Bronte Bay CPA Professional Corporation — Rotessa Partner · Toronto & Vancouver ·
Short answer: Rotessa is a Canadian pre-authorized debit (PAD) platform that automatically collects payments from your clients’ bank accounts on the due date — no invoice chasing, no client action required. It integrates directly with Xero so invoices are marked paid automatically when collected. At Bronte Bay, we use Rotessa for clients with recurring revenue who want to get paid reliably without the friction of manual collection.
For businesses with recurring clients — monthly retainers, subscriptions, maintenance contracts, rent — the biggest cash flow problem is not revenue. It is the gap between when invoices are issued and when they are actually paid. Clients who pay late, forget, or need reminders create unpredictable cash flow and consume hours of uncomfortable follow-up time.
Rotessa solves this by flipping the payment model. Instead of sending an invoice and waiting, you schedule a PAD withdrawal from your client’s bank account on the due date. Payment arrives automatically, on time, every time — with no client action required after their initial authorization. Your Xero books are updated automatically when each payment settles.
Schedule Payments, Get Paid — How Rotessa Works in 4 Steps
Step 1 — Add Your Customers
Add clients into Rotessa manually, in bulk via CSV, or by importing directly from Xero. Each customer profile holds their bank account details, PAD authorization records, and payment history. If you already have signed PAD agreements with existing clients, those can be stored in Rotessa and applied immediately — no re-authorization required.
Step 2 — Get Authorization
Before any withdrawal can occur, Canadian PAD regulations (Payments Canada Rule H1) require a signed authorization from your client. Rotessa makes this easy — send a digital authorization request by email to individual clients or in bulk. Clients complete it online in under two minutes. Existing physical PAD forms can be uploaded and stored in the client’s Rotessa profile. All authorizations are open authorizations by default, complying with Payments Canada requirements.
Step 3 — Schedule Transactions
Schedule one-time or recurring payments in Rotessa — set the amount, frequency (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, annually), and start date. Connecting Xero allows you to schedule payments directly against specific invoices, so variable-amount clients are handled as cleanly as fixed-fee ones. For large client volumes, bulk transactions can be scheduled via CSV import or API. Your business name appears on clients’ bank statements — no confusion about who collected the payment.
Step 4 — Get Paid, Automatically
On the processing date, Rotessa withdraws from the client’s bank account. Funds settle to your account 4–5 business days later. On settlement day, Rotessa generates a settlement report showing every collected payment and any declined transactions (with the reason — insufficient funds, account closed, authorization revoked). Declined transactions are clearly flagged so you can follow up promptly. When Xero is connected, paid invoices are marked automatically in Xero as soon as Rotessa settles.
Who Benefits Most from Rotessa
Rotessa delivers the most value for businesses with predictable recurring revenue — where the current payment model involves sending an invoice and waiting for the client to pay:
| Business Type | How Rotessa Helps |
|---|---|
| Accounting and bookkeeping firms | Monthly retainers collected automatically on the 1st of each month; invoices marked paid in Xero without staff intervention |
| Marketing and consulting agencies | Retainer clients pay on time every month; no awkward payment conversations; cash flow is predictable |
| Property management companies | Rent collected from all tenants on the 1st; NSF transactions flagged immediately; zero manual deposit chasing |
| Fitness studios and membership businesses | Monthly membership fees collected automatically; failed payments surfaced immediately for follow-up |
| Home services (HVAC, pest control, lawn care) | Seasonal or annual maintenance plan fees collected on schedule; clients on contract pay without thinking about it |
| Software and SaaS businesses | Monthly subscription fees collected by PAD for clients who prefer bank payment over credit card |
| Any business chasing overdue invoices | If your AR aging report consistently shows overdue receivables, Rotessa eliminates the root cause — payment is automatic |
📋 CPA Note: At Bronte Bay, we use Rotessa for our own monthly bookkeeping client fees. Every client on a monthly engagement is set up on PAD — their retainer is collected automatically on the 1st of each month and their invoice is marked paid in Xero without any staff action. For our clients who adopt Rotessa for their own businesses, the change in cash flow predictability is immediate and significant. One marketing agency client went from 30% of invoices overdue at any given time to essentially zero — within 60 days of switching to Rotessa.
Rotessa vs. Waiting to Be Paid — The Cash Flow Difference
| Situation | Without Rotessa | With Rotessa |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly retainer client | Invoice sent on the 1st; client pays on the 15th — or the 22nd — or after a reminder call | PAD scheduled for the 1st; funds arrive in your account by the 6th, automatically |
| Overdue invoice follow-up | Email reminder on day 7; call on day 14; awkward conversation; partial payment | Rotessa retries declined transactions; NSF reasons displayed immediately; you follow up with one specific client, not a stack of them |
| Cash flow forecasting | Uncertain — depends on when clients choose to pay; hard to predict next month’s cash | Certain — you know exactly when every PAD settles; cash flow is plannable weeks in advance |
| Recording payments in Xero | Bookkeeper manually marks invoices paid when payments arrive; matches to bank feed | Rotessa marks invoices paid in Xero automatically when settled; no bookkeeper action required |
| Client experience | Client receives invoice; has to log into banking, find payee, enter amount; risk of error | Client authorizes once; payment happens automatically every month without any action from them |
The Rotessa Dashboard — Full Visibility Over Your Collections
The Rotessa dashboard gives you a real-time view of every scheduled transaction, upcoming collections, recent settlements, and flagged declined payments — all in one place. For businesses with a large client base, the dashboard is the single source of truth for your accounts receivable status. No more manually checking who has paid and who has not.
Frequently Asked Questions
Stop Chasing Invoices — Get Paid Automatically with Rotessa
Rotessa setup and Xero integration are included in Bronte Bay’s monthly bookkeeping engagements for clients with recurring revenue. We configure your client PAD authorizations, set up the Xero integration, and walk you through the transaction scheduling in your onboarding session. Book a consultation to see the full workflow and what it costs.
Related reading from Bronte Bay: Xero Accounting Partner · Hubdoc Document Capture · Plooto Payments · Accounting Automation for Canadian Small Businesses · Monthly Bookkeeping Packages