SaaS payment process: The ultimate guide for Dutch businesses
Alex Hammond
Content Marketing Manager (EMEA)
Key takeaways
SaaS payment processing platforms collect payments from customers on a recurring basis, and support a range of billing models from flat rate to freemium.
This business model requires specific payment capabilities, and most SaaS companies struggle with failed payments, managing different billing frequencies, mid-cycle upgrades, trial conversions, and high FX.
Airwallex makes it easier to get paid as a SaaS company – you can accept recurring payments, hold 23+ multi-currency balances, and manage team spending from one dashboard.
Every SaaS business runs on recurring revenue, but not every payment platform is set up to protect it. If you’re scaling, you might’ve already come up against common sticking points: failed transactions, multi-currency collection, and Revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) compliance.
The good news: the right payment partner can help you smooth out any kinks. The bad news: choose wrong, and these minor operational costs become significant drags on growth.
Let’s dive into how SaaS payment flows work, which billing models support different pricing strategies, and which providers match your global ambitions.
What is SaaS payment processing?
SaaS payment processing is the infrastructure that collects, authorises, and settles subscription payments from your customers. Unlike an eCommerce store selling phone cases or pet food, you need your payment processor to manage recurring billing cycles, subscription changes, and multiple failed payments.
How the SaaS payment process works
Essentially, multiple systems work together to move money from your customer's account to yours. Here's a breakdown of a typical subscription payment flow:
Customer subscribes and provides payment details: When a customer signs up, they enter their payment information – card details, bank account, or alternative payment method. The payment gateway encrypts and tokenises this data, storing it securely for future billing cycles.
Payment gateway routes the transaction: The gateway sends the tokenised payment data to the appropriate payment processor and card network. The customer may need to verify the payment through their banking app or via SMS.
Processor and acquiring bank authorisation: The payment processor communicates with the customer's issuing bank to authorise the transaction. The bank checks for sufficient funds, flags potential fraud, and either approves or declines the payment. Approved payments move to settlement.
Recurring billing automates future charges: The system stores the tokenised payment method and automatically charges the customer according to their billing schedule – monthly, annually, or based on usage. The customer doesn't need to re-enter payment details for each cycle.
Dunning logic recovers failed payments: When a payment fails due to insufficient funds or expired cards, dunning logic kicks in. The system automatically retries the payment at optimised intervals, sends notifications to the customer, and updates card details where possible.
Reconciliation syncs with accounting systems: Payment data is sent to your accounting software, matching transactions to invoices and customer records.
Common SaaS billing models
Different SaaS businesses use different billing models depending on their product, customer base, and growth strategy. Some models lend themselves to pricing flexibility and revenue predictability, whilst others may attract more leads initially. Let’s take a look at the most common.
Flat-rate subscription
Customers pay a fixed amount at regular intervals, such as monthly or annually. This is simple to implement and predict, but offers limited pricing flexibility as your product evolves.
Tiered pricing
Here, you offer multiple subscription levels with different features and price points, such as per-seat or per-user. Customers can upgrade or downgrade, requiring your payment system to handle proration and plan changes mid-cycle.
Usage-based billing
Your customers pay based on consumption, which requires metering infrastructure and the ability to bill variable amounts each cycle.
Freemium with paid upgrades
Another common method is offering a free tier with limited features, and the more a customer pays, the more features they can use. Your payment system needs to handle conversions from free to paid and manage different feature entitlements.
Hybrid models
Some SaaS companies combine subscription fees with usage charges. This requires sophisticated billing infrastructure capable of handling multiple pricing components on a single invoice.
SaaS payment challenges for Dutch businesses
Whether you're processing your first hundred subscriptions or scaling to thousands of customers across multiple markets, certain payment challenges will surface.
Managing recurring billings is often the first hurdle. Getting different billing frequencies, mid-cycle upgrades, trial conversions, and custom enterprise pricing working without manual intervention can be complex. This problem compounds as you grow, and billing complexity can become an operational bottleneck unless your payment infrastructure automates proration, plan changes, and usage metering.
And, if you’re scaling across borders, you’ll want to keep an eye on your margin.
Expanding beyond the Netherlands involves collecting payments in multiple currencies, offering local payment methods, and managing FX costs. Most banks and legacy providers charge 2-3% on currency conversion, which can quickly start to erode your margin on every international transaction.
Check out our guide on multi-currency accounts for more on how you can reduce these costs while maintaining flexibility.
Recovering failed payments is another major challenge for SaaS companies. Expired cards, insufficient funds, and technical declines cause involuntary churn. Without automated retry logic and card updater services, your failed payments could turn into lost MRR. And, don’t forget about the EU security measures (more on these below)– they add another layer of complexity as you need to balance fraud prevention with customer friction.
There are a lot of plates to spin at once. Reconciling payments across multiple currencies, correctly recognising revenue for annual subscriptions, and managing VAT compliance across EU markets can take significant finance team capacity if you’re not careful.
Compliance and security requirements in the Netherlands
Non-compliance with European payment and data regulations creates legal risk, limits your ability to process payments, and damages customer trust. Here’s what you need to look out for.
PSD2 and Strong Customer Authentication
PSD2 governs payment services and aims to reduce fraud. It requires Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) for most online payments, meaning customers verify transactions through their banking app, biometrics, or SMS codes.
Data security and card handling
The PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) sets requirements for businesses that process card payments, covering how you store, transmit, and handle card data. Most payment providers handle PCI DSS compliance by tokenising card data, so you never store customers’ sensitive information directly.
The GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) requires explicit consent to collect customer data and gives customers the right to access and delete their data. This was passed into law in 2018 and covers everything from payment details to usage data. Non-compliance can result in fines up to 4% of annual revenue.
VAT on digital services
If you’re selling to EU customers, you must charge VAT based on the customer's location. To do that, you need to know where they are and the correct rate. Payment providers with built-in tax management can automate rate calculation and reduce admin work.
There’s no doubt these regulations create ongoing operational and legal obligations. To avoid falling foul of them, most SaaS companies use a regulated payment provider like Airwallex – we maintain PCI DSS, GDPR, and PSD2 compliance (and more) as part of our core platform. Our customers are covered.
SaaS payment tools and providers in 2026
Ultimately, the right provider for your business depends on your billing complexity, international ambitions, and whether you need a full financial stack or just payment processing. Below are just a few options - for a broader comparison of payment options, read our guide to the best payment gateways for Dutch businesses.
Airwallex
We combine payment processing with global accounts, FX, and treasury tools in one platform. As an end-to-end provider, we’re popular with growing SaaS companies operating across multiple markets.
160+ local payment methods and 130+ currencies with multi-currency checkout
Like-for-like settlement to avoid hidden FX conversions and protect margin
Automated fee collection
Next-day payouts in supported currencies
Transparent FX with interbank rates + 0.5-1%
From €0/month, with EEA card transaction fees from 1.3% + €0.25.
Stripe Billing1
An API-first payment processor built for SaaS companies with engineering resources that want full control over billing logic and checkout experience.
Flexible subscription billing supporting flat-rate, tiered, and usage-based models
135+ currencies supported, Apple Pay and Google Pay too
Track meter usage and consumption in real time
Smart Retries and card updater to reduce involuntary churn
Integrates well with CRM, ERP, and accounting systems
Pay per transaction – EU cards from 1.5% + €0.25, and conversion fees where applicable.
Paddle2
Acts as merchant-of-record, meaning Paddle becomes the legal seller and handles all payment processing, tax filing, and compliance for small to medium SaaS companies.
Subscription management with trials, upgrades, and entitlements built in
Fraud protection and payment routing included
Pause and reactivate customers
20 currencies supported, limited local payment methods
From 5% + $0.50 per transaction
Chargebee3
A SaaS billing software, Chargebee sits on top of payment gateways. It’s a solid option for businesses that need sophisticated subscription management but want to keep their existing payment gateway.
Sophisticated billing logic for complex pricing models and proration
Dunning management, revenue recognition, and lifecycle controls
35+ payment gateway integrations, including Stripe and Adyen
Supports cards, PayPal, Amazon Payments, Apple Pay, Direct Debit
Deep CRM and ERP integrations for unified subscription data
Starter plan is free until €225,000 billing, then 0.75% plus gateway fees
Adyen4
Headquartered in Amsterdam, Adyen is an end-to-end payment processor and acquirer for enterprise businesses with high volumes and omnichannel operations.
150 currencies supported and 100+ payment methods across online and in-store
Direct local acquiring in key markets, including strong Netherlands support
Retry failed transactions, recover payments
For complex SaaS billing, merchants may want to pair Adyen with a billing platform
Custom pricing based on volume and requirements
Why Airwallex is the best choice for Dutch SaaS companies
The bottom line is your payment infrastructure shouldn't slow you down or chip away at your margins.
If you’re using one provider for billing, another for holding funds, and another for expense management, your finance team is probably wasting hours on operational work instead of strategic decisions. These fragmented systems create treasury headaches that compound as you scale – a topic our Director of Treasury has spoken about before.
As an end-to-end financial partner, Airwallex offers everything you need to grow revenue as a SaaS company in one platform. You can accept recurring payments in over 130 currencies, hold 23+ multi-currency balances, pay global contractors, and manage team spending from a single dashboard. And, when you need to convert funds, you're supported by a cross-border specialist, meaning you pay low FX rates at interbank + 0.5-1% rather than the 2-3% most banks charge.
If you’re pushing into the UK, US or other markets, you won't need to rebuild your financial stack or add headcount every time you enter a new region. Airwallex scales with you.
Open an account today to get started
FAQs
Should SaaS businesses use separate tools for billing and payment processing?
It depends on your business size, markets, and preferred billing set up. If your pricing is a simple recurring billing model, a single provider should be able to handle billing and payments in a single stack. As you add usage billing, hybrid pricing, enterprise contracts or multiple currencies, separate systems may make sense unless your provider can support both without duct-tape integrations.
What’s the fastest way to start accepting SaaS payments from customers in different countries?
Most SaaS businesses start with one payment option (i.e. cards) and quickly discover that customers in other markets expect to pay via their preferred local methods. The easiest approach is using a payment platform that supports cards, bank debits, and popular methods in your key regions (such as iDEAL).
How can SaaS companies reduce involuntary churn caused by failed payments?
Involuntary churn is usually avoidable with the right payment infrastructure. Look for a payment tool that is experienced in working with different SaaS billing models and has automated features like:
Smart retry logic
Automatic card updater services
Dunning management
Strong SCA flows for EU payments
Sources and references
1 https://stripe.com/en-nl/billing
2 https://www.paddle.com/
3 https://www.chargebee.com/saas-billing/
4 https://www.adyen.com/nl_NL
Alex Hammond
Content Marketing Manager (EMEA)
Alex Hammond is a fintech writer at Airwallex. He specialises in creating content that helps businesses navigate global and local payments, and scale at speed.
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