Skip to main content

Settlements Guide

A settlement batches Pay by Bank payment and refund operations for a merchant. If settlements are enabled, a settlement is generated each weekday that will batch all payments such that only one credit transaction is issued to the merchant for all payments that have cleared and only one debit transaction is issued for all refunds that have been initiated.

If settlements are not enabled neither payments nor refunds are batched and will be initiated against the merchant bank account in real time.

Settlement Period​

The settlement period is the time from a payment being captured or refunded to the time the funds are sent to the final destination account. Understanding settlement periods is a critical component of cash flow management. When evaluating payment processors, make sure that they offer options to reduce your settlement period and streamline your accounts receivable.

Accrue supports Standard ACH (3-7 business days settlement period), Same Day ACH (24 hour settlement period) and Real Time Payments - RTP (immediate settlement). Support for these payment alternatives depends on the RDFI's (Receiving Depository Financial Institution) ability to process the payment authorization in those time frames. Both Standard ACH and Same Day ACH are supported at every bank. Not all bank support RTP.

In addition Accrue adds a holding period prior to settlement to safe guard the customer and merchant from instances of fraud and identity theft.

Settlement Process​

This section is only applicable for Standard and Same Day ACH. RTP uses instant settlements and does not require the settlement process

When using Standard ACH or Same Day ACH, the settlement process reconciles payment status and funds transfers. Accrue recommends a daily settlement process and supports more frequent reconciliation. Talk to your Accrue representative to determine your requirements.

When a settlement report is generated:

  • Only payments that have been cleared from the customer will be included in that settlement so that they can be batched into a single [credit] transfer to the merchant settlement account. Pending payments are not included in a settlement.
  • Only refunds that have been initiated by the merchants will be included in that settlement so that they can be batched into a single [debit] transfer from the merchant settlement account. Following this transfer, the funds will be sent to each individual user's final destination accounts individually.

Failed Transactions​

Failed [debit] payments (from the customer) will not be included in a settlement and will not be retried. The customer will need to initiate a new payment.

Failed [debit] refunds (from the merchant) will be automatically retried.

Failed [credit] refunds (to the customer) will be resolved by Accrue.

Failed [credit] payments (to the merchant) will be resolved by Accrue.

Settlement Report Example (CSV)​

Settlements reports are available in CSV format. A settlement report will include a row for each payment or refund that is included in the settlement. Each row will also contain the settlement summary information.

settlementId,captureCount,captureTotal,captureFeeTotal,creditTotal,refundCount,refundTotal,refundFeeTotal,debitTotal,type,paymentId,paymentIntentId,refundId,userId,amount,settledAmount,feeAmount
d384b7ef-744d-446f-acfe-f3fde2dfbf46,2,1100,206,894,0,0,0,0,Payment,dfcfab0c-b600-40cf-ba44-9e2c3886b048,1af34308-b87e-42ea-8863-cd2ca5ab81e0,,4f7c9c1d-c92d-4979-90e9-6058460db99a,700,596,104
d384b7ef-744d-446f-acfe-f3fde2dfbf46,2,1100,206,894,0,0,0,0,Payment,0d940119-a839-49b4-bef5-cd49368de613,2885d9ee-5508-4e51-9153-9c4b686eca73,,606eec0e-e0f5-4f64-b277-1f9b54f7d195,400,298,102

Settlement summary information:

  • settlementId - the id of the settlement
  • captureCount - the total number of captured (payment) transactions included in the settlement
  • captureTotal - the total amount (in cents) of all captured (payment) transactions included in the settlement
  • creditTotal - the total amount (in cents) sent to the merchant settlement account
  • refundCount - the total number of refund transactions included in the settlement
  • refundFeeTotal - the total fee amount (in cents) of all refund transactions included in the settlement
  • debitTotal - the total amount (in cents) to be received from the merchant settlement account

Individual transaction information:

  • type - the type of transaction (Payment or Refund)
  • paymentId - the id of the payment
  • paymentIntentId - the id of the payment intent
  • refundId - the id of the refund
  • userId - the id of the user
  • amount - the amount (in cents) of the transaction
  • feeAmount - the fee amount (in cents) of the transaction
  • settledAmount - the amount (in cents) of the transaction that has been settled (the amount minus fees)