Mera Paisaa — Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. General & Architecture

Q1.1: Is my financial data uploaded to external cloud servers?

No. Mera Paisaa is built as an offline-first financial operating system. All transaction inputs, category budgets, savings goals, and investment portfolios are written to secure local database boxes (Hive) on your device. Cloud sync is only activated if you sign in with your Google account.

Q1.2: What happens to my data if I sign out of the application?

If you are logged in as a Guest (Anonymous), signing out will trigger a security wipe that clears all local database boxes. If you sign in using Google Authentication, your local database boxes are cleared, but your data remains backed up in your private Firestore cloud database.

Q1.3: Can I recover guest data after signing out?

No. Guest data is stored entirely on the device and is deleted when you sign out. To prevent data loss, it is recommended to link a Google account.

Q1.4: How does the offline sync queue handle network reconnections?

When you log a transaction offline, the sync engine writes the mutation to the local sync_queue database box. When connection is restored, the engine processes the queue sequentially, ensuring your records remain consistent.

Q1.5: What does the Data Integrity Service do at startup?

The IntegrityService scans local database boxes to repair orphaned data:

If accounts are deleted but transactions remain, it creates a default account (💵 Cash).
It maps orphaned transactions or subscriptions to the default account.
It deletes budgets with empty categories.

Q1.6: Why does the app only display in portrait mode?

The app orientation is locked to portrait (DeviceOrientation.portraitUp and DeviceOrientation.portraitDown) to ensure a consistent, optimized UI layout on mobile devices.

Q1.7: Does the app support system accessibility text scaling?

Yes. The app respects system accessibility text scale configurations, but clamps the scale factor between 0.8 and 1.3 to prevent layouts from breaking.

2. User Profiles & Customization

Q2.1: What are User Personas, and how do they change the app?

User personas customize your experience by reordering the dashboard widgets to match your lifestyle:

Student: Prioritizes budgets, expense limits, and study plans.
Professional: Prioritizes savings goals, net worth tracking, and investments.
Freelancer: Prioritizes cash flow stats, invoices (Udhar), and active income.
Business Owner: Prioritizes debt ledger cash flows, receivables, and revenue.

Q2.2: What are Ledger Profiles (Personal, Business, Family)?

Ledger profiles allow you to maintain separate ledger books in a single app:

Personal: Excludes transactions containing "business", "office", "invoice", or "family".
Business: Filters transactions containing "business", "office", "inventory", or "invoice".
Family: Filters transactions containing "family", "shared", or family-related keywords.

Q2.3: How do I select a different currency?

Open settings and tap the active currency display (e.g. ₹ INR). This opens the currency picker sheet, allowing you to choose from INR, USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, AED, SGD, and AUD.

Q2.4: Can I customize the app's visual theme?

Yes. The app supports Dark and Light modes, as well as four theme presets: Classic (Emerald Green), Gold (Gold), Ocean (Cyan), and Rose (Rose Pink).

3. Financial Tracking & Calculations

Q3.1: How is my Money Score calculated?

Your money score (0 to 100) is calculated based on three factors:

Savings Rate: Up to +30 points for a savings rate of 30% or higher (+15 points for 10% to 29%).
Debt Status: +10 points if you have no outstanding borrowed debt.
Consolidated Balances: +10 points if your net balance is positive.

Q3.2: How is my Financial Health Score calculated?

The financial health score (0 to 100) is calculated based on five factors (up to 20 points each):

Savings Rate: Ratio of income to expense.
Budget Discipline: Percentage of active budgets kept within limits.
Liquidity Buffer: Total balance relative to 3 months of expenses.
Goals Progress: Average progress percentage across goals.
Debt Level: Debt-to-income ratio or total borrowed outstanding.

Q3.3: How is Net Worth calculated in the Wealth Hub?

Net Worth = Liquid Cash + Investments Current Value - Outstanding Udhar liabilities

Q3.4: How are goal contribution milestones celebrated?

The app tracks progress and triggers confetti animations to reward your progress:

🎉 50% Milestone: Celebrates reaching half of your target.
🌟 75% Milestone: Celebrates nearing your target.
🏆 100% Completion: Celebrates achieving the goal.

Q3.5: Can I transfer funds between accounts?

The action bar has a Transfer button, but the feature is currently a mockup showing a "Coming Soon" notification. Account transfers are not yet supported.

Q3.6: How do I export my transaction ledger?

Open settings and tap Export Data (CSV). This exports all transactions to a CSV file and opens the system share panel to send or save it.

4. Planning & Budgets

Q4.1: How do budget warning colors change?

Budgets are color-coded to warn you as you spend:

Green: Safe (<80% spent).
Orange: High consumption (>80% spent).
Red: Limit exceeded.

Q4.2: How does the subscription billing simulator work?

The billing simulator projects upcoming payments over the next 30 days and warns you if linked account balances will fall below zero, helping you prevent overdrafts.

Q4.3: How do I log partial settlements in Udhar?

Tap the outstanding debt card and select Settle. Enter the partial amount to update the outstanding balance. The debt will remain active until paid in full.

Q4.4: How do I send payment reminders to debtors?

Tap the WhatsApp icon on an outstanding receivable in the Udhar ledger to generate a pre-filled reminder draft with transaction details.

5. Investments & Assets

Q5.1: What asset types are supported in the Wealth Hub?

You can log and track investments across four asset classes: Mutual Funds, Stocks, Gold / Commodities, and Fixed Deposits.

Q5.2: How do I update my investment prices?

Tap on the asset item in the Wealth Hub ledger to open the update price dialog. Enter the current price per unit to recalculate absolute returns.

Q5.3: How do I delete an investment?

Swipe left on the asset card in the Wealth Hub list to delete it from your ledger.

6. Labs, Simulators & AI

Q6.1: Are the Labs features connected to live services?

No. Labs features are on-device simulators that allow you to preview advanced automation without linking live bank accounts or cameras.

Q6.2: How does the SMS sandbox work?

Paste raw SMS text or choose templates. The parser extracts the merchant, amount, payment method, category, and payment type, allowing you to approve and log the transaction with one tap.

Q6.3: What receipt templates are available in the OCR Scanner?

The scanner supports three templates: Starbucks Coffee (₹380, Food), DMart Supermarket (₹1,420, Groceries), and Shell Fuel Station (₹2,500, Transport).

Q6.4: What is the sandbox OTP code for the Account Aggregator?

The test OTP code is 482019. Enter this code to link the simulated bank account and update your balance.

Q6.5: Is Mera Dost AI an online chatbot?

No. Mera Dost AI is a rule-based AI financial coach that operates entirely offline. It evaluates local database boxes and provides feedback on budgets, savings rates, and goals in markdown format.

7. Troubleshooting & Notifications

Q7.1: What are the in-app notification categories?

💳 Transaction: Alerts for new logs, exports, or manual changes.
📊 Budget: Alerts when category spending exceeds 80% or 100% of limits.
🏆 Goal: Celebrates savings milestones (50%, 75%, 100%).
📈 Health: Weekly summaries of your financial health score and savings progress.
📱 Subscription: Alerts for upcoming bills and account deficit warnings.
🤝 Udhar: Reminders for pending debts and settlement logs.
📅 Monthly Review: Monthly summary alerts.
💡 Smart Nudge: Tips to optimize spending.

Q7.2: What is the invitation code to share with friends?

Your unique invitation code is MP-82741.