Overview

Key points about ACH payments:

1. Lower processing fees compared to credit cards
2. Requires bank account verification (e.g., micro-deposits)
3. May take longer to process than card payments

ACH is often preferred for larger transactions due to reduced fees.

Enabling Credit Cards and ACH Payment Methods

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To enable your customers to pay via Credit Cards or ACH through Stripe, follow these simple steps:

1. In your Stripe dashboard, go to Settings → Payments → Payment Methods tab.
2. On the Payment Methods tab, you’ll find options for various payment methods.
   
1. To allow payments via credit cards, turn on Cards.
   
2. To enable ACH payments, turn on ACH Direct Debit. For ACH, you may need to configure bank verification via Stripe Financial Connections for better security and faster settlement, which offers faster settlement than the standard 4-day option.

Configuring ACH Settings

1. Settlement Speed: Choose between standard (4 business days) or faster settlement (2 business days) for eligible US users, available in the Payment methods settings.
2. Verification: Utilize Stripe Financial Connections for instant verification to reduce payment failure rates.

Once the ACH Payment method has been enabled and configured in Stripe, your customers will have the option to pay using their bank account information, but the account must be verified first.

Verifying a Customer's Bank Account

Once a customer has entered their bank account information, Stripe will make two micro-deposits in the customer's bank account. You will need to communicate with your customer to get the amounts of these two micro-deposits and enter them in your Stripe account.

1. In Stripe, navigate to the customer record by clicking Customers and then clicking the name of the customer whose account that you would like to verify.
   
2. Click the Verify Account link in the Bank Account section.
   
3. Enter the amounts of the micro-deposits and click Verify.
   

Processing Payments in CustomBooks™

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1. Customer-Initiated Payments
   
1. Via emailed Sales Invoices or Sales Orders with a Make Payment button
   
2. User-Initiated Payments
1. Charging a saved payment method through a Cash Receipt or Customer Prepayments
   
   

Option 1: Emailing Invoices or Sales Orders with a Make Payment Button

With Stripe connected to CustomBooks™, you can simplify the payment process by emailing Sales Orders and Invoices that include a 'Make Payment' button. This feature allows your customers to pay quickly and easily online.

Steps:

1. Create a Sales Invoice or Sales Order.
2. Email the document to your customer.
3. The email will include a Make Payment button.

Customer Payment Experience:

1. The customer clicks the Make Payment button.
2. They are redirected to a secure payment screen.
3. The customer:
   
1. Confirms or enters the payment amount
2. Clicks Make Payment
                                                    
4. Selects a payment method:
1. Credit Card
2. ACH (bank account)
5. Enters payment details and clicks Pay via Credit Card / Pay via Bank.
   

After payment:

1. The transaction is recorded in CustomBooks™
2. Funds are processed through Stripe and deposited into your bank account
3. Payment status is updated on the invoice
   
4. CustomBooks™ automatically:
   
1. Creates a Cash Receipt: If you've selected the 'Automatically send Cash Receipt to customer when Stripe payment has been processed' checkbox, the customer will receive a Cash Receipt upon successful payment. Stripe will periodically transfer funds into your bank account.
   
2. Creates Bank Deposit Document: If you’ve enabled the 'Automatically create Bank Deposit when transfer from Stripe has been processed' checkbox, a Bank Deposit will be created in CustomBooks™, and the corresponding Cash Receipts will be marked as deposited.
   

Option 2: Charging a Customer via Cash Receipt or Prepayments

You can handle credit card and ACH payments directly within CustomBooks™. After completing a one-time setup and registering the customer’s payment information, you can easily process payments using the Cash Receipt or Prepayment feature.

Step 1: Registering the Customer's Card or ACH Debit Bank Account in CustomBooks™

1. Open the Customer Card by navigating to List → Customers.
2. Find the customer, then double-click their name to open their record.
3. On the Payment Methods tab, click the Add drop-down, then select either Add Card or Add ACH Debit Bank Account.
4. Select Stripe, then enter the customer information and credit card details or ACH bank information.
   

Note: Complete credit card or ACH details cannot be viewed within CustomBooks™; the information is securely stored with Stripe.

Once registration is successful, the payment method is securely saved and available for future transactions.

Step 2: Processing Customer Payments in CustomBooks™

Once you’ve stored a customer’s credit card details in their company record in CustomBooks™, you can easily charge or pay an invoice or sales order without re-entering the card information. Follow these steps to process a payment using the saved payment information:

1. Charging via Cash Receipt

1. Create a Cash Receipt - You can either create a new Cash Receipt or generate one directly from the Sales Invoice.
2. Initiate the Payment - Click the Generate drop-down button, select Charge with, and then choose Stripe.
3. Complete the Payment - Select the payment method that was stored/saved on the customer's profile. Then click Charge.
                      
   
4. The customer’s card will be charged, and a Stripe transaction detail will automatically be recorded on the Cash Receipt.
                         
   
5. Then Save the Cash Receipt.
   

1. Generate Prepayment - You can generate the prepayment from the Sales Order.
2. Initiate the Payment - Click the Generate drop-down button, select Charge with, and then choose Stripe.
3. Complete the Payment - Select the payment method that was stored/saved on the customer's profile. Then click Charge.
                          
   
4. The customer’s card will be charged, and a Stripe transaction detail will automatically be recorded on the Prepayment.
                          
   
5. Then Save the Prepayment.