The Payments area answers a practical question: what did we ask a customer to pay, and what happened to that request? It brings the payment reference, payer, state, events, refunds, and related accounting entries into one place.
This is customer money collected by your business. Your Momo service balance and subscription are separate billing concerns.
Start with the payment record
Open Payments. Use All, Waiting, Paid, or Payouts to narrow the list, and search for a payment reference or provider ID. Select a payment to open its details.
Check the amount and currency, then the payer and what the payment relates to. What happened explains its progress; In the books shows attached ledger entries, and Refunds lists money requested back against it.
The screen is primarily for monitoring and authorized refunds. New collection requests start through a supported workflow or connected assistant with payment access; there is no general new-payment form on this page.
Request payment through a connected assistant
- Ensure your business has a configured provider and your Momo role permits collection.
- Connect your assistant using the ChatGPT and Claude setup guide. The connection also needs the payment area and permission for spending actions.
- State the exact payer, currency, amount, and what the payment is for. Ask for a draft without sending first if you want to check it.
- Request collection when the customer is ready. Depending on provider support, the result may be a phone prompt, checkout link, or another payment handle.
- Keep the reference and check its state in Payments. A successful request does not confirm that the customer has paid.
For example: “Prepare a payment request for TZS 40,000 for this service order. Show the customer and amount, and do not send it yet.” Supply the real order and customer details before authorizing collection.
Read the states correctly
Draft means the request is recorded. Pending means collection is waiting. Authorised can mean funds are held but not settled. Paid confirms settlement in the payment record. Failed, expired, or cancelled requests need investigation rather than an assumption of success.
Partly refunded and refunded describe money returned after settlement. If a customer says they paid but the screen is waiting, compare the reference, method, timestamps, and provider history before starting another request.
Issue a refund
Refunding requires its own permission and a refundable payment. Open the payment, use the refund action when available, enter an amount and Why, then select Raise the refund.
The amount field uses Momo's integer minor-unit scale: 100 units represent one currency unit. For TZS 40,000, that is 4000000. Check before submitting; do not enter 40000 expecting TZS 40,000.
A refund creates a linked payment record. It settles when the provider completes the return, so verify its progress rather than treating creation as completion. Previously returned amounts reduce what remains refundable.
Diagnose a problem
- No payment action: check your role, connector grants, and provider configuration.
- Missing checkout link: the provider may not have supplied one; inspect the method and error before retrying.
- Wrong or stale status: review the event timeline and use the original reference when asking for help.
- Refund rejected: check the remaining refundable amount, entered units, and current state.
Developers can reconcile payment records using the payment API documentation.
Reconcile one request before the next
Use a simple record of the business reference, requested amount, payment reference and current state. For an order, check the linked order as well as Payments so the customer and operations team agree about what was paid for.
If the customer reports success while the record remains pending, ask for the provider reference through an appropriate private channel. Compare the amount, currency and timing with the existing request. Keep the original payment open for investigation instead of immediately asking the customer to pay again.
For a partial refund, calculate the intended returned amount and compare it with the remaining refundable balance. Record a reason that identifies the affected item or service. After raising it, check both the linked refund and original payment; creating the refund request alone is not proof the customer received money.
Separate these checks from service-credit top-ups in Billing. A customer collection, a payout to your business, and credit used for messages or calls answer different questions and should be reconciled against their own references.