GETTING APPROVAL FOR A MERCHANT ACCOUNT

Getting an approval for a merchant account can be a simple and quick process for some while a tedious and challenging one for others. Here are some things you can look into to make the process of getting an approval for your merchant account more manageable.

Restricted Or Prohibited Category

Find out if your business falls under the Restricted or Prohibited Category in your preferred merchant account provider’s policy. If it does, you may have to look for other merchant account providers.

Ensure a good credit rating

Having a good credit rating makes all the difference in the ease of the process of getting your application for a merchant account approved. If you’ve never had a problem with your credit history, you are definitely on a very safe side. Your chances of approval increases even more if you have had a merchant account previously and it was well-maintained and managed.

However, if you have had problems with your credit history previously, you will have to take some actions to try and improve your situation.

• Call up or write to a credit reporting bureau. Inform them that the problems in your credit history (such as late payments) have been settled. Request for these issues to be removed from your credit history. Apply for a merchant account after you credit history has been improved.
• If you are in a current bankruptcy, wait for at least six months after being discharged to apply for a merchant account. Remember to call and ask for your credit history to be cleared up before applying for the merchant account as mentioned above.

Never Falsify Any Information

Be honest about any problems previously faced with your credit history. Such information is available to the merchant account providers easily. Finding out that you have falsified information and provided fictitious information could jeopardize your chance of ever being approved for a merchant account.

Do An Extensive Research

Research! Research! Research! Compare as many merchant account providers as you can. Besides the rates, compare the terms, solutions, services and incentives offered by the merchant account providers. Find one which will suit your business needs best as well as accommodate any credit history problem you may have or the type of business you run.

Be Flexible

Sometimes, you may find that even after your extensive research, you have trouble finding a provider who will accept your business at low costs. This may be so to protect the provider’s business. At such an unfortunate situation, be prepared to start with higher costs and additional fees on your merchant account. This may be only temporary and costs may be reduced eventually when you have proven yourself as a responsible client and as not so risky.

A Guarantor

If the above fails, you can resort to finding someone with a good credit history to sign as your guarantor. Most merchant account providers do accept such support.

The Good News

Having problems with your credit history or running a business considered high-risk by merchant account providers does not mean that you’ll not be able to get any approval for a merchant account. You just need to know the challenges you may face, be prepared for them and use the above-stated strategies. This will help smoothen the process and once approved, you will be able to offer your customers more flexible payment options and most importantly, boost your business