Table of Contents
Register your Neon Pay Organization
Summary
To process charges with Neon Pay, your organization needs three things: a Neon One app, a Neon Pay organization, and a Neon Pay merchant account. Once you have a Neon Pay merchant, you will need to enable it as a gateway in your Neon One app. For CRM, NGD, and Fundraise, your first Neon Pay merchant will automatically be equipped as your gateway once it is Verified. For Arts People, you should connect with your AP Implementation Specialist to equip your new Neon Pay gateway.
CRM Organizations
While your first Neon Pay merchant will automatically be equipped as your payment gateway, you will still need to create a Donation Form and connect the form to your website. If you already have a Donation Form, you're all set! If not, you can follow these instructions:
Neon One Academy
We highly recommend registering for the Neon One Academy Neon Pay courses! If you need assistance completing Neon Pay signup, you can follow the walkthrough provided in Introduction to Neon Pay.
Once you complete Neon Pay signup, the rest of the Neon Pay Academy courses will help orient you to Neon Pay. You can access the Neon Pay courses here: Neon One Academy: Neon Pay
Register your Neon Pay Organization
Your Neon Pay organization allows you to login to Neon Pay, access Neon Pay reports, refund charges, and act on disputes. The email provided on the registration form will automatically be added as the only Neon Pay admin. If additional users need access to Neon Pay, then the user who registers will need to add them as Neon Pay users, instructions for which are in this article: Neon Pay Access and User Management
Reaching the Form
Reaching the registration form varies depending on your Neon One app.
Neon CRM
Neon CRM customers can sign up for Neon Pay directly from CRM. This link will initiate a brief survey that helps us tailor your Neon Pay experience based on your needs.
Once submitted, the Neon One team will review your survey responses and follow up to complete your Neon Pay setup. Afterward, you can continue with the registration.
Note: If you have recently talked to a Neon One team member about your payment processing needs and have already selected Neon Pay as your payment processor, you will be able to skip the survey and continue immediately with registration.
Neon Giving Days
NGD users will receive a customized signup link from their Project Manager.
Fundraise
Neon Fundraise users can reach the registration form from Fundraise. After creating the merchant, there may be additional work needed. Refer to How to Configure Neon Pay in Neon Fundraise for more information.
Arts People
AP users will receive a customized signup link from their implementation agent.
Form
The registration form is where you will name your Neon Pay organization and create the first Neon Pay admin user. The email supplied here will be the only initial Neon Pay user.
After completing this form, you will be asked to set up 2-step authentication, which is required for all Neon Pay users. Be sure to save your back up codes.
Add Additional Pay Users
Every user who needs to login to Neon Pay will need to be added as a Neon Pay user. Having access to another Neon One app does not extend access to Neon Pay.
We recommend immediately adding additional users before proceeding. This will ensure that if another user needs to access or create the Neon Pay merchant account, they can do so right away. To add Neon Pay users, you can follow the instructions at Neon Pay Access and User Management.
Create a Merchant Account
After adding additional users, you can start working on the merchant application. Follow the set up button from the Dashboard to reach the application.
Add a New Merchant Account
If this is not your first merchant account, you can create additional merchant accounts via the button on the Merchants tab.
After clicking either button, you'll be prompted to indicate your billing country. Select your country and proceed. If you are based in the United States and will be processing USD charges and payouts, select United States. If you are based in Canada and will be processing CAD charges and payouts, select Canada.
United States and Canada-Based Merchant Accounts
**Please note: Some of these steps will not apply to Canada Merchant Accounts. See additional notes throughout this process for more information.
Basic Information
The first step is to name your merchant account and select your application. The name supplied here is how this merchant account will appear in Neon One and is not visible to your constituents. The application should match which Neon One application this merchant will process charges for. Application cannot be changed once the merchant is created, and a merchant account cannot be used for more than one application.
Organization Information
**Please note: This step does not apply to Canada Merchant Accounts. Navigate to the next step.
This three-part step is where you provide more information about your organization.
- Part One: organization name, type, tax ID (EIN), date established, phone number, email address, and website
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- The organization name defaults to your Pay Org name; please verify that it matches the legal name on your IRS documentation.
- If your nonprofit status is still pending with the IRS, please select a different organization type.
- We verify Tax IDs as they are added. If you see an error that your Tax ID could not be immediately verified, you can still submit your merchant application. The Support team may reach out for additional documentation.
- A phone number and email address are necessary for onboarding, but all communication will be directed to Neon Pay admins, not the phone number and email address listed here. The phone number is passed to constituents' bank accounts and may be provided on their statements.
- Part Two: physical address
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- Only physical addresses are accepted, no PO boxes
- Part Three: billing descriptor
- The billing descriptor is how your charges will appear on your constituents' statements. This should be recognizable as your organization.
Account Signer
**Please note: This step does not apply to Canada Merchant Accounts. Navigate to the next step.
This two-part step is where you provide information about your account signer. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) regulations require the first and last name, date of birth, personal home address, and Social Security Number (SSN) of a controlling member or executive. This Account Signer can be a president, vice-president, treasurer, secretary, or board member; it must be someone in your organization who has the authority to make payment processing decisions on behalf of the organization.
- Part One: name, job title, date of birth, phone number, email address, percent of ownership, and social security number
- If your organization is a nonprofit, the percent of ownership should be 0%
- Part Two: Account Signer's address
- Only physical addresses are accepted, no PO boxes
Bank Details
This step is where you connect your bank account and set your payout schedule. Payouts and debits generated from charges, refunds, and disputes will be sent to this bank account. If this is not your first merchant account, you will already have a bank account that you can select here.
Only weekly and monthly payout schedules are available during signup. If you would like daily payouts, please reach out to the Pay support team after you create your merchant account.
**Please note: The routing number for Canadian merchants will be your 5 digit transit number combined with your 3 digit institution number.
In the future, if you want to direct your payouts to a new bank account, you can change the bank account rather than making a new merchant. You can find instructions to change the bank account on an existing merchant here: Update Linked Bank Account
PCI Compliance
Neon One partners with VikingCloud to offer a free PCI Compliance program to help keep your organization secure and protected. You can read more about this program here: Neon One's PCI Compliance Program
You can enroll in this free program now, or you can enroll later from Neon One Portal.
Review Terms of Service
Finally, read through and agree to the Terms of Service. Create your merchant account to send it off for approval.
Stripe Application (Canada Only)
**Please note: This step does not apply to US Merchant Accounts. Navigate to the next step.
Although the merchant account has been created via Neon Pay, you will now complete the process by registering through Stripe. Neon Pay partners with Stripe for secure financial services. Select Continue to Stripe.
Complete the requested information. When you have completed this form, select Submit.
You will be redirected to your Neon Pay account.
Note: Neon Pay admins will have access to the Stripe section within your Neon Pay Dashboard. No additional login information is required to access this feature.
Non-United States/Canada Based Merchant Accounts
At this time, Neon Pay only supports US and Canada based merchant accounts. This does not include US territories.
Next Steps
Congrats! You have submitted a new merchant account application. You will be notified via email once your merchant has reached the Verified status, at which time you'll be ready to process payments. Refer to the application sections above for any final steps needed within the Neon One apps.
If you are notified about problems regarding your merchant application, please see the Resolving Issues During Neon Pay Onboarding Guide.
Merchant Account Onboarding FAQ
I don’t have access to some of the required information on the Merchant Account application. What should I do?
You will need to fill out all required fields on the Merchant Account application for your account to be configured. If you are unsure about what information to enter in a certain field, please contact Support to request further assistance.
Our Doing Business As name is not our legal Organization Name. Where should I enter our DBA name?
Enter your legal organization name as registered with the IRS in the Organization Name field, and your Doing Business As name in the Billing Descriptor field. This name will appear on your constituents’ bank and credit card statements.
My organization’s mailing address is a PO Box and we do not have a physical address. What should I enter as my Organization Address?
If your organization only uses a PO Box, you can enter the home address of the Account Signer, or home address of another organization executive. This address will not be published or printed, nor will any mail be sent to the address.
Why does Neon Pay require a Social Security Number?
Neon Pay’s processing bank requires the Account Signer’s Social Security Number, date of birth, and first and last name for United States merchants in order to comply with government FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) regulations, and to satisfy the KYC (Know Your Customer) requirements of all financial institutions.
Can I change my linked bank account at a later time?
Yes. Navigate to the Merchant Accounts menu item and select the merchant account you'd like to update. Click the pencil icon to update your bank account information.
Can I change my billing descriptor at a later time?
Yes.
United States merchants: please reach out to our Support team to request a billing descriptor change.
Canadian merchants: you can edit your billing descriptor by clicking Edit with Stripe on the merchant detail page.
My EIN says unverified. Can I still submit my merchant application?
Yes. We automatically check EINs during the application process, and sometimes the automatic check can't verify an EIN. You can still submit the application, but we might follow up for more information.
My account status is Not Ready. What does this mean?
United States merchants: your application has not yet been processed but has been received.
Canadian merchants: you exited out of the merchant application prematurely. Please click Edit with Stripe on the merchant detail page to complete your application.
My account status is Manual. What does this mean?
Your application has been received and is being held for manual review by our processor’s underwriting team. Manual review can take between 1 to 5 business days to complete. You may be contacted by our Support team to provide additional documentation. Please see the Resolving Issues During Neon Pay Onboarding Guide for more information.
How will I know when I can process with Neon Pay?
All Neon Pay admins will receive an email notification when your merchant account enters Verified status. In most cases, your app will be ready to process payments as soon as your merchant account is Verified. To confirm your Neon Pay account is connected to your application properly, refer to the specific application sections above.
If you are an existing Neon CRM customer migrating to Neon Pay, please reach out to your Client Account Specialist or our Support team for a timeline and checklist of remaining tasks needed to be accomplished.
Can I cancel at any time?
Yes. Deactivate Neon Pay in your Neon One application to stop sending over new charges. Contact your Application’s Technical Support as well to let us know. Existing charges can be disputed several months afterward, so the Merchant Account will remain accessible for limited activities. The Neon Pay team will deactivate your Neon Pay account so that no new charges can be submitted, and any remaining balance will be paid out. It is imperative to notify your application's Technical Support team if you deactivate Neon Pay in order to halt any relevant fees and charges.
What if my merchant account signer information changes?
The Account Signer information is used for verification at the time of onboarding/adding a new merchant account. Per the image below, the First Name, Last Name, Date of Birth, and SSN fields of the signer cannot be updated once a merchant account has been verified by the processing bank. If you need to change or update the signer information, you must create a new merchant account following the established application process, as explained above.