Helcim Fee Saver

Zero-cost payment processing with Helcim Fee Saver!

What is Helcim Fee Saver?

Helcim Fee Saver simplifies complex card brand rules on surcharging and convenience fees for small businesses, allowing them to pass on processing fees to their customers or clients with ease. Eligible Helcim Merchants can enjoy zero-cost payment processing on credit or debit card payments. With Helcim Fee Saver, you can pass on a set fee to customers when they choose to pay with a card payment using select Helcim tools. This will appear as a "convenience fee" on the customer' invoices and receipts. 

Log in to enable Helcim Fee Saver

How does it work?

Enabling Helcim Fee Saver on Helcim invoices and HelcimPay.js gives your customers the option to pay a flat "convenience fee" if they choose to pay by credit or debit card. They still have the option of paying through an ACH transfer without the convenience fee by entering their banking details. 

What's in it for you?

Savings! If you customers or clients choose to pay using credit card or debit card, the entirety of the processing fees will be passed onto your customers in the form of a set fee. However, if your customers don't want to pay the fee and choose to pay with ACH payments, it will still be a win for you as our ACH processing costs are usually significantly lower than credit card processing fees and are also capped at $6 per transaction. 

With Fee Saver, Helcim takes care of navigating the complicated and extensive card brand rules so you don't have to. You can feel confident using Helcim Fee Saver knowing that Fee Saver aligns with card brand rules and regulations. However, if you have any concerns regarding those regulations, you should consult your legal advisor. 

Who is eligible for Helcim Fee Saver?

Currently Helcim Fee Saver is available for merchants who are able to process both card payments and ACH payments on Invoicing and HelcimPay.js. In order to pass on the processing fees to your customers, ACH payments will need to be enabled as the default payment method option for your customers. 

How to enable Helcim Fee Saver

There are two ways to enable Helcim Fee Saver.

1. If you're new to Helcim, you can enable this feature during the onboarding process immediately after completing your application

2. Or you can enable it from navigating to your settings:

To to that, click on 'All Tools'

Select 'Settings'.

Under 'Payments and Plans' , select 'Helcim Fee Saver Settings', where you can simply toggle it on a hit 'Save'

By enabling Helcim Fee Saver you are also allowing ACH to be toggled on and agreeing to our Fee Saver Terms of Service. 

Log in to enable Helcim Fee Saver

How to enable Helcim Fee Saver on a Helcim Invoice

With Helcim Fee Saver enabled, you can choose to pass on the processing fees on any individual invoice by toggling on the Helcim Fee Saver option when you send an Invoice.

1. Simply click on the 'Invoicing' tool from the 'All Tools' section, or from the left navigation bar if you have pinned 'Invoicing' as a shortcut. 

2. Select 'New Invoice'

3. In the invoice editor, input your product then ensure Helcim Fee Saver is toggled on. This can be turned off for any specific invoice. 

4. Once your invoice is ready to send, select 'Actions' then hit 'Send Pay Now Email'.

5. When your customer or client receives the invoice and clicks the 'Pay Now' button, a payment pop-up will appear. They will now have the option to pay a 'Convenience Fee' if they choose to pay via credit card. Should they want to skip paying the convenience fee, they can pay via ACH. 

Log in to enable Helcim Fee Saver

How to enable Fee Saver for HelcimPay.js

If you are integrating HelcimPay.js on your website, platform, or software, you can also enable Helcim Fee Saver as long as you are eligible to accept ACH payments and have that payment method enabled. To learn how to you Helcim Fee Saver with HelcimPay.js, head over to our DevDocs

Impact to your customers

Passing on credit card processing fees can be a sensitive subject for customers and this option may not be suitable for all businesses. It is entirely a merchant's decision to enable Helcim Fee Saver and determine the best way to communicate any additional fees to customers. We have included some guidance on navigating any potential questions from your customers below. 

Communicating with your customers

Though the mandatory notification of a "convenience fee" at the point of any transaction where Helcim Fee Saver is enabled is often sufficient communication for customers, they may have questions about why they are being charged this fee. 

Some customers may benefit from understanding that any credit card transaction incurs a cost to the business accepting the payment, and you are simply choosing to pass this fee on as a means of convenience to your customers to allow them to pay with a credit card. Please refer to some additional guidance below to help Navigate some of these questions.

• Customer: "Why am I being charged for paying by credit card?"
  • Suggested Explanation: "Because of the cost savings it allows for both our business and our customers/clients, ACH/EFT bank payments are our preferred method of payments. However, we do offer the option to pay by card payments for a flat convenience fee"
• Customer: "Why is the convenience fee a set percent?"
  • Suggested explanation: "Due to various regulatory considerations, this rate is predetermined and it's not something we have any control over. That is why we offer ACH bank payments as a free alternative"
• Customer: "What if I don't want to pay the fee?"
  • Suggested explanation: "If your preference is not to pay the convenience fee for using your credit card, we encourage you to pay through an ACH payment, which is free"

Helpful FAQs for our Merchants

Will my customers be aware of the extra fee?

If you have enabled Helcim Fee Saver, your customers will always be prompted about the additional fee when they click on the "Pay Now" button and select the option to pay by credit card. The fee will also be visible on their invoice and receipt as an individual line item as a "convenience fee"

What happens if I don't want to enable Helcim Fee Saver for a particular customer?

If you have Helcim Fee Saver enabled but don't wish to apply it for a particular customer or transaction, you can simply toggle Helcim Fee Saver off from inside the invoice editor before sending it to you customer.

What happens if I want to refund a transaction with Helcim Fee Saver?

If a customer requires a refund for a transaction where Helcim Fee Saver was enabled and they were charged a "convenience fee", you can process a refund using your Helcim transaction dashboard. The full amount, including the "convenience fee" will be refunded to the customer. 

What if a customer doesn't want to pay the "convenience fee?"

Enabling Helcim Fee Saver on a particular transaction does not mean the fee is mandatory. Customers can choose to pay with ACH payments which does not include a convenience fee. For merchants, there will be a cost associated with processing ACH payments but it is often significantly lower than credit cards at 0.5%+25c and capped at $6 per transaction,

Is Helcim Fee Saver applied before or after tax?

Helcim Fee saver is applied on the total transaction amount after taxes. For example, if your customer's invoice total was $95 before taxes and $100 after the taxes and the fee is 3%, it is applied to the $100 total making your customer's total $103.00 including tax and the convenience fee for paying with a credit card.