Merchant Account FAQ
1. What are the requirements to be approved for a merchant account?
The majority of U.S. businesses (around 98%) are approved for merchant accounts. Unless a business has a serious credit problem or is selling questionable products and/or services, the chances are pretty good that the application will be approved. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
With your merchant account, you can process virtually any major credit card. This includes: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, Carte Blanche, Diners Club, and JCB credit cards. In addition, retail merchants can accept debit/ATM cards issued by Interlink, Maestro, Pulse, Star and NYCE card system members.[ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
3. Is there any difference between a credit card and a debit card?
The main difference between a credit card and a debit card is where the funds for the transaction are being drawn. With a credit card, the transaction amount is deducted from the cardholder’s available credit line. With a debit card, the transaction amount is deducted directly from the cardholder’s checking account. From the merchant’s end, processing a debit card will be cheaper than processing a standard credit card. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
The discount rate is a percentage of the total transaction amount that the bank will deduct prior to transferring the deposit into the merchant bank account. Discount rates generally range from 1.69% to 5%. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
5. What is Address Verification Service (AVS)?
Address Verification Service (AVS) is a fraud prevention service that validates a cardholder’s address against the card issuer’s records. This service is provided as part of a credit card authorization for MOTO and Internet transactions. A code is returned with the authorization result that indicates the level of accuracy of the address match and helps secure the best interchange rates. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
6. Will my business receive a statement that lists all processed transactions?
Every month your business will receive a monthly statement summarizing all your credit card processing activity. These are mailed automatically at the beginning of each month. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
7. Can my business conduct transactions in foreign currencies?
Yes. All funds you receive will be in U.S. dollars. An international card holder will be billed in his home country in the currency used by that country. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
8. Can I key in orders manually?
The are several different ways you can manually enter credit card information: via a virtual terminal that is accessed on your PC or fax machine, by phone, and any POS terminal that has a keypad. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
9. Does the name of my business appear on my customer’s credit card statement?
Yes. The legal name of your business will appear on your customer’s credit card or debit checking account statement. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
10. Is it safe to process credit cards over the Internet?
Processing credit cards online is safe as long as you take several precautions. You must make sure that any sensitive data that will be sent over the web will be encrypted. Also, be sure to check out the reputations of any company involved in handling this data, and look out for reliability or quality seals on key websites. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
11.What is a merchant account?
A merchant account is a type of bank account that allows businesses to accept payments by debit or credit cards. They come in three main flavors: a POS merchant account, an Internet merchant account, and a MOTO merchant account. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
12. How much does it cost to have a merchant account?
There are several transaction fees associated with creating and maintaining a merchant account. But business owners should keep in mind that there is a lot of variation among providers. The most common fees include: the discount rate, transaction fees, pass-through fees, monthly fees, and sometimes there are set-up and application fees. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
13. Is there a limit to how many merchant accounts one can have?
Though there is no limit to how many merchant accounts one can have, one should keep in mind that for each account opened, one has to pay a separate fee schedule. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
14. How long is the approval process for a merchant account?
After receiving an application, a merchant can expect to hear back from us within 24 to 48 hours. Your merchant account will be set up and activated usually within 24 hours of approval. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
15. Can I use my merchant account for more than one business?
No. There can only be one merchant associated with each merchant account opened. But keep in mind that you can have more than one merchant account as long as the business name and tax ID are unique for each account. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
16. I already have a retail merchant account, can I use this for internet processing?
No. Retail merchant accounts cannot be used to receive payments online. If you have a brick-and-mortar business and want to sell your products on the web, you will need to apply for an Internet merchant account. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
17. How do I apply for a merchant account?
You can begin by filling out our easy online application, or you can speak to one of our merchant account specialists. [ Contact Us Now | Back To Top ]
There are many solutions available for merchants. To discover the right one for you, speak with one of our representatives. Click the button or just give us a call at 1.877.982.4274.
