Bank payments (ACH)
Clients can pay what they owe straight from their bank account in the Client Portal, instead of with a card. Bank payments cost your practice less than cards, and the client signs in to their bank once — after that, their bank is saved for next time.
Bank payments are in early access. If you'd like to try them, contact us.
What it costs
| Per payment | |
|---|---|
| Bank payment | 1.75% + $0.10 |
| Card payment | 3.15% + $0.30 |
On a $150 session that's $2.73 by bank instead of $5.03 by card.
If a bank payment fails (for example, not enough money in the account), a $4 fee is taken from your payments balance. If a client disputes a bank payment with their bank, the payment and a $15 fee are taken from your payments balance — and from your bank account if the balance is short. A disputed bank payment can't be contested; the bank's decision is final. If you had already refunded part of that payment, you're still responsible for the disputed amount. See section 7.6 of the Terms of Service.
In your Stripe payouts, these lines look different from how Practice Harbor shows them. A disputed bank payment appears as "Refund for payment" (you didn't give a refund; that's how Stripe labels money taken back for a dispute). The $15 dispute fee and the $4 failed-payment fee each appear as a Transfer with no description.
Turn it on
- Go to Settings → Payments.
- Turn on Accept bank payments (ACH).
- Stripe reviews the request. Until it's approved you'll see Waiting for Stripe approval; once it shows Active, clients see a Bank account option when they pay.
If Stripe needs a few more details, the switch tells you — add them from your Stripe dashboard.
What your client sees
When a client clicks Pay Now in the Client Portal, they choose Card or Bank account.
- First time: they sign in to their bank in a secure Stripe window, agree to the payment, and pay. Their bank is saved for next time.
- Next time: they pick their saved bank and click Pay.
- They can remove a saved bank anytime under Payment Methods.
Only the client can make a bank payment. Your practice can see that a client has a saved bank, but can't charge it — clients choose every bank payment themselves.
Bank payments take about 4 business days
A bank payment isn't final the moment the client clicks Pay. While it's on its way:
- The client's invoice and your Card Transactions list show it as Processing.
- AutoPay, payment reminders and statements leave that amount alone, so the client isn't charged or reminded twice.
- The money joins your next payout once it clears.
When it clears, it becomes a normal payment and the client gets their receipt.
If a bank payment fails
Sometimes the client's bank turns a payment down days later — usually not enough money in the account, or a closed account. When that happens:
- The invoices it was paying are open again.
- The client gets an email asking them to pay with a card or another bank.
- The $4 failed-payment fee is taken from your payments balance.
- You get an email, and Notifications shows Bank payment failed until the invoice is paid.
Refunds
Bank payments can't be refunded from Practice Harbor yet. To refund one, pay the client back another way (for example by check), then open the payment in Billing → Card Transactions and use Record external refund so your records match.
Questions
Does AutoPay use bank accounts? No. AutoPay keeps charging the client's saved card.
Can a client pay part of their balance by bank? Yes — the same amount choices as a card payment, up to 12 invoices at a time.
Can my practice charge a client's saved bank? No. Bank payments are always started by the client in the Client Portal.