration is structured to support Stripe Tax configuration, which can handle VAT calculation and collection for EU-based buyers. For PayPal, VAT handling follows PayPal’s own configuration options.
Actual VAT compliance depends on your specific business location, registration status, and provider configuration. AgentFlow provides the integration surface; your tax and legal setup determines how that surface is configured for your jurisdiction.
How billing connects to the qualification workflow
When an operator approves a lead in the review dashboard, AgentFlow evaluates your billing trigger configuration. If billing is enabled for that lead type or workflow, the system creates a checkout session with your configured provider and routes the approved lead to the checkout flow.
The checkout trigger is part of the pipeline handoff between Operator Review and Billing Readiness. The approved lead record — including the AI score, operator decision, and audit log entry — travels with the checkout session, so your payment records are connected to the full qualification context.
If you have configured AgentFlow to skip the billing step for certain lead types (for example, enterprise deals handled offline), the pipeline routes directly to CRM handoff instead.
What the customer-facing checkout looks like
From the approved lead’s perspective, checkout is a standard hosted payment page. AgentFlow does not build a custom payment UI — it delegates to the provider’s hosted checkout surface, which handles:
- Payment method entry (card, bank transfer, or PayPal wallet, depending on provider)
- Order summary and pricing display
- VAT or tax line items where applicable
- Payment confirmation and receipt
Using hosted checkout means the lead’s payment data never touches your server. Card details go directly to Stripe or PayPal, and AgentFlow receives a webhook event confirming payment completion.
Always run your first end-to-end test using Stripe’s test mode before enabling live payments. Stripe’s test environment provides test card numbers that simulate successful payments, declines, and authentication challenges — letting you verify your checkout flow, webhook handling, and post-payment pipeline behavior without processing real transactions.
What you need to configure before going live
Before your billing layer is ready for real transactions, make sure the following are in place:
Provider accounts
- A Stripe account with your business details verified and your product or price objects created
- A PayPal business account configured for the currencies and markets you intend to serve (if using PayPal)
API credentials
- Your Stripe secret key and publishable key added to your AgentFlow environment configuration
- Your PayPal client ID and secret added to your AgentFlow environment configuration
- Webhook endpoint secrets configured for both providers so AgentFlow can verify incoming events
Test mode verification
- Run at least one complete lead-to-checkout flow in test mode, using a test card or PayPal sandbox account
- Confirm that the checkout session is created correctly after operator approval
- Confirm that the post-payment webhook is received, verified, and triggers the correct pipeline continuation
Live mode switch
- Replace test credentials with live credentials in your environment configuration
- Verify that your Stripe or PayPal account is approved for live transactions in your target markets
- Re-run a low-value live transaction before enabling full volume
Next steps