A subscription can make a feature available to a customer account, but it should not authorize every member to use every action. Plan entitlements and user permissions answer different questions and need separate rules.
Related service: Custom software development- 01Identify the account's active features.
- 02Verify the user's action permission.
- 03Check any usage or record constraint.
- 04Perform the allowed operation.
- 05Reconcile changed entitlements.
SECTION 01
Keep the commercial package separate from authority
For each feature, identify a stable internal name and the actions it enables. A reporting entitlement might make a report available, while only certain members may export it. Avoid scattering plan-name comparisons throughout the code; commercial packages can change while the underlying capability remains the same.
Stripe's entitlement documentation illustrates mapping products to feature access and updating an application's provisioning. It is a provider example, not a requirement to use Stripe or a promise about a specific account setup. Your application must still decide how permissions, record access and temporary provider unavailability interact with that feature state.
SECTION 02
Illustrative example: a team loses advanced reports
Imagine a workspace moves from a plan with advanced reporting to one without it. The business permits viewing previously generated reports for a limited approved period but prevents creating new ones. This is a hypothetical product decision, not a published Catapult package or pricing promise.
The interface should explain the difference between existing results and new generation. A user with no export permission must not gain it during the transition. If the entitlement event arrives late, reconcile with the provider's current state rather than applying older messages blindly. Support needs to see the effective feature state and its source without manually editing unrelated user roles.
SECTION 03
Test the lifecycle around the upgrade button
Start with a small capability list and a written plan-change policy. A simple product may need only a few account flags, while a larger catalog may benefit from a dedicated entitlement service. Choose based on real complexity and maintenance needs, not an assumption that every SaaS requires a custom billing engine.
Test upgrade, scheduled downgrade, duplicate notification, delayed notification and an ordinary member trying an administrative action. Agree the behavior during unavailable billing information and how reconciliation repairs stale state. The agency should hand over the capability map and acceptance cases. Payment, cancellation and retention policies need approval from the business; this guide concerns implementing that approved behavior rather than setting commercial or legal terms.
SECTION 04
Frequently asked questions
Does an active subscription grant all permissions?
No. It can enable account capabilities, but user roles and record-level access still control which actions each person may perform.
Should plan names appear throughout application code?
Prefer stable capability checks with an explicit mapping. That keeps commercial packaging changes from unexpectedly altering unrelated permission logic.
What happens to data after a downgrade?
Define it explicitly: continued viewing, restricted editing, export or retention may differ. Do not silently delete data as a side effect of hiding a feature.
PRIMARY REFERENCES
Sources and further reading
These references cover the standards, platforms, or published prices discussed in the guide. Worked examples and checklists are our editorial guidance.
- Product feature entitlementsStripe Documentation
- Authorization guidanceOWASP Foundation
EDITORIAL METHOD
About this guide
We use AI to assist with drafting and editing. Catapult AI Work is responsible for the published content. Examples illustrate possible approaches; they are not client case studies unless identified as such.
Budget examples are not Catapult package prices. Check linked provider pages for current fees and plan limits before making a purchase.
Read the editorial policy