# ShopFast Pay

> How ShopFast Pay works, what it costs, how to apply, and the limits and reserves that come with an approval.

Source: https://shopfa.st/docs/selling/shopfast-pay

ShopFast Pay is ShopFast's own way to collect payments. ShopFast acts as
[merchant of record](https://shopfa.st/docs/selling/payment-models): buyers pay ShopFast by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, ShopFast
remits sales tax and VAT, deals with the processor on chargebacks and pays your share out in crypto, to your own wallet.
You do not need a gateway account of your own.

## How a payment flows

1. The buyer checks out. Fraud Shield checks the checkout, then the fee engine prices it: your share, ShopFast's fees
   and the buyer's tax.
2. The buyer pays. The processor confirms the payment with a signed webhook, and the order is created with its fees.
3. Delivery starts at once: keys, files, memberships and Discord roles.
4. Your share waits for the hold period (longer for payments Fraud Shield rates high risk), then moves to your
   available balance (minus any rolling reserve).
5. The weekly payout run, or your **Withdraw**, sends your available balance in crypto to your payout wallet after a
   ShopFast review. See [payouts](https://shopfa.st/docs/selling/payouts).

## Fees

Your plan sets the fees, and your share is paid out in crypto. The rates of every plan today are on
[pricing](https://shopfa.st/pricing#fees); **Money → Fees & billing** shows the ones your store pays.

| Fee | What it is |
| --- | --- |
| Commission | A share of each order after discounts. Dearer plans pay a lower one. |
| Fixed fee | A flat amount per paid order. |
| Merchant of record fee | A share of each order for processing, tax handling and chargeback cover. |
| Payout fee | A flat amount per payout, taken from the payout. Some plans have none. |
| Processor fee | Paid by ShopFast. Never taken from your share. |

A store approved for ShopFast Pay keeps it on any plan, at that plan's rates. See [pricing](https://shopfa.st/pricing) for the plans.

These fees apply only to ShopFast Pay orders. On your own gateway ShopFast takes no fee per sale: no commission and
no fixed fee. See [payment models](https://shopfa.st/docs/selling/payment-models).

**Money → Fees & billing** lists the rates that apply to your store, with a worked example. Fee changes apply
to new orders only.

## Who can use it

ShopFast decides who can sell through ShopFast Pay. It runs in one of three modes:

- **Application required** (the default): you apply on a plan that includes applying for ShopFast Pay (see
  [pricing](https://shopfa.st/pricing); not during the free trial), and a ShopFast reviewer approves your store.
- **Open to all**: every store can turn it on. Sending the application approves it at once.
- **Disabled**: no store can take ShopFast Pay payments. Stores that were using it move to their own gateways; a store
  without one shows "payments unavailable" at checkout until it connects one. Everyone affected is emailed, and money
  ShopFast already holds still settles and pays out on schedule. When ShopFast Pay comes back, stores that were moved
  return to it.

Test sales and store test mode always work, whatever the mode.

## Applying

Open **Money → Payments** and choose **Apply for ShopFast Pay**. The questionnaire has six steps and saves as you go:

1. **What you sell**: categories (game keys, accounts, software, courses and more), a few example products and links.
2. **Volume and buyers**: expected monthly sales, average order, where your buyers are, how long you have sold online.
3. **Policies and channels**: your refund policy, and your Discord, Telegram or website.
4. **About you**: individual or business (with the business name), and the owner's legal name, country and date of
   birth. You must be 18 or older. These details are encrypted at rest; only you and ShopFast reviewers can read them.
5. **Documents** (optional, speeds up the review): a photo ID, proof of address or business registration. PDF, PNG,
   JPEG or WebP, up to 15 MB each, through ShopFast's signed uploads.
6. **Review and send**. Only the store owner can send the application; teammates with payments access can prepare it.

What happens next, by email and in your inbox at each step:

| Status | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| In review | A reviewer reads every application by hand. |
| Needs more info | The reviewer asked a question. Reply in **Money → Payments**, or update the application and send it again. |
| Approved | ShopFast Pay is ready. Stores already set to ShopFast Pay take payments at once; others turn it on. |
| Not approved | The email and **Money → Payments** give the reviewer's reason. You can keep selling with your own gateways. |

You can withdraw an application while it is in review. Every step is kept in the application's timeline.

## Limits and reserves

An approval can come with limits. They show in **Money → Payments** with how much you have used:

- **Rolling volume limit**: the most your store can sell through ShopFast Pay in a rolling window (for example
  $5,000 every 30 days). Checkouts that would go past it are refused with a message for the buyer, and you get one
  alert a day.
- **Largest order**: the biggest single order ShopFast Pay takes for your store.
- **Rolling reserve**: a share of each sale held back for a while after it clears, against refunds and chargebacks. It
  is released to your available balance automatically. Your store uses the platform reserve unless ShopFast set its own.

Limits are enforced at checkout twice: as a Fraud Shield check (so buyers see a clear message) and again when the
checkout is priced, so no entry point skips them. Ask ShopFast for higher limits once you have sales history.

## Pauses and holds

ShopFast can pause ShopFast Pay for one store (checkout moves to your own gateways, as when it is disabled) or hold
its payouts (sales keep settling to your balance; nothing goes out until the hold is released). You are told why in
both cases, and every such action is recorded in ShopFast's audit log.