ampEducator - Payment Processing + Late Fees (Interest Charges) Guide

Modified on Mon, 9 Dec at 7:51 PM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. List of (current) supported Merchant Gateways in ampEducator

2. Payment Processing Options in ampEducator.

3. Getting Started with Payment Processing in ampEducator

4. Add Merchant Gateway & Surcharges

5. Processing Credit Card Payments directly in ampEducator

6. Stored / Saved / Deleting Student Credit Cards in ampEducator.

7. Payment Plan 'Auto Pay' in ampEducator.

8. Recurring payments in ampEducator.

9. Late Fees (Interest Charges) by Overdue Balance or Account Balance.

1. List of (current) supported Merchant Gateways in ampEducator

ampEducator can be configured to process Prospect and Student Payments using Credit Cards, Paypal and Flywire otherwise know as Merchant Gateways. There are many different types of Merchant Gateways that exist and ampEducator comes pre-configured with the following current vendors.

Note: This list may not include all Merchants at the time of writing. If you are currently using a different Merchant Gateway not shown on the list below, email us at support@ampeducator.com to see if it is available. Any Merchant Account with a suitable API can be added to ampEducator (some development fees may apply).

Payeezy / First Data / Fiserv

2. Payment Processing Options in ampEducator.

There are many different ways you can process payments in ampEducator and who (Prospect, Student, Staff, Agent) can make the the Payment:

a. Form - Fee Payment (Prospect / Student)

b. Prospect & Student Profile / Accounts / Make Payment (Staff)

c. Student Portal / Accounts / Make Payment (Student)

d. Student Portal / Accounts / Online Store Payments (Student)

e. Recurring Payment in Student Profile

f. Payment Plans 'Auto Pay' in Student Profile

g. Link to Pay on Invoices (Prospect / Student)

h. Agent Portal - Make Payment (Agent)

i. Course Marketplace - Fees Payment (Prospect / Student)

3. Getting Started with Payment Processing in ampEducator

Before you can process payments in ampEducator you must first configure a Merchant Gateway from the available list. This is done in Institution Config / Accounts / Payments / New Merchant:

You can only have 1 Merchant Gateway (per location) and there are several options to configure before adding your Merchant.

a. Payment Currency. Select the Currency that you wish to use.

b. Student Restrictions. This will restrict the Student to pay using specific options ie. Must pay entire balance, etc.

c. Auto Apply to Plan. Automatically apply payments made via Student Portal to the Student Payment Plan.

d. Saved Credit Cards. Allow Students to Delete Cards in the Student Portal (otherwise request Staff to remove).

e. Payment Notifications To: Notify users when Online Payment is made.

f. Purchase Notifications To: Notify users when Online Purchase (via Online Store in Student Portal) is made.

4. Add Merchant Gateway & Surcharges

To add a Merchant Gateway (Merchant) click 'New Merchant'. A modal window will appear:

a. Provide the Merchant Name.

b. Description. This is to describe how the merchant is used internally to Staff.

c. Locations. Select the Locations this Merchant will be available / used.

d. Merchant. Select the Merchant from the available list. (Note: if you are using a merchant not found on the list contact us to have it added.

e. Merchant Pararmeters (API)

API Token, Transaction Key, Account ID, etc. depending on which Merchant you select their API will request some parameters to be entered to allow ampEducator to communicate and submit credit cards for processing. Each one is different and your Merchant Customer Support team should be able to provide assistance where to find the necessary information to enter to ampEducator. If you are unsure contact us at support@ampeducator.com

Example. For Clover, you must use Ecommerce API tokens:

i. Log in to the Clover Developer Dashboard.

ii. From the Developer Account drop-down list, select a merchant name under Businesses. The Merchant Dashboard for the selected merchant appears.

iii. From the left navigation menu, click Account & Setup. The Account & Setup page appears.

iv. In the Ecommerce section, click Ecommerce API Tokens.

v. Click Create New Token. The Create new token pop-up appears.

vi. Select the Enable online card payments checkbox.

vii. Verify or select the Integration type as API

viii. Select all options and Create Token

ix. Copy the Private Token into ampEducator (it must be the Private, not Public token).

f. Sandbox / Testing.

Each Merchant allows you to test with Sandbox / Testing to ensure your integration is working properly.

In order to use this function, you must configure a Sandbox / Testing account with your Merchant.

Each one is different and your Merchant Customer Support team should be able to provide assistance where to find the necessary information to enable Sandbox / Testing. If you are unsure contact us at support@ampeducator.com

Example: For Clover, you must create a Sanbox / Testing account on the developer portal - see https://docs.clover.com/docs/setup-clover-sandbox-account. If you don't follow the correct instructions for the Merchant you have selected and enable Sandbox / Testing in ampEducator you will get an error.

g. Payment Account. This is the Account that you wish to associate with all Payments made via the Merchant. It is recommended / best practice in ampEducator to create an Account called 'Clover Online Payments' or something that you will be able to use for future reference.

h. Description. This is the description the Prospect / Student will see on their credit card / payment processor statement.

i. Apply Surcharge.

There are 2 important options to understand for this feature - applied by 'ampEducator' or 'Merchant'. If your Merchant supports this feature you can enable 'Apply Surcharge' by Merchant. If you wish ampEducator to calculate and charge the Surcharge then you can select 'ampEducator' to do this. This is to avoid the Prospect / Student being charges twice for Surcharge depending on how you have configured the Merchant. If set a percentage of the total payment will be charged. The surcharge will appear as a separate Charge on the student's account - not on the invoice if you are using invoices.

'Surcharge Applied By: ampEducator'. The software will enable the surcharge disclaimer and