Virtual Terminal FAQ
Description
What's in this article?
Getting Started
- What is the Virtual Terminal?
Accessed through your Merchant Services account in Business Advantage 360 online banking, Virtual Terminal allows you to accept payments through manual entry without requiring point of sale hardware like a card reader or terminal.
- How do you set up Virtual Terminal?
Virtual terminal is automatically set up and is accessible for all clients through their Business Advantage 360 online banking Merchant Services account. Users that are entitled to access Virtual Terminal can find the module in the left navigation bar in Merchant Services. See Merchant Services Online Banking Access and User Management to learn more about available roles and entitlements for Merchant Services.
- When should I use Virtual Terminal?
If you use a card present solution such as the Basic Payments Solution or a point of sale solution as your primary form of transaction processing, the Virtual Terminal can be used as a backup solution when your primary solution is not available and/or for processing international card not present transactions.
If you are using Virtual Terminal Solution as your main point of sale system, Virtual Terminal will be your only transaction processing option. If you would like to add additional processing options to your account, please call 855.225.9303 to explore available options.
- Can Virtual Terminal be accessed outside of the United States?
Yes. Virtual Terminal is accessed through your Merchant Services account in Business Advantage 360 Online Banking, and you have to be domiciled in the United States to enroll. You can access virtual terminal anywhere in the world except in sanctioned countries where the IP address is blocked.
NOTE:
Bank of America only processes transactions in USD. You would not be able to charge a customer in their native currency.
Payment Methods
- Does Virtual Terminal support accepting echecks or ACH?
No. Virtual Terminal does not support check acceptance.
- Are debit cards supported?
Debit cards are only supported if they can be manually entered. Cards that do not have a major card brand logo cannot be accepted (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover). Cards that require PIN entry cannot be accepted.
- Are Level II data elements supported for corporate, commercial and purchasing cards?
Yes, Level II data elements are supported. Virtual Terminal will not notify you that a card is Level II so you will need to recognize when additional data is required or enter the additional data on all transactions to ensure Level II qualification for your transaction.
- Are Level III data elements supported for corporate, commercial and purchasing cards?
Level III data is not supported.
- Are gift cards supported?
Closed loop (store branded) gift cards are not currently supported. However, open loop (Visa/Mastercard gift cards) are supported.
Transaction Management
- How are card present transactions supported on Virtual Terminal?
All transactions processing through Virtual Terminal are manually keyed, but you can indicate whether the transaction is card present or card not present. See Virtual Terminal Transactions for more information on how to perform a sale.
- What kind of transaction receipts are supported?
Virtual Terminal supports printed receipts if you have a printer connected to your computer or have a network printer available. Virtual Terminal also supports email receipts when the cardholder’s email address is entered as part of the transaction processing.
If you need to update your receipt information, contact us for assistance.
- Can transactions be voided?
Yes. Transaction voids are done in the Transactions module within your Merchant Services account in online banking. Voids can be done until the transaction has been pulled in by the host for settlement. Once a transaction has been pulled in by the host for settlement, process as a refund instead.
- Can transactions be refunded?
Yes. Transaction refunds are done in the Transactions module within your Merchant Services account in online banking. Refunds are done after a void is no longer allowed. Refunds for either the full or a partial amount of the transaction can be performed on transactions that were originally processed in Virtual Terminal. Refunds that are not associated with prior transactions require assistance from the Helpdesk.
NOTE
Refunds for more than the original transaction amount are not allowed.
- Can I cancel an authorization?
If a Virtual Terminal transaction is authorized (ran as authorization only not a sale), but later it is determined that the transaction needs to be cancelled, the authorization would need to be reversed. This must be done in order to avoid authorization misuse fees from the card networks.
- Why did I receive the message “Warning: Transaction Declined (merchant_descriptor_contact)?”
An error in data entry may cause the transaction to decline. This decline is not the same as a credit card decline, but the result of entering the Merchant Contact Number incorrectly. When using the optional Merchant Contact Number field for a transaction, enter only the 10-digit phone number. Do not enter a 1 or any non-digit characters, such as a plus sign (+), dash (-) or a period (.).
- Why are email address and order reference number required fields for card not Present Virtual Terminal transactions?
When card not present, the email address for the customer is required in order to deliver a receipt. Order Reference Number improves interchange rates.
- Is the customer address or billing address always required to run a Virtual Terminal transaction?
Yes, it is a required field.
- What is the maximum transaction amount?
Virtual Terminal allows entry of 12 characters.
- Can I add a tip to a Virtual Terminal transaction?
Yes. Include the tip with the transaction amount. Adding tips separately or adjusting a tip after the transaction is not supported in Virtual Terminal.
- Can I authorize a transaction but not finalize it?
Yes. You can authorize a transaction and then finalize it later through the Transactions module in your Merchant Services account. Remember that a transaction will not settle and you will not be paid until you submit the transaction for settlement.
- Can I remove the requirement to enter a CVV code for a Virtual Terminal transaction?
No. A CVV code is required.
- How is sales tax captured in a Virtual Terminal transaction?
The tax amount should be entered in the tax field. The sale and tax will reflect in the total amount for the transaction. Virtual Terminal does not calculate sales tax.
- What is the timeframe to view transactions in Virtual Terminal?
When using the filters in the Transaction List you can go back 13 months.
- Are tokens stored in the Virtual Terminal?
No. Tokens are not stored in the Virtual Terminal. Tokens are created, stored and accessed using the Token Management Dashboard in Business Advantage 360 online banking.