How to Allow Scholarship or Free-Entry Exceptions on Paid Forms

Let scholarship recipients, comp ticket holders, volunteers, or staff submit a paid form without being charged. The respondent ticks a checkbox to skip payment, and you see a badge on each free submission so you can identify them at a glance.

If you charge respondents through Stripe but want to let some respondents skip payment (for example, scholarship recipients, comp ticket holders, volunteers, or staff), you can turn on a free-entry exception. Respondents see a checkbox on the form, and ticking it submits the form without going through Stripe. You see a configurable badge on each of those responses on your dashboard so you can spot them at a glance.

Requires: Premium account, a connected Stripe account, and Require payment before submission turned on for the form.

Sections in This Guide

ENABLE FREE ENTRY EXCEPTIONS

Step 1

Open your Dashboard and click Options on the form card you'd like to update. (Stripe must already be connected and your form must already be charging respondents through Stripe.)

Step 2

Scroll down to the Stripe Payments card. Make sure Require payment before submission is turned on. If it isn't, the form isn't currently charging respondents through Stripe and the scholarship feature doesn't apply.

Step 3

Inside the Stripe Payment Settings, scroll past the payment model and option pricing to the Free entry exceptions section. Tick Allow some respondents to skip payment.

Step 4

Click Save Stripe Payment Settings. The free-entry checkbox is now live on your form.

CUSTOMIZE THE LABELS

When you tick Allow some respondents to skip payment, two text inputs appear so you can tailor the wording to your situation. The internal feature is called "scholarship" but the labels are fully editable so you can frame it however you like (comp tickets, volunteer entries, member discounts, etc.).

Checkbox label respondents see

This is the label next to the checkbox on the public form. Default: "I'm a scholarship recipient". Examples for other use cases:

  • "I have a complimentary registration code"
  • "I'm volunteering (no charge)"
  • "I'm a current member"
  • "I'm registering as staff"

Maximum 120 characters.

Badge shown on your responses dashboard

This is the small badge that appears next to free submissions on your responses dashboard. Default: "No payment". Set it to whatever helps you spot these responses at a glance: "Scholarship", "Comp", "Volunteer", etc. Maximum 40 characters.

WHAT RESPONDENTS SEE

Respondents fill out the form normally: they pick options, enter their name and email, and answer any additional questions. When they reach the Payment Required card near the submit button, they'll see a checkbox with the label you configured.

If they leave it unticked, they go through Stripe Checkout as usual. If they tick it:

  • The total hides
  • The submit button changes from Submit & Pay to your form's normal submit text
  • The help text underneath changes to "No payment required for this submission."

The submission saves immediately on click without redirecting to Stripe. The respondent receives the same confirmation email and the same thank-you page they would on any free submission.

HOW THE BADGE APPEARS

From your Dashboard, click Responses on the form card. Any response submitted through the free-entry checkbox displays the badge text you configured (default "No payment") above the response's additional fields. Paying responses don't show the badge, so it's easy to scan the list and identify which respondents skipped payment.

GOOD TO KNOW

  • Self-service, not approval-based. Respondents tick the checkbox themselves to claim a free entry — there is no review or approval step on your end. We recommend cross-referencing the dashboard badges against your own scholarship roster, comp list, or volunteer list, and following up with anyone who appears unexpectedly.
  • Works with all Stripe payment models. Whether you're using Flat Fee, Per Option, or Per Option + Quantity, ticking the checkbox skips the entire payment for that submission.
  • The respondent still picks options normally. Selections, quantities, and additional questions are all captured the same as any other response — only the payment step is skipped.
  • Confirmation emails still send. Free-entry submissions go through your form's normal free-submission flow: respondent confirmation, creator notification, and any reminders you've configured all behave like a regular signup.
  • Hide the checkbox at any time. Untick Allow some respondents to skip payment in your Stripe Payment Settings and click Save Stripe Payment Settings. The checkbox immediately disappears from the public form. Past free-entry responses keep their badge.