A real-time payment is a simple card payment and is used by our systems as the default option. There are two stages to every payment: authorisation and settlement.

Authorisation

This is obtained from the bank in real-time as soon as the card details have been submitted to Protx. This usually takes about 2-3 seconds. Once a transaction has been authorised, the customer’s card is ‘shadowed’ so that for a certain period of time, those funds are reserved for that one transaction and cannot be spent elsewhere. It is important to note that this is not a guarantee against fraud.

Settlement

In order for the funds to land in your bank account, Protx sends a batch settlement file to your merchant bank on a daily basis. This includes all authorisation codes obtained over the last 24 hours. It then takes the bank 3 to 4 days to pay this money into your account, depending on the agreement you have with your bank.

If you wish to process payments in real-time but delay settlement, you can use our deferred payment method.

With deferred payment, we will not release the transaction for settlement until you tell us to do so. This gives you a period of time in which to review the order, view the fraud screening results, or receive more goods in stock. Once you are ready to ship the goods, you can then ‘release’ the transaction for settlement. You can ‘release’ for any amount up to or including the full value of the initial transaction.

The authorisation ‘shadow’ will usually remain active for 10 days, but can last anything between 5 to 30 days depending on the type of card used. We recommend that you release transactions within 6 days to guarantee settlement.

Read further information about the deferred payment method.

If you wish to delay settlement of your transactions for more than 6 days, or you do not know the exact price of the order at the time it is placed, you should use our payment method Authenticate and Authorise.

With this payment method, the card details are authenticated under the 3D Secure scheme at the time the order is placed, but no authorisation request is sent until you are ready to collect the funds. If 3D Secure is unavailable (for example you are a VSP Terminal user, or you are processing an American Express, Diners or JCB card), the transaction details cannot be authenticated but will be registered and stored by Protx until authorisation is requested. When you are ready to ship the goods, you send an authorisation request through VSP Admin (or from your web server) and the transaction will be sent for settlement overnight as normal.

With Authenticate and Authorise, you have up to 90 days to fulfil the order (except for with international Maestro cards where the authentication is only valid for up to 30 days). You can authorise the transaction for any amount up to 115% of the value of the authentication, with no lower limit (or up to 100% of the transaction with international Maestro cards).

Read further details on the Authenticate and Authorise transaction process.

If you wish to occasionally repeat a payment, for example if a customer places another order or decides to extend an existing order, you can use the repeat payment method.

You can make repeat payments either through your web server or through the reporting screen in VSP Admin where you can repeat against any previous payment without needing the credit card details of your customer. All you will need is the original unique transaction code supplied to you by Protx.

Read further information on how to process Repeat payments.

If you wish to process recurring, regular or subscription payments you will need to obtain a Continuous Authority merchant number from NatWest Streamline, HSBC, Lloyds TSB Cardnet, Bank of Scotland or Barclays Merchant Services.

Read further information on recurring payments and continuous authority payments.

You can refund any amount up to, but not exceeding, the original amount of the transaction through the reporting screen in VSP Admin.

Read further information on performing a refund.