📝 Overview

GoCardless is a direct bank integration-only payment provider, which enhances the functionality of our current credit card payment provider like Stripe or CardConnect. This combination allows for a comprehensive and seamless payment processing experience with no set-up fees!

🌍 Country Support

Transaction Rates: Click here to view the current Transaction Rates.

⭐ Features

Stop chasing paper checks
Reduced card fees
Bank debit collections through payment schedules
Employees can set bank information on customer profile
Allows customers to pay with their bank account

🛠️ Setup GoCardless

Please follow these steps to set up your account correctly.

Click the arrow to learn how to set up GoCardless

Setup GoCardless Account
Email [email protected] to have them send you a setup link. When your GoCardless provider account is being set-up, you can choose to configure a specific $ amount to allow users to use bank information on all transactions above that amount.
Once the account is set up, please finish the below steps.
- Add GoCardless Locator ID To Your Bank
  If you have restrictions on your bank account regarding who can debit and credit, please add the following locator ID: GC Inc. - 7891460966
- Request Referenced Refunds
  To be able to process refunds for GoCardless transactions, you will need to submit a request for refund access. -- Submit Request

⚙️ How It Works

There are a few different places where bank details can be stored or added in the system:

🧑‍💼 Admin Side: Customer Profile Page

Click the arrow to see GoCardless details on a customer profile

On the profile page, Users will be able to begin the process of setting up the customer's bank info through the Add Payment Information section at the bottom of the customer's profile.
For Payment Method, select ACH. There are two options. The staff member can choose to enter in the bank information manually or they can type in the customer's email, and click the button to "Send setup email".
⚠️ Important Note: If you do not see a window that displays something like below where it prompts to send an email, there is an issue with the GoCardless integration.
If you choose to have the customer set up their account through the GoCardless Integration, once you have pressed the "Send setup email" button, the customer will receive an email prompting them to setup their account through GoCardless.
From here, they will be directed to fill out a secure ACH authorization form to allow the debit transaction to occur between GoCardless and the facility. This includes providing their name, email, phone and bank details. Once this has been filled out and the agreement has been signed, the customer profile page will automatically be updated with the customer's bank details.

🧑‍💻 Customer Portal Side: Checkout Screen

Click the arrow to see GoCardless details in the Customer Portal

On the Customer Portal, we have added a couple different places for customers to add their bank details to use for recurring payments. On the Billing Tab, we have added another option to "Add Bank". Please note that this option is only available unless a prior card has been saved to the account first.
The customer will then see a Debit Authorization form to fill out.

🧾 How It Looks - Checking out

🧑‍💼Admin Side: Checkout Screen

Click the arrow to see GoCardless on the checkout screen

Once the product, the customer will be paying for, has been added to the shopping cart and the customer has been attached to the cart, press the "Checkout" button. In the payment options, there is a new option if the customer has correctly stored their bank's details. You will see "Bank".
After clicking on "Bank" you will be able to press the "Bill to Bank" option. The invoice payment will have a Transaction ID that starts with "PM".

🧑‍💻 Customer Portal Side: Checkout Screen

Click the arrow to see GoCardless during checkout

Customers can choose to add and pay with their bank account on the Customer Portal side as well.

🏦 ACH States of Approval

⏳ Pending

Click the arrow to learn what a Pending status means

Once a transaction is processed, the invoice will display a "pending" status.

✅ Accepted

Click the arrow to learn what an Accepted status means

Unlike CC payments, ACH payments process differently. They will take 2-3 business days to settle and add the funds to your account. There is an automatic process that happens every night checking the settlement status of every “pending” ACH transaction. If the settlement is “Accepted” then the payment status will change to “Accepted” and reflect as such on the invoice.

❌ Rejected

Click the arrow to learn what a Rejected status means

If a settlement is “Rejected”, then the payment will reflect as such, and add a reverse payment, to the invoice, indicating that the funds are still due. An email will also be sent to the facility email address set in the Company Settings section with a list of transactions that have failed.

Here is an example of an email sent to the facility email on file regarding rejected ACH transactions:

🔄 Reconciling

📊 Daily Sales Report

Click the arrow to see GoCardless transactions on the Daily Sales Report

To view the status of any ACH that has been initiated, select the Payment Type "ACH" and the date range. This will display pending, accepted, rejected and voided ACH states of approval.

🚫 Voids/Refunds

There are two ways to handle ACH payments that need to be reversed. A void cancels a payment before it settles; a refund returns money on a payment that has already been accepted and paid out. Each has different timing windows and requirements.

⛔️ Void

Click the arrow to learn when a void is used

You can void a payment any time it shows "Pending submission" status. Once the payment status changes to "Submitted," it can no longer be cancelled and you will need to process a refund instead.

The length of time a payment stays in "Pending submission" varies based on the Direct Debit scheme being used. For example, some schemes may submit within hours of creation, while others may allow 1-4 business days. For exact timings specific to your payment scheme, refer to GoCardless's Payment Timings Comparison Chart.

Once the transaction has been voided, the invoice will be unpaid again.

🔁 Refund

Click the arrow to learn when a refund is used

A refund is used to return money to a customer for a payment that has already been accepted and paid out. Follow these steps to process a refund:

If refunding an invoice, the same items that the ACH originally paid for should be reversed and added to the cart.
In the case of a booking invoice, a negative payment should be added to the "Add Payment" section of the invoice.
When clicking "Checkout" and navigating to the cart, click the ACH tab for payment type.
On this tab, there is a dropdown select box asking you to choose a previous payment on the invoice to reference. The total refund amount must match the amount of the transaction you select.
Click "Bill to ACH".
The transaction will process the same as regular ACH transactions, and will take 2-3 business days to completely settle.

⚠️ Important Note: 7-Day Safety Window

GoCardless enforces a 7-day safety window by default before you can process a refund on an accepted payment. This protects you from a specific scenario: if a payment initially appears successful but fails several days later during settlement, and you've already refunded the customer, they would receive double payment (refund + reversal of the failed original). GoCardless would then recoup the loss from your next payout.

If your business requires processing refunds sooner and you accept this risk, you can request to disable the 7-day window. To do so, email [email protected] with confirmation that you acknowledge the risks. GoCardless support will disable it for your account upon verification.

⚠️ Limitations & Key Points with ACH Refunds

You must have the Refunds & Reversals authorization assigned to the User role.
Partial refunds are not supported. The amount being refunded must be the exact same amount as the original payment.
It is recommended that ACH refunds only be attempted for payments on 1 invoice at a time. It is currently not supported to process more than 1 ACH refund at a time.

💡 Want to learn more about GoCardless? Check out their vast knowledge base to soak it all in.

💡 Pro Tips

⚠️ Check customer details - Make sure bank account and customer info are accurate before submitting ACH payments.
🧠 Set expectations early - ACH payments take longer to process than card payments and may remain pending for several days.
📌 Watch approval statuses - Use Pending, Accepted, and Rejected statuses to track payment progress and take action quickly.
🔄 Avoid duplicate payments - Confirm a payment’s status before retrying to prevent multiple ACH submissions.
📊 Review reports regularly - Use the Daily Sales Report to confirm GoCardless payments have fully reconciled.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Find answers to common questions or additional details that may not be covered in the main instructions.