Understanding Transaction and Settlement Timelines

Payment Cutoff Times

A payment cutoff time is the designated deadline established by a bank or financial institution by which a payment must be initiated to qualify for same-day processing. Payments submitted after this deadline will be processed on the next business day. This cutoff time represents the latest possible moment a payment can be made to ensure it is posted for the current day.

PayNearMe's payment cutoff times depend on the payment method and transaction type. Once the payment cutoff time for that day passes, all the payments made that day are batched together and begin the settlement process.

Cash Transaction Timelines

The following table provides the cutoff times for cash transactions at the following retailers. Cash payments cannot be canceled or refunded in the PayNearMe platform once the payment has been confirmed via the Confirmation Callback. Clients will need to make their own arrangements when refunding payments made with cash (e.g., cut a check to the consumer or apply a statement credit to the consumer's bill).

Payment MethodTransaction TypePayment Cutoff Time (in PST)
CashPurchases at the following retailers:
  • 7-Eleven
  • Ace Cash Express
  • Albertsons
  • Casey's
  • CVS
  • Kroger
  • Walgreens
  • Walmart
11:59 PM
CashPurchases at the following retailers:
  • Dollar General
  • Family Dollar
9:00 PM

ACH Transaction Timelines

ACH transactions are processed five times a day at 10:00AM, 1:30PM, 6:30PM, 7:30PM, and 10:30PM PST cycles.

Payment MethodTransaction TypePayment Cutoff Time (in PST)
Same-Day ACHPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements10:00 AM
Next-Day ACH (Cycle 1)Purchases, Refunds, Disbursements1:30 PM
Next-Day ACH (Cycle 2)Purchases, Refunds, Disbursements6:30 PM
Next-Day ACH (Cycle 3)Purchases, Refunds, Disbursements7:30 PM
Next-Day ACH (Cycle 4)Purchases, Refunds, Disbursements10:30 PM

Canceling ACH Payments

ACH payments can be canceled up to their payment cutoff time. For example:

  • A payment made today at 9:00AM PST can be canceled until 10:00AM PST.
  • A payment made at 10:01AM PST can be canceled until 1:30PM PST.
  • A payment made today at 3:00 PM can be canceled until 6:30PM PST.
  • A payment made today at 10:31PM PST can be canceled until tomorrow at 10:00AM PST.

Future-dated ACH payments and autopay schedules using ACH are processed with the same-day ACH transactions at 10:05AM PST on the day of the scheduled payment. However, autopay schedules using ACH must be canceled or the next payment skipped (if applicable) prior to 12:00AM PST when the autopay transactions for that day are staged for processing.

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Can I Cancel a Cancel?

Once you make a cancelation or refund request, you cannot cancel it. The consumer will need to make another equivalent payment.

Refunding ACH Payments

ACH Transactions in the "Complete" status that are outside the cancellation window can be refunded. PayNearMe supports both full- and partial-amount one-time refunds for all electronic transactions. Refunds can be processed through the Business Portal or via API, depending on your configuration.

All electronic payments (i.e., ACH, card, or mobile wallet) can be refunded any time after the payment cutoff time for a configurable number of days for your site. The refund timeframe can be between 1-120 banking days with the default timeframe being 90 banking days. Once you've initiated the refund request, the funds can take over five banking days to be returned back to the consumer's bank account, depending on their bank's funding cycles and non-banking days (such as holidays and weekends) that occur within that timeframe. If the consumer initiates a return against the original transaction during that timeframe, PayNearMe will not run the refund request since the original payment is being unsettled and returned to the consumer.

Credit/Debit Card Transaction Timelines

The cutoff time for debit and credit card payments depends on the card network. The following chart provides card network-specific cutoff times.

