A merchant account is necessary for any business to accept credit and debit cards either online or on location. Credit card terminals and other electronic payment forms, such as websites or virtual terminals, interact with your merchant account. In turn, your merchant account is connected directly to your bank account where the funds are deposited. Every payment made with a credit card involves the transfer of funds to a merchant account. If you want to accept credit card payments, you will need either a merchant account of your own or the services of a third-party payment processor.
Most merchant account providers have per transaction fees, monthly support fees and monthly minimum fees. At Cardservice International, we pride ourselves on transparency. In most cases, there should never be any upfront costs to setup a merchant account. You are charged a small percentage fee and a pre-authorization fee per transaction. Our rate is a low standard of 1.59%* for swiped transactions. In most cases, there should never be any upfront costs to setup a merchant account.Most merchant account providers have per transaction fees, monthly support fees and monthly minimum fees. At Cardservice International, we pride ourselves on transparency. For a complete explanation of rates, please fill out our 5-minute application.
Our merchant account application takes about 5 minutes to fill out and most applications are approved within 1 to 2 business days. A representative will contact you after the application has been submitted to answer any questions you have and to explain the next steps in the process. If you would like to speak to a representative now, please call us at 1-855-202-7144 or send us message here.
As one of the world's largest processors, Cardservice International has a well-earned reputation for providing the best in payment security. The First Data Transarmor® solution makes customer information practically impossible to steal. Learn more about Transarmor®.
Absolutely. Regardless of what your business model looks like right now, you will probably want to expand into the world of ecommerce soon. Through Cardservice International, even small businesses without a shopping website can accept credit cards with our free virtual terminal. It comes included with our internet merchant accounts.
If you do plan on opening a virtual store, you will need an online shopping cart - software that allows your customers to collect items from your website and check out. Every internet merchant account from Cardservice International comes complete with our secure payment gateway and integration API software that allows your account to connect with most shopping cart software and services. Learn more about ecommerce options.
Make sure you have thought about what your needs will be. Do you only want to accept cards? Or will you need a machine with a check reader to make sure that you don't accept unfunded checks? In addition, you should consider what data options are available to you (phone, internet, wireless). Finally, make sure that your machine is backed up by a strong credit card security system. First Data Independent Sales has options that other processors do not. Learn about the Transarmor® Solution and EMV. We also back all of our machines with a lifetime warranty for as long as your merchant account remains active. Learn about our warranty.
If you want to accept checks in-store, you will need a credit card machine. Fortunately, any credit card machine purchased through Cardservice International comes with a lifetime warranty for as long as you maintain your merchant account. That means you never have to pay for repairs or replacements. Ever. Learn about the warranty here.