---
title: "Externally-Managed Subscriptions"
slug: "externally-managed-subscriptions"
updated: 2026-07-09T05:16:57Z
published: 2026-07-09T05:16:57Z
canonical: "help.frisbii.com/externally-managed-subscriptions"
---

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

# Externally-Managed Subscriptions

An **externally-managed subscription** is a subscription that is billed and managed entirely in your source system — Frisbii Media is used only for SSO and access rights. Customers cannot cancel these subscriptions through the Frisbii Media self-service portal, because Frisbii Media is not the invoicing party.

Use this approach when:

- You do not want to migrate an existing subscription's billing to Frisbii Media, but want to use Frisbii Media for login and access management
- You want to offer existing subscribers a discount in Frisbii Media using access rules

> [!NOTE]
> **Prerequisite:** You must create an [**externally managed offer**](/frisbii-media/docs/extern-verwaltete-angebote) in the Frisbii Media backend first, before importing orders against it.

---

## Create an externally-managed order

The import payload is similar to a regular subscription import, but uses `paymentMethod: "BILLING"` — indicating that Frisbii Media will not attempt to collect payment.

```php
// @see https://api.frisbii-media.com/#tag/Order-Imports/operation/orderImport
$import = [
    'suppressMail' => true,
    'purchase'     => false,
    'items'        => [
        [
            'externalSystemId'   => 'Sync-4711', // your unique ID; used to find and update this subscription later
            'plenigoOfferId'     => 'O_FAK3OFF3R',
            'invoiceCustomerId'  => $customer['customerId'],
            'paymentMethod'      => 'BILLING', // Frisbii Media will not collect payment
            'deliveryCustomerId' => $customer['customerId'],
            'deliveryAddressId'  => $deliveryAddress['addressId'],
            'startDate'          => '2020-10-10T10:10:10.100Z',
            'quantity'           => 1,
        ],
    ],
];
$importStatus = json_decode($client->request('POST', '/imports/orders', [
    'headers' => ['X-plenigo-token' => eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9],
    'json'    => $import,
])->getBody()->getContents(), true);
```

Note the `externalSystemId` — this is how you reference and update this specific subscription in all subsequent sync calls.

---

## Sync end date

When the subscription ends in your source system, update the `endDate` in Frisbii Media by re-posting the import payload with the same `externalSystemId` and an `endDate` value. Frisbii Media will match the record by `externalSystemId` and update it.

```php
$import = [
    'suppressMail' => true,
    'purchase'     => false,
    'items'        => [
        [
            'externalSystemId'   => 'Sync-4711',
            'plenigoOfferId'     => 'O_FAK3OFF3R',
            'invoiceCustomerId'  => $customer['customerId'],
            'paymentMethod'      => 'BILLING',
            'deliveryCustomerId' => $customer['customerId'],
            'deliveryAddressId'  => $deliveryAddress['addressId'],
            'startDate'          => '2020-10-10T10:10:10.100Z',
            'endDate'            => '2025-10-10T00:00:00.000Z', // subscription ends on this date
            'quantity'           => 1,
        ],
    ],
];
$importStatus = json_decode($client->request('POST', '/imports/orders', [
    'headers' => ['X-plenigo-token' => eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9],
    'json'    => $import,
])->getBody()->getContents(), true);
```

---

## Restart an ended subscription (Wiedereinweisung)

If your source system reactivates a previously ended subscription, reset the `endDate` to `null`. Frisbii Media will remove the end date from the subscription, restoring active access.

```php
$import = [
    'suppressMail' => true,
    'purchase'     => false,
    'items'        => [
        [
            'externalSystemId'   => 'Sync-4711',
            'plenigoOfferId'     => 'O_FAK3OFF3R',
            'invoiceCustomerId'  => $customer['customerId'],
            'paymentMethod'      => 'BILLING',
            'deliveryCustomerId' => $customer['customerId'],
            'deliveryAddressId'  => $deliveryAddress['addressId'],
            'startDate'          => '2020-10-10T10:10:10.100Z',
            'endDate'            => null, // removing endDate reactivates the subscription
            'quantity'           => 1,
        ],
    ],
];
$importStatus = json_decode($client->request('POST', '/imports/orders', [
    'headers' => ['X-plenigo-token' => eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9],
    'json'    => $import,
])->getBody()->getContents(), true);
```

---

## External managed vs. regular import

|  | Regular import | External managed |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Who bills the customer?** | Frisbii Media (takes over from `nextBookingDate`) | Your source system (always) |
| `paymentMethod` | e.g. `BANK_ACCOUNT` | `BILLING` |
| **Customer can cancel in self-service?** | Yes | No |
| `nextBookingDate` **required?** | Yes | No |
| **Use case** | Full migration | SSO + access management only |

---

## API reference

- [orderImport](https://api.plenigo.com/#tag/Order-Imports/operation/orderImport)

---