Overview
Merchants who use Credit Card Processors that support Terminal Capture settlement method can adjust the time their transactions settle daily in their Settlement Schedule settings page.
Prerequisites
The user will need the 'Access Administrative Options' permission to be able to access and adjust the Settlement Schedule page. Primary users have this permission set by default and cannot be removed.
Navigating to the Settlement Schedule Settings
In the Merchant Portal, on the left side panel → click on Options → Settings → under Transaction Options click on Settlement Schedule; or from the homepage under Utilities → click on Settings → under Transaction Options click on Settlement Schedule.
Terminal Capture vs Host Capture
Generally, there are two types of transaction capture procedures, host capture and terminal capture. They refer to whom handle the settlement (batch) file.
Terminal Capture
When a merchant account is setup on a Terminal Capture processor, the transactions are stored at our servers and sent for settlement in the next settlement batch. The batch will contain all the transactions that were taken up until the settlement cut-off time. The files are usually in a queue, so it could be marked as settled a few hours after the settlement cut-off time. The merchant can update the settlement cut-off time in their Settlement Schedule settings page.
Host Capture
When a merchant account is setup on a Host Capture processor, the batch files are stored at the processors (acquirers) host computer. The transactions that occur throughout the day may be selected at random periods of time. Therefore we do not have the visibility of the transactions once they have left from the terminal to the processor (acquirer) for settlement. For host capture processors, the settlement time cannot be adjusted on the gateway. The merchant will need to reach out to their processor to make any changes to settlement times.
Adjusting the Settlement Schedule
To adjust the settlement time, simply select the appropriate time from the drop-down menu on the desired processor and click 'Update Settlement Schedule'. The times are displayed to the Merchant in their respective time-zone as set in their Account Information page.
If the merchant has multiple processors, only the Terminal Capture processors' settlement cut-off times will be adjustable here. If the merchant has a Host Capture processor, that processor will not be listed in the Settlement Schedule page. The merchant will need to reach out to their processor to make any changes to settlement times.
You may view the history of changes made to the settlement schedule by selecting "Show History". Merchants will see 'Administrator', as the user, if their reseller (NMI Partner) logged in to make the change on their behalf.
When will the update take effect?
For most processors this will take effect in real-time once the settlement schedule has been updated. If the settlement cut-off time is updated before its current cut-off time, the update will take effect that same day.
However, not all processors update immediately. Certain processors take at least 24 hours to update before the new settlement time will be reflected. The processors that require 24 hours are Evo, EPX, First Data Omaha, Heartland, Worldpay & Vantiv.
Difference between Settlement Cut-off Time and Batch Settlement
There is a distinction between the settlement cut-off time and the actual time transactions are settled. The settlement cut-off time marks the deadline for including transactions within a specific batch. For example, if the cut-off time is set to 6 PM, any transaction processed after this time will be included in the next day’s batch. Once a batch is closed, it enters a queue where the payment gateway generates the batch files to be sent to the processor for settlement. The timeframe for the processor to receive these files varies based on factors such as time of day and business operations.