Hi
We are looking for our own internet merchant account. We have used Paysystems and 2checkout but they are not giving us more flexibility.

Our main requirement is a Virtual terminal.

Our company is incorporated in US. And I own 100% of company ownership, but my main problem is most of the US payment companies asking SSN (I don’t have it coz I am Not US) .
Is there any providers who can accept us our business (web hosting) ? Or is there any alternative solution for getting merchant account. I have checked the offshore solutions but they will cost more than $1000 of $$?

Why don't you use Authorize.net or Worldpay?
Cdgcommerce also has a good offer.

Sorry dude not meant to offense you, but your grammar (or the punctuation...) is really horrible in average american...

Yeah I just love it when people want to do business all over the world, but can hardly use the English language. ;)

And no, my spelling/grammar is not perfect either, but I do get the point across.

Originally posted by ozzie123
Why don't you use Authorize.net or Worldpay?
Cdgcommerce also has a good offer.

Sorry dude not meant to offense you, but your grammar (or the punctuation...) is really horrible in average american...

What do you mean ? am not an American what so ever. And talking about your suggestions WP dont have VT Authorize.net is only a Gateway FYI.

I have to tell you the same thing , Sorry dude not meant to offense you, But pls do read the Title or the subject.

You can get a virtual terminal with worldpay - its called world access.
I know because I have it :)

Taken from their site :-
WorldAccess is WorldPay's online terminal. Take payments by phone, fax or mail, then use its easy to use online interface to process those payments via WorldPay

Yeah but its for Take payments by phone, fax or mail. :rolleyes:

And also they are not offering it for any US based business.

123x, I don't mean to offense you neither, but I think I should re-phase your message so that other WHT members can understand it more easily:

Hi
We are trying to get our own merchant account for our internet business. We have been using the credit cards processing services provided by Paysystems and 2Checkout. However, by using their services, we cannot reach the same flexibility level as if we have our own virtual terminal for cards processing.

My web hosting company is fully registered in US. I would like to know if there are any merchant account service providers be happy to consider our application.

Besides, it would be great if someone can provide us information on any alternative solutions for getting a merchant account. I have checked with some off-shore solutions but guess what... their service fees worth more than a thousand dollars.


I wish someone can help you out soon. Good Luck

What nationality are you? this may help people suggest a merchant account provider to you.

If you have a U.S. company entity and a U.S. bank account, you can definitely get a U.S. merchant account with some companies.

With respect to the lack of an SSN/EIN number, that can be handled by having the bank take a small upfront or rolling reserve on your account to cover potential chargeback losses.

The thing that blocks most international merchants from getting a U.S. merchant account is that they are not able / not willing to setup a U.S. corp and U.S. bank account.

You've done the "hard part" so you do have some options.

We have both U.S. company and U.S. bank account But who accept? We have around $10000 monthly transaction volume and $100 average tickets

hmm... you're saying you have both US registered company and US Bank Account but no one willing to accept your application for getting a merchant account? It sounds wired to me, be frank. You say you have 10k monthly transaction and "$100 average tickets" (though I dont really understand what do you mean by that)...

You mean your web hosting business is bringing you 10k monthly transaction and "$100 average tickets"? Or that 10K monthly transaction actually comes from other sources of income?

I smell something is getting complicated here...

"Average Ticket" is the average transaction that you process. The 19K would be the total monthly average(say, over a 12 month period) or it may be just for this month...

Thanks, Sheps. I got what you mean now. Still... it sounds wired to me. It's just my personal feeling.

Nothing wierd about it, really. Most U.S. merchant processors do not accept foreign merchants unless they have a SSN#. The reason is simple: the creditworthiness of a small business is based primarily upon the creditworthiness of the principals, in the perspective of banks.

And if you can't check someone's credit because you don't have their SSN, you can't assess the risk on the account or its creditworthiness. Therein lies the dilemna faced by U.S. banks.

That being said, some U.S. banks -will- approve foreign merchants if they have a U.S. bank account and corporation, by using upfront and rolling security reserves to try to offset and cover potential losses due to chargebacks, etc.

cdgcommerce, thanks for you comments.

what makes me feel wired:
he said his monthly transaction is $10,000 with every ticket of $100 and he also mentioned he has been using both 2Checkout/ PaySystem...

Let's do a bit calculation:
assume both 2CO and PS have same discount rate of 5.5% and transaction fee of $0.45

For a year roundup, $120,000 x 5.5% + 1200 x $0.45, you will get his yearly CC processing fee thru 2CO and PP be $7,140.

Unless what he mentioned about off-shore solution - "I have checked the offshore solutions but they will cost more than $1000 of $$?", in which the $1k refers to monthly expense, otherwise I dont see why he sounds like the off-shore solutions are really that expensive when he is paying like $7k yearly in 2CO/PS....

Of course, I may overlook some details and that's why I still feel wired. Please forgive me if I confused you.

now at the movement I don’t care about the upfront and rolling security reserves ( Ready to go with upfront and rolling security reserves)

I want account as soon as possible