> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.paywise.de/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Mahnservice API

> Automate payment reminders in your company's name, track their progress, and report incoming payments.

Automate payment reminders in your company's name. Submit invoices from your
software, follow the reminder process, and keep payment information up to date.

> [!WARNING]
>
> The Mahnservice API is currently in **beta** and may undergo breaking changes
> without prior notice.

## What you can do

* **Submit invoices for reminders.** Send invoices from your software and
  choose when to release them into the reminder process. A connected
  bookkeeping system is optional.
* **Track reminder progress.** Check invoice status, see which reminders were
  sent and what comes next, and receive webhook notifications about changes.
* **Report incoming payments.** Keep invoice balances up to date during the
  reminder process and stop reminders once an invoice is fully paid.
* **Hand unpaid invoices over to collection.** When the reminder sequence
  ends with an unpaid invoice, it is automatically transferred to paywise
  debt collection (Inkasso). Follow the resulting case through the
  [Case Management API](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/case-management-api/introduction.md).

You can also attach the original invoice PDF, pause and resume reminders,
or cancel an invoice. Configure the reminder sequence (*Mahnlauf*) in the
paywise portal; your integration controls which invoices enter it.

## Get started

1. [Create a paywise account](https://app.paywise.de/account/registrieren/),
   or [sign in](https://app.paywise.de/login) to your existing account.
2. Open **Für Entwickler → Zur Sandbox** and create an API key in the sandbox
   portal. Mahnservice uses the same company API key as Case Management.
3. Configure and activate a reminder sequence in the sandbox portal under
   **Mahnservice → Erste Schritte**. Follow the
   [sandbox setup guide](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/case-management-api/concepts/sandbox.md#set-up-mahnservice-without-production-checkout)
   to test without purchasing a subscription, sending reminders to customers,
   or moving money.
4. Follow the [quickstart](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/mahnservice-api/quickstart.md) to submit a
   test invoice, release it for reminders, and check its progress.

To start reminders in production, you need an active
[Mahnservice subscription](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/mahnservice-api/concepts/ownership-and-access.md#reads-and-payment-reporting-survive-a-lapsed-subscription).

## Explore the documentation

> **[Invoice lifecycle](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/mahnservice-api/concepts/invoice-lifecycle.md)**
>
> Understand submission, release, payment reporting, and the reminder states.

> **[Invoice documents](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/mahnservice-api/concepts/documents.md)**
>
> Attach the original invoice PDF to your reminders.

> **[Ownership and access](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/mahnservice-api/concepts/ownership-and-access.md)**
>
> Learn which invoices you can change and what happens after collection handover.

> **[API reference](https://docs.paywise.de/api-docs/mahnservice-api/reference/invoices/submit-an-invoice.md)**
>
> Look up endpoints, request fields, and responses.


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