[David John]

Be aware that some companies may charge other monthly fees, such as the gateway fee, applicable if you conduct Internet/e-commerce sales. It's best to find out what the total monthly fee as you compare ostensible discount merchant account providers.


This fee comes into effect only when your monthly sales are very low or you didn't sell anything at all. The how to sell payment processing servicesprovider will calculate the charge by multiplying your total sales for the time period by your discount rate and then adding on your transaction fees. It may sound a little more complicated than it actually is in practice. For example, if your monthly minimum fee is $25 and your discount and transaction fees only add up to $20, then you will have to pay the $5 difference to reach the agreed upon $25 minimum. Therefore if you didn't sell anything at all for the month, you would have to pay the whole $25 as per the contract. Needless to say, a discount merchant account provider should have a low monthly minimum fee or even choose to waive it.

A return occurs when a customer who has already paid for their purchase by credit card wants to return the goods. This means the transaction will be reversed on their monthly credit card statement and the money will appear as a credit. Most merchant account providers will charge you a return fee and a transaction fee when this happens.