Buy Now Pay Later Payments Are Bills: What Changed in 2026

Buy now pay later splits a purchase into a few instalments, usually without interest. It feels like shopping, so the instalments are easy to forget. Each one is still a payment that leaves your account on a set date, which makes it a bill like any other.

This guide explains what changed when the FCA started regulating buy now pay later, what happens if you miss a payment, and how to keep the instalments in view.

What changed on 15 July 2026

The FCA says it started regulating Deferred Payment Credit, often known as buy now pay later, on 15 July 2026. As of the FCA’s page (last updated 6 August 2026):

• Which agreements are covered: agreements where the lender and the shop are different businesses. Agreements where the same business provides both the goods and the credit are not regulated.
• Older agreements: agreements taken out before 15 July 2026 remain unregulated.

For regulated agreements, the FCA lists these protections:

1. Affordability checks. Lenders need to check whether you can afford to repay before you take out an agreement.
2. Information first. You get key information before you sign, including the amount, the repayment dates and amounts, and your rights.
3. Missed payments. If you miss a repayment, the firm needs to contact you to let you know and explain what this means.
4. Support. If you are struggling, lenders need to provide you with support.
5. Complaints. If you are unhappy with the lender’s answer to a complaint, you can go to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
6. Refunds. Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act is available, which may let you seek a refund from the lender if something goes wrong with what you bought.

Why BNPL instalments belong on your bill list

A single buy now pay later purchase usually means several payments over a few weeks or months. Two or three purchases at once can mean payments landing on different dates across the month, alongside rent, council tax and energy. If they land just before payday, they can tip your account into the red.

Treat each instalment as a bill:

1. Write down every BNPL plan you have, with each payment amount and date.
2. Add them to your bill list next to your regular bills, sorted by date.
3. Before buying anything new on BNPL, look at the dates already in that month.

Our guide to keeping track of your bills has a simple layout for this.

Three checks before you buy on BNPL

1. Check the dates. Look at when each instalment will be taken and compare it with your payday and the bills already due that week.
2. Add up the month. Total every BNPL instalment due this month, on top of your regular bills. If the total would leave you short before payday, wait.
3. Check who the lender is. The FCA says agreements are regulated when the lender and the shop are different businesses. If the shop provides the credit itself, the new protections do not apply.

If you miss a BNPL payment

For a regulated agreement, the lender has to contact you and explain what the missed payment means. Check your agreement for late fees, which the lender must tell you about before you sign.

On credit generally, National Debtline (England and Wales) says missed payments recorded with credit reference agencies stay on your credit report for six years. Check with your lender how and when it reports missed payments.

If you cannot make a payment:

1. Contact the lender before the due date if you can.
2. Ask what support it offers. Regulated lenders need to provide support if you are struggling.
3. If several debts are behind, deal with the priority bills first. Citizens Advice treats credit and store cards, catalogues and unsecured loans as non-priority debts, behind rent, council tax and energy.

Our guides to what happens if you miss a bill payment and which bills to pay first go into more detail.

Keep the dates in one place

Buy now pay later is designed to be quick at the checkout, which is exactly why the payment dates slip out of mind. A bill tracker like Billo lets you add each instalment as a bill with its own date, so it sits in the same list as everything else, with a reminder 3 days before it is taken.