Bill load types: Standard, Archive and Historical

When submitting bills to Payreq Delivery through SFTP, the Bill Load Type determines how Payreq processes each document and what happens when the customer does not have an active digital subscription.

There are three available bill load types:

• STANDARD
• ARCHIVE
• HISTORICAL

Selecting the correct load type is important because it determines whether documents are delivered, archived or reported as errors.

Where the Bill Load Type Is Set

The Bill Load Type is entered in Field 11 of the header record in the bill index file. This field:

• applies only to files with the file type BILL_LOAD
• accepts STANDARD, ARCHIVE or HISTORICAL
• is optional, but defaults to STANDARD when left blank

Important: Do not leave Field 11 blank unless the file is intended to be processed as a Standard load.

Bill Load Types at a Glance

Standard Loads

A STANDARD load is intended for documents that are expected to be digitally delivered.

Payreq checks each document for an active digital subscription:

• Where an active subscription exists, the document is sent through the applicable digital delivery channel.
• Where no active subscription exists, the document is reported as an error.

A Standard load should therefore only contain documents for customers who are known to have an active digital subscription.

When to use a Standard load

Use STANDARD when the mailhouse or sender has already identified the digitally subscribed customers and is submitting only their documents to Payreq.

Do not use a Standard load for a complete bill run containing non-subscribed customers, as those documents will be reported as errors.

Archive Loads

An ARCHIVE load allows a complete current bill run to be submitted to Payreq, including documents for customers who are not currently subscribed to digital delivery.

Payreq checks each document for an active digital subscription:

• Where an active subscription exists, the document is digitally delivered.
• Where no active subscription exists, the document is retained as an archived document rather than being reported as an error.

This allows the mailhouse to submit the full document population without first separating digitally subscribed and non-subscribed customers.

When to use an Archive load

Use ARCHIVE when:

• the file represents a current bill or notice run
• the file contains both subscribed and non-subscribed customers
• Payreq is expected to determine which documents should be digitally delivered
• documents that cannot currently be delivered should be retained rather than treated as load errors

Archive loads are commonly used in workflows where all documents are submitted to Payreq before the remaining print population is determined.

Historical Loads

A HISTORICAL load archives all documents in the file.

Historical loads are intended for previously issued documents that are being added to Payreq for reference or document-history purposes. They should not be used as a replacement for a Standard or Archive load when processing a current bill run.

Historical documents are handled through Payreq’s archive processes rather than through the normal current-bill dispatch process. Channel availability and subsequent access to historical documents may depend on the sender’s configuration.

When to use the Historical load

Use HISTORICAL when:

• backloading documents issued before a Payreq implementation
• migrating an existing document archive
• adding previous bills or notices to a customer’s document history
• the documents are not intended to be treated as newly issued current bills

Historical loads should be discussed with Payreq before implementation so that the expected customer experience and supported delivery channels can be confirmed.

Additional Considerations

Blank Values Default to Standard

When Field 11 is omitted or left blank, Payreq processes the file as a STANDARD load. This may result in errors if the file contains documents for customers without active digital subscriptions.

Archived Documents May Be Available Later

Depending on the sender’s configuration and the customer’s subscription channel, an archived document may become available when the customer later establishes a digital subscription.

This behaviour is subject to eligibility and security checks and should not be assumed for every implementation.

Historical Loads Are Not Current Bill Runs

Although both Archive and Historical loads retain documents, they serve different purposes:

• ARCHIVE is used for a current document run where eligible documents should still be digitally delivered.
• HISTORICAL is used for previously issued documents being loaded for historical reference.

Contact Payreq before introducing or changing a bill-load workflow so that the selected load type can be confirmed during testing.