Terms of Service

Scope and parties

These Terms of Service ("Terms" or "Merchant Agreement") govern your use of payment processing services, point-of-sale hardware, gateway software, and related services (collectively, the "Services") provided by PayMullet ("PayMullet," "we," "us") to you (the "Merchant," "you"). By signing a Merchant Application, submitting an API request using PayMullet credentials, or accepting a card transaction through PayMullet, you agree to these Terms.

PayMullet is a registered payment facilitator and an Independent Sales Organization (ISO) of our sponsor bank, Cross River Bank, Member FDIC ("Sponsor Bank"). Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express (collectively, the "Card Brands") require that these Terms incorporate their respective operating regulations by reference, and you agree to be bound by those rules as a condition of accepting their cards.

Cardholder Data

The primary account number (PAN), cardholder name, expiration date, and service code, as defined in the PCI DSS.

Chargeback

A cardholder dispute that reverses funds from your account back to the issuing bank.

Interchange

The wholesale fee the card networks set and collect on each transaction, paid to the issuing bank.

MATCH

The Member Alert to Control High-Risk Merchants file maintained by Mastercard — a shared list of terminated merchants.

Reserve

Funds PayMullet holds from your settlements to cover potential chargebacks, refunds, or fees.

Settlement

The net amount paid to your bank account after interchange, assessments, and PayMullet fees.

Your account and underwriting

To use the Services, you must complete a Merchant Application and submit information we use for underwriting, Know Your Customer (KYC) review, Know Your Business (KYB) review, and OFAC screening. You represent that all information is true, complete, and current, and that you will update PayMullet within five (5) business days of any material change, including changes in ownership (25% or greater), business name, legal entity, merchant category, website URL, fulfillment model, or estimated monthly volume.

We may decline an application, request additional documentation (including financial statements, processing history, or product samples), assign you a higher-risk pricing tier, require a personal guaranty from principals, or impose a rolling or static reserve at any time based on our risk assessment. Submission of an application does not guarantee approval, and approval does not guarantee continued eligibility.

Card acceptance and network rules

You agree to follow the Card Brand operating rules in every transaction. Those rules include, but are not limited to:

• Honor all cards within the categories you have agreed to accept. You may not refuse a valid card of an accepted type, surcharge in excess of Card Brand caps (typically 3% for credit), or set a minimum above $10 for credit (debit has no minimum).
• No factoring. You may not submit transactions on behalf of another business, deposit a transaction for goods or services sold by a third party, or use your account to process your own personal charges.
• No prohibited activities as described in our Prohibited Business list. Running prohibited activity is a material breach and may result in immediate termination and MATCH listing.
• Clear descriptor. Your billing descriptor must match the name your customers would recognize, plus a working phone or URL. Misleading descriptors drive chargebacks and are a Card Brand violation.
• Authorization discipline. You must obtain a valid authorization before shipping goods or rendering services, and must void or reverse any authorization you do not capture within the window allowed by the network (typically 7 days for card-present, 7–30 days for card-not-present depending on MCC).

Fees, pricing, and settlement

Your pricing is set out in the Merchant Application or the most recent Pricing Schedule we have delivered to you. Unless otherwise agreed, pricing is interchange-plus: the actual interchange set by the network, plus Card Brand assessments, plus PayMullet's discount and per-item margin. We publish the wholesale components on every statement.

Other amounts may apply, including but not limited to: chargeback fees, retrieval-request fees, monthly statement fees, PCI compliance program fees, 1099-K delivery fees, ACH return fees, equipment lease or rental payments, and early-termination fees where a specific term was agreed. We will give you at least thirty (30) days' notice before raising any fee, and you may terminate without penalty during that notice window.

Settlement timing. Standard settlement is next business day (T+1) for batches closed before 11:59 PM ET. Same-day settlement and instant payouts are available to eligible merchants at the rates in your Pricing Schedule. Settlements are subject to hold for suspected fraud, risk review, chargeback reserves, and ACH return risk.

Chargebacks, retrievals, and disputes

You are liable for every chargeback assessed against your account, plus the chargeback fee in your Pricing Schedule. When a chargeback is initiated, we will notify you and provide the reason code, the dispute amount, and the evidence deadline. You may represent the chargeback by submitting compelling evidence (signed receipts, proof of delivery, customer correspondence, descriptor confirmation, etc.) through the dashboard before the deadline.

Ratio monitoring. Visa's VAMP program and Mastercard's Excessive Chargeback Program (ECP) impose monitoring when your chargeback ratio exceeds 0.9% (Visa) or 1.5% (Mastercard) with minimum count thresholds. If you enter one of these programs, you may face monthly fines up to $25,000 per brand, and PayMullet may require a reserve, restrict processing, or terminate your account. We pass through all Card Brand fines and fees associated with your account.

Refunds, credits, and voids

You may refund any transaction through the dashboard or API within 180 days of the original transaction. Partial refunds are supported for card-not-present transactions. You may not refund to a card other than the one used for the original transaction; you may not refund cash for a card charge; and you may not refund more than the original authorized amount.

Refunds are deducted from your settlement proceeds. If your account has insufficient settlement balance to cover a refund, we may debit the refund via ACH from your bank account of record, and you authorize that debit by agreeing to these Terms.

Reserves and security interest

PayMullet may establish a rolling reserve (a percentage of each settlement, held for a rolling period, released after), a static reserve (a fixed amount held indefinitely), or a capped reserve (a target amount funded from settlements until reached), in any amount we reasonably determine necessary to cover anticipated chargebacks, fines, refunds, and other obligations. We will notify you of any new or changed reserve and its basis.

You grant PayMullet a first-priority security interest in all funds held in your merchant account, all reserves, and all amounts payable by PayMullet to you, to secure your obligations under these Terms. You authorize us to file a UCC-1 financing statement. Reserve funds are released on the schedule stated in your notice, typically 90–270 days after account closure once chargeback exposure has run off.

Prohibited and restricted business

You may not use the Services for businesses or activities that PayMullet prohibits or that the Card Brands prohibit. Prohibited activities include, among others: unregistered money services businesses; illegal drugs, drug paraphernalia, or related content; unregistered firearms and ammunition sales; adult-content subscription services (a subset of adult businesses are supported in our high-risk program — contact underwriting); multi-level marketing schemes; escort services; gambling operators not licensed under applicable law; pyramid and Ponzi schemes; fantasy sports operators in states where prohibited; intellectual-property-infringing goods (counterfeit brands, pirated media); shell "bust-out" entities; timeshares and timeshare resale services; credit repair; debt collection of consumer debt you did not originate; cryptocurrency on-ramps without a registered money-transmitter license; CBD products where prohibited by state; and any activity on any OFAC-sanctioned list.

Some activities are restricted — available only after an additional underwriting review and sometimes a higher-risk pricing tier. Restricted categories include nutraceuticals and continuity billing, ticket resale, online dating, coaching and infoproducts with heavy chargebacks, firearms accessories, kratom, vaping hardware, and telemarketed sales. Contact solutions to confirm eligibility before integrating.

Equipment, leases, and gateway access

If you purchase, lease, or rent terminal hardware (Clover, EPOS, Valor, or other supported brands) through PayMullet, the applicable hardware order form is incorporated into these Terms. Leases are non-cancelable for their stated term, and lease payments continue even if you stop processing. If you terminate your Merchant Agreement while a lease is open, the remaining lease balance becomes immediately due. Equipment remains the property of the lessor until the lease is paid in full.

Gateway and API access is granted under license. You may not resell access to third parties, share API credentials, attempt to extract PAN from tokenized responses, bypass rate limits, or reverse-engineer the Services. API keys must be stored securely. You are liable for all activity under your keys until you rotate or revoke them.

ACH authorizations

You authorize PayMullet, our Sponsor Bank, and our ACH originator to debit and credit your designated bank account for: settlement funding, refund funding, fee collection, chargeback funding, reserve funding, and correction of errors. This authorization is governed by Nacha Operating Rules and remains in effect until you terminate your account and all outstanding obligations have cleared.

You are responsible for maintaining sufficient funds in your designated account to cover ACH debits. Returned ACH debits (for insufficient funds, closed accounts, or unauthorized claims) incur the return fee in your Pricing Schedule and may trigger a reserve increase or account suspension.

Term, termination, and MATCH

These Terms remain in effect until terminated. Either party may terminate for convenience with thirty (30) days' written notice. PayMullet may terminate immediately for: (a) material breach, including prohibited-business violation, misrepresentation in your application, or Card Brand rule violation; (b) excessive chargebacks or fraud as defined by the Card Brands; (c) failure to pay fees, fund reserves, or cover ACH returns; (d) bankruptcy, insolvency, or assignment for the benefit of creditors; (e) a Card Brand, Sponsor Bank, or regulator directing termination; or (f) material change in your ownership, business, or risk profile.

If PayMullet terminates your account for cause under the Card Brand rules (including fraud, unauthorized use of the acceptance mark, or Card Brand rule violations), we are required to add the business and its principals to the Mastercard MATCH list. A MATCH listing typically makes it difficult to obtain processing elsewhere for five (5) years. You agree that reporting to MATCH in these cases is required of us and is not a basis for a claim against PayMullet.

Representations, warranties, and indemnification

You represent and warrant that: (a) you have full corporate power and authority to enter these Terms; (b) every transaction you submit is for a genuine sale of goods or services from you to the cardholder; (c) you own or have the right to sell the goods or services you charge for; (d) your billing descriptor, website, and terms of sale are accurate and truthful; (e) you are not listed on any OFAC-sanctioned list; and (f) you will maintain PCI DSS compliance for your environment at the level required for your transaction volume and SAQ type.

You will indemnify and hold PayMullet, our Sponsor Bank, our affiliates, and our officers, directors, employees, and agents harmless from any claim, loss, fine, penalty, cost, or expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from: your breach of these Terms, your violation of a Card Brand rule, any transaction you submit, any product or service you sell, any chargeback or dispute, any data incident in your environment, or any third-party claim that your business caused them harm.

Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, PayMullet's aggregate liability for any claim arising under these Terms is limited to the lesser of (i) the total fees paid by you to PayMullet in the three (3) months immediately preceding the event giving rise to the claim, or (ii) $10,000. PayMullet is not liable for indirect, consequential, incidental, special, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for lost profits, revenue, goodwill, or data, even if advised of the possibility. This limitation does not apply to your indemnification obligations or to claims arising from your fraud or gross negligence.

Disputes, arbitration, and class action waiver

Any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms will be resolved exclusively by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Commercial Arbitration Rules, with a single arbitrator, in New York, NY. Judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. You and PayMullet each waive the right to a jury trial and agree that neither party may bring or participate in a class, collective, or representative action. Either party may seek injunctive relief in court for intellectual property infringement or unauthorized disclosure of confidential information.

Surcharging, cash discounts, and convenience fees

If you want to pass any part of the cost of card acceptance to your customers, you must follow all of the rules below — these are set by the Card Brands, state law, and federal consumer-protection law, and we enforce them as a condition of your account.

• Surcharging is a fee you add on top of the purchase price specifically because the customer is paying with a credit card. It is prohibited in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Puerto Rico; capped at 4% in most other states; and subject to a 3% cap under the Visa and Mastercard rules. Surcharging debit cards (including prepaid) is prohibited everywhere under the Durbin Amendment. You must register your surcharge program with Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express at least thirty (30) days before you start, disclose the surcharge at the point of entry and on the receipt, and line-item it separately from the transaction amount.
• Cash discount programs (posting a single higher price and offering a discount for cash) are permitted by the Card Brands when properly implemented, but the FTC requires that the posted price be the price actually charged for card payments — you cannot disguise a surcharge as a cash discount. Many states (e.g., New York under Expressions Hair Design) require price-tag disclosure in a specific format.
• Convenience fees are a flat fee charged for using an alternate payment channel (e.g., paying a utility bill by phone instead of by mail). They are only allowed for Visa in government, education, and a limited list of MCCs, must be a flat amount (not a percentage), must be disclosed before the transaction, and must apply to all payment methods — not just cards.
• Dual pricing (posting both a card price and a cash price side-by-side) is generally permitted but is treated as surcharging in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

PayMullet offers compliant surcharge and cash-discount terminals for merchants who want them — ask your account manager. Running a non-compliant program is a breach of these Terms and a Card Brand violation that can result in MATCH listing and fines ranging from $5,000 to $25,000 per occurrence.

E-SIGN Act consent

By opening a merchant account you consent to receive the Merchant Agreement, Privacy Policy, pricing schedule, fee-change notices, statements, 1099-K forms, disclosures under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, and any other legally required notice electronically, in lieu of paper, in PDF or HTML format delivered by email or posted in the Dashboard. This consent satisfies the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-SIGN), 15 U.S.C. §7001 et seq., and analogous state Uniform Electronic Transactions Acts (UETA).

To view or keep these records you need: a current Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge browser; an active email address; and software that can open PDF files. You may withdraw consent and request paper delivery at any time by writing to legal@paymullet.com, but doing so may slow down account changes and will not retroactively affect documents already delivered electronically. Withdrawing consent may also be treated as a request to close the account if paper delivery becomes operationally infeasible.

Term length and auto-renewal

Your Merchant Agreement has an initial term stated in your pricing schedule. After the initial term, the Agreement automatically renews for successive one-year terms unless either party gives written notice of non-renewal at least thirty (30) days before the end of the then-current term. If a state-specific auto-renewal law applies to you (California B&P §17602, New York GBL §527-a, Illinois ARL, Oregon HB 3361, Vermont 9 V.S.A. §2455a, etc.), we will send you an advance renewal reminder in the form and timing that law requires. Early-termination fees, if any, are stated on your pricing schedule and cap at $295.

American Express OptBlue program

PayMullet is an OptBlue Program Participant. If your anticipated American Express volume exceeds $1,000,000 per year, Amex may require you to enter a direct Card Acceptance Agreement with American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. in lieu of our OptBlue agreement. In that case, all Amex-specific terms, disputes, and fees flow directly between you and Amex; PayMullet continues to act as your submitter. The Amex direct-agreement threshold, fee schedule, and submission process are published at americanexpress.com/merchantreferenceguide and are incorporated into these Terms by reference.

Merchant choice and no long-term lock-in

You can cancel your Merchant Agreement at any time subject to the notice and fee provisions above. We will not hold your terminal hostage, refuse to deconvert you, or charge undisclosed exit fees. Upon termination we will (i) release residual funds on the schedule in your Reserves section, (ii) send a final 1099-K for the year, (iii) deactivate your terminals remotely but leave them in your possession unless they are leased, and (iv) cooperate with your new processor’s deconversion requests within five (5) business days.

Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time to reflect changes in law, Card Brand rules, or our Services. We will post the updated Terms and change the Effective Date above, and for material changes we will notify you at least thirty (30) days in advance by email to the contact address on file and by a dashboard banner. Continued use of the Services after the Effective Date constitutes acceptance. Prior versions are preserved in our Legal archive on request.

Contact and notices

Notices to PayMullet must be sent to legal@paymullet.com with a copy to: PayMullet, Attn: Legal, 568 Broadway, Suite 702, New York, NY 10012. Notices to you will be sent to the email on file in your Merchant Application and posted in the dashboard. You must keep that email current.