Payout Automations — How (and when) incentives should pay out

Last updated: July 27, 2026

Overview

This article explains the recommended way to automate incentive payouts so your team gets paid consistently with minimal manual work.

Audience

Practice Owners / Managers who manage incentives and payouts.

Key concepts

  • Earned Rewards: the “queue” of incentive earnings that can be processed and paid.

  • Payment methods:

  • Stripe (Direct Pay): pays out via Stripe (requires setup).

  • Manual: marks rewards as paid (used when you pay via payroll, cash, etc.).

  • Pay Later: keeps rewards unpaid until you choose to process them.

Before you automate: prerequisites

To use automated Stripe payouts: 1. Your practice must have a Stripe payout account enrolled/linked. 2. Each employee who will receive payouts must have an active Stripe receiving account connected.

If Stripe isn’t set up, you can still use automation with Manual or Pay Later.

Where to configure automation

Open your practice settings: - Company Settings → Incentives → Auto Approval (for approval + payment behavior) - Company Settings → Incentives → Auto Payouts (for Stripe payout account enrollment)

In Auto Approval Settings you can configure separate preferences for: - Goals - Badges (Achievements) - Wages (Wages & Commissions)

Automation #1: Auto Approval (what it does)

Auto Approval is the “hands-off” step that moves rewards forward without a manager clicking Approve every day.

For each reward type you can enable automation and set:
- Auto Approve Days: how long to wait before automatically approving items. - Example: if set to 7, the system approves eligible items roughly 7 days after they are created.
- Payment Method: what should happen after approval: - Stripe: queue the rewards for Stripe payout.
- Manual: mark rewards as paid.
- Pay Later: keep rewards unpaid.

What this means in practice: - Auto Approval reduces “inbox/approval backlog” for incentives. - You still retain control by adjusting Auto Approve Days and Payment Method.

Automation #2: Auto Payout (Stripe end-of-day batch)

Auto Payout is the “money movement” step.

When payment method is Stripe and your accounts are properly set up, Stripe payouts are initiated automatically near the end of the practice’s local day (end-of-day batch processing).

Typical flow: 1. Incentives generate Earned Rewards. 2. Auto Approval (or a manager) approves items. 3. Eligible Stripe rewards are queued. 4. Auto Payout triggers the payout run and Stripe begins processing transfers.

Recommended setup (best practice)

  1. Enroll your practice payout account

  • Go to Incentives → Auto Payouts and complete the Stripe enrollment.

  1. Have employees complete payout setup

  • Ensure each employee who should receive payouts has a connected Stripe receiving account.

  1. Turn on Auto Approval for the categories you want automated

  • Start with Badges and Wages.

  • Set Auto Approve Days based on how long you want time to review/correct items.

  1. Set Payment Method intentionally

  • Use Stripe for true automation.

  • Use Manual if you want the system to track payouts but you pay elsewhere.

  • Use Pay Later if you want to accumulate rewards and process them later.

  1. Monitor from Reporting & Payouts

  • Go to Incentives → Reporting & Payouts → Payouts.

  • Review Unpaid / Processing / Paid counts and totals.

Common scenarios

“We want fully automated payouts”

  • Set payment method to Stripe.

  • Confirm practice payout account is enrolled.

  • Confirm employees’ Stripe receiving accounts are connected and enabled.

“We pay through payroll, but want Teamcare to track what’s owed”

  • Set payment method to Manual (auto-mark as paid), or Pay Later (keep unpaid until you confirm payroll ran).

“Some employees didn’t get paid via Stripe”

Common causes: - Employee has not connected a Stripe receiving account. - Employee’s connected account is disabled.

Recommended action: - Ask the employee to complete payout setup, then re-run payouts (or process manually for those items).

Troubleshooting

Stripe payout option isn’t available / payouts fail

  • Confirm your practice payout account is enrolled (Incentives → Auto Payouts).

  • Confirm the employee has a connected Stripe receiving account.

Rewards are still showing as Unpaid

  • If payment method is Pay Later, unpaid is expected.

  • If payment method is Stripe, check that approval occurred (auto approval days may not have elapsed yet) and that Stripe prerequisites are complete.