Card NetworkTransaction TypePayment Cutoff Time (in PST)
AccelPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements1:00 PM
MastercardPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements9:00 PM
NYCEPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements1:30 PM
PULSEPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements10:00 PM
STARPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements3:00 PM
VisaPurchases, Refunds9:00 PM
Visa PushDisbursements3:00 PM
DefaultPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements9:00 PM

Canceling Card Payments

Debit and credit card payments can be canceled up to five minutes before their cutoff time. PayNearMe has a five-minute pre-cutoff buffer for data propagation as the platform begins batching and submitting transaction data from the previous day's cutoff time. For example:

  • If the cutoff is 1:00PM and the consumer made the payment after 1:00PM that day, then it can be canceled until 12:55PM the next day.
  • If the cutoff is at 1:00PM and the consumer made the payment at 12:45PM, then the consumer would have only 10 minutes to cancel.

The following chart displays the cancellation cutoff times for card payments according to card network.

Card NetworkCancelation Cutoff Time (in PST)
Accel12:55 PM
Mastercard8:55 PM
NYCE1:25 PM
PULSE9:55 PM
STAR2:55 PM
Visa8:55 PM
Visa Push*N/A
Default8:55 PM

*Disbursements made via the Visa Push card network cannot be canceled or refunded.

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Can I Cancel a Cancel?

Once you make a cancelation or refund request, you cannot cancel it. The consumer will need to make another equivalent payment.

Future-dated card payments and autopay schedules using a credit or debit card are processed at the default time of 7:00AM PST on the day of the scheduled payment. This time can be changed to accommodate clients in different time zones. Autopay schedules using credit or debit cards must be canceled or the next payment skipped (if applicable) prior to 12:00AM PST when the autopay transactions for that day are staged for processing.

Refunding Card Payments

Card transactions in the "Complete" status that are outside the cancellation window can be refunded. PayNearMe supports both full- and partial-amount, one-time refunds for all electronic transactions. Refunds can be processed through the Business Portal or via API, depending on your configuration.

Card payments can be refunded any time after the payment cutoff time for a configurable number of days for your site. The refund timeframe can be between 1-120 banking days with the default timeframe being 90 banking days. Once you've initiated the refund request, the funds can take 1-5 banking days to be returned back to the consumer's credit/debit card.

Mobile Wallet Transaction Timelines

Payment MethodTransaction TypePayment Cutoff Time (in PST)
CashAppPurchases, Refunds4:00 PM
PayPal, VenmoPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements6:45 PM
VenmoPurchases, Refunds, Disbursements6:45 PM

Refunding Wallet Payments

Wallet payments cannot be canceled/voided and must be refunded. Funds can be refunded 30 minutes (real time) after the transaction completes. Refunds can be processed through the Business Portal or via API, depending on your configuration.

All wallet payments can be fully or partially refunded for a configurable number of days for your site. The refund timeframe can be between 1-120 banking days with the default timeframe being 90 banking days. Once you've initiated the refund request, the funds can take 1-5 banking days to be returned back to the consumer's mobile wallet account.

Settlement Timelines

Transaction settlement is the process through which a financial transaction is finalized, ensuring that funds are properly transferred between parties. In a payment system, settlement occurs when the acquiring bank (or payment processor) successfully transfers funds from the consumer's issuing bank to the client's account. This process involves verifying the validity of the transaction, deducting the required amount from the payer’s account, and crediting it to the recipient. Depending on the payment method and financial institution involved, settlements can be immediate, occur within a few hours, or take several business days. Settlement also includes any necessary adjustments, such as refunds, chargebacks, or disputes that might arise post-transaction. The method of settlement may vary based on whether the transaction involves credit/debit cards, ACH transfers, or digital wallets​.

PayNearMe supports settlement via wire transfer or ACH push. For cash transactions, settlement depends on your desired method of settlement (wire or ACH) and desired cutoff time: 7:00PM PST or 12:00AM PST. For electronic transactions, PayNearMe's preferred settlement funding model is three days, which allows time for refund and retry requests to process. A next-day settlement funding model is also supported. The charts below provide an overview of these settlement timelines. Click each chart to enlarge it.

Settlement Funding Models for Electronic Payments

Default Settlement Funding Model

Next-Day Settlement Funding Model

Settlement Funding Models for Cash Payments

Day 2 Settlement Funding Model

Day 3 Settlement Funding Model