Invoices in chat

An invoice is a payment request you send inside a one-to-one chat, after you have agreed a deal. The other person pays through Ahiuwa; for goods and services the money is held until they have what they paid for. It gives two people who are not using a shop the same protection as checkout.

To send invoices you need a verified identity and a verified phone number (or an active shop), because that is who Ahiuwa can pay out to. Anyone can pay one.

Goods and services

Protected. The money is held until delivery and the inspection window pass. The payer adds buyer protection of 5% of the price; the sender receives the whole invoice.

Friends and family

No protection: the money is paid out as soon as it arrives, and there are no deadlines or disputes. The payer adds a transfer fee of 1.5% of the price. One invoice can be at most $500 (in your currency).

1. Open the chat with the person who will pay, and tap the invoice button.
2. Add a title, the items or services with their prices, and any terms you agreed.
3. Say what is being delivered: a physical item, a service or something digital.
4. Set the delivery deadline — how many days after payment you will deliver (up to 90).
5. Set the inspection window — how long they have to check it after delivery (3 days by default, up to 14).
6. Choose what happens if you miss the deadline (below), and how long they have to pay (7 days by default, up to 30).

The invoice appears in the chat. You can have up to 5 unpaid invoices open in one chat. You can revise or withdraw an invoice until it is paid — except for a short while after the other person opens the payment page, when it is frozen so they are never charged for a version they are not looking at.

Every protected invoice says up front what happens if delivery is late:

Automatic refund

The deadline passing refunds the payer in full, no questions asked.

Payer decides

The payer chooses: give more time (up to 3 times) or take the money back. If they say nothing for 3 days, they are refunded.

Open the invoice in the chat, read the terms, and pay on the secure payment page — or decline it with a reason, and the sender can revise it. Paying means you accept exactly the version you saw; if the sender changes it, you have to accept the new one.

For a physical item you get a delivery code, just like an order. Give it only when you have the item in your hands.

When the sender marks it delivered (or enters your delivery code), the inspection window starts. Check what you received. If all is well, confirm — the money is released straight away. If you do nothing, it is released when the window ends.

The sender can also refund you at any time before the money is released. How their money then reaches the bank is covered in Getting paid.

If something is wrong, open a dispute during the inspection window and add your evidence. That stops the clock and freezes the money. The sender can reply with a statement and their own evidence.

Either of you can also propose a split — say, half back to the payer. It is settled the moment the other person accepts, with no need for our team. If you cannot agree, our team decides how much, if any, goes back.

A split or refund only covers the invoice itself. The payer's buyer protection is not refunded.

Sent

Waiting for the payer.

Declined

The payer said no. The sender can revise and send it again.

Cancelled / Expired

Withdrawn by the sender, or not paid in time. No money moved.

Funded

Paid and held, waiting for delivery.

Delivered

The inspection window is running.

Disputed

Frozen until the two of you, or our team, settle it.

Completed

Released to the sender.

Refunded

Returned to the payer in full.

Settled

Split between the two by agreement or by our team.