Overview

The ‘Add also the CardID property in QR code for benefits’ setting is a small refinement to the card benefits QR code feature. It controls whether the QR code used to verify a cardholder’s active membership status (for example, at a partner shop or service) also carries a reference to the exact physical card that was scanned, and not only the cardholder’s identity. This setting is found in the general application settings, under the card-related configuration options, and applies to the whole institution.

By default, this setting is turned off. It is only relevant for institutions that have already turned on the benefits QR code feature; if that feature is not used, this setting has no practical effect.

What This Setting Does

When this setting is turned on, every new benefits QR code generated for a card (student, teacher/staff, or partner card) includes an additional piece of information: a reference to the specific card record that produced it. This does not change how the QR code looks or how it is scanned – it is still a single QR code that opens the same verification page – but it allows the system to know precisely which card was used when the code is checked.

When this setting is turned off (the default), the benefits QR code only carries the general identity/verification reference for the cardholder, without pointing to a specific card. In that case, when the QR code is scanned, the verification page shows information based on the institution’s generally active academic period, rather than the period tied to the specific card that was scanned.

In simple terms: this setting makes each benefits QR code ‘card-aware’, so that scanning it can resolve to the exact card (and its related period) instead of always assuming ‘the current period’.

Where It Is Used

Located in: Settings > Core Settings > Basic Customization > Card Settings, under the label ‘Add also the CardID property in QR code for benefits’.

Its effect applies whenever a benefits QR code is generated:

• Student cards, teacher/staff cards, and partner cards: whenever a new benefits QR code is produced for any of these card types, the extra card reference is included if this setting is turned on.
• The public verification page that opens when someone scans a benefits QR code: when the extra reference is present, the page can show details tied to the correct card and period; when it is absent, the page falls back to the institution’s default active period.

This setting has no effect on the card’s main identification QR code or barcode – it only changes the content of the separate ‘benefits’ QR code used for the discount/verification program.

 Business Logic / Behavior

• Default value: disabled (off) for all institutions unless specifically turned on.
• Dependency: this setting only has a visible effect if ‘Enable QR code for benefits’ is also turned on. If the benefits QR code feature itself is off, there is nothing for this setting to add information to.
• The extra reference added to the QR code is an internal record number tied to the specific card that was issued. It is not a student number, ID card number, or any other cardholder-facing code. It exists purely so the verification page can distinguish between different cards belonging to the same or different people.
• Turning this setting on only affects benefits QR codes generated afterward. Benefits QR codes that were already created before the setting was turned on will not automatically be updated with the extra reference; the affected cards would need to be reissued or have their QR code regenerated.
• When the extra reference is present and the QR code is scanned, the verification page can look up the academic period associated with that particular card. If no reference is present (setting off), the page instead uses the institution’s general ‘active period’ setting for everyone, regardless of when their specific card was issued.
• This is especially relevant for institutions where the same person can be issued more than one card over time (for example, a new card every academic year or semester). Without this setting, an older card and a newer card scanned on the same day would both show information based on the current period. With this setting on, each card resolves to its own associated period, which produces more accurate results if information (such as active status or an outstanding balance) is expected to differ between periods.

 Example(s)

Example 1

Lakeside College issues a new student card at the start of every academic year. A student, Jamie Carter, received a card last year and a new one this year; both cards are still in Jamie’s possession. Lakeside has partnered with a nearby cafe that offers a discount to active students who present a valid card. Before this setting was enabled, scanning either of Jamie’s cards at the cafe showed the same result, based on whatever period the college currently considers ‘active’, even though the two cards were issued a year apart. After the administrator enables ‘Add also the CardID property in QR code for benefits’, each of Jamie’s cards produces a benefits QR code tied to its own record. If Jamie presents last year’s card, the verification page correctly reflects the status and information linked to that specific card and period, rather than assuming this year’s information applies.

Example 2

Northbridge Institute runs a partner discount program with several local businesses and reissues staff cards periodically as staff renew their contracts. The HR office wants to make sure that when a partner scans a staff member’s card, the verification page always reflects information tied to the exact card being used, in case a staff member is still holding on to a previous card alongside a newly issued one. By turning this setting on, the institute ensures that each card’s benefits QR code can be resolved individually, which avoids confusion between older and newer cards for the same person.

When to Use

When to Enable

• Cards are reissued to the same person more than once over time (for example, a new card each academic year, semester, or contract period), and old cards may still be in circulation alongside new ones.
• The institution wants the benefits verification page to reflect information tied to the exact card that was scanned, rather than always defaulting to the institution’s currently active period.
• Precise, per-card tracking of benefits verification is useful for the institution’s reporting or record-keeping needs.

When to Disable

• Each person is only ever issued a single card that stays valid for their entire time with the institution (no periodic reissuing), so there is no ambiguity about which card is being scanned.
• The institution is comfortable with the verification page always reflecting the currently active period for everyone, regardless of when a specific card was issued.
• The benefits QR code feature itself (‘Enable QR code for benefits’) is not in use, in which case this setting has no practical effect either way.

Notes

Related Settings

• Enable QR code for benefits (Settings > Core Settings > Basic Customization > Card Settings – EnableQRCodeForCardsBenefits): master switch that must be turned on for any benefits QR code, and therefore this setting, to have an effect.
• Enable external verification page for benefits (Settings > Core Settings > Basic Customization > Card Settings – EnableExternalVerificationPageForCardsBenefits): must also be enabled for the verification page to be reachable at all when a benefits QR code is scanned.
• External verification page properties for benefits (Settings > Core Settings > Basic Customization > Card Settings – ExternalVerificationPagePropertiesForCardsBenefits): controls which cardholder details are displayed on the verification page once it is reached.
• Auto create cards upon entity creation (Settings > Core Settings > Basic Customization > Card Settings – AutoCreateCardsUponEntityCreation): affects when new cards, and therefore new benefits QR codes, are generated for students, staff, or partners.

Prerequisites

• ‘Enable QR code for benefits’ must already be turned on, since this setting only adds information to a QR code that would otherwise not exist.
• For the verification results to be visible to whoever scans the code, ‘Enable external verification page for benefits’ should also be enabled.
• Card issuing must already be set up so that cards exist, or are set to be created automatically, for students, staff, or partners.

K-12 Mode vs Higher Education Mode

This setting works the same way regardless of whether the institution is configured for K-12 mode or Higher Education mode (the mode controlled by the ‘Enable Configuration for Higher Education’ setting). No difference in behavior was found between the two modes in how this setting affects the benefits QR code or the verification page. This is confirmed based on how the feature is configured, not an assumption.

General Note

The setting’s label and description both read: ‘Add also the CardID property in QR code for benefits.’ This confirms that its sole purpose is to add the card reference to the benefits QR code; it does not change how the QR code is displayed, printed, or scanned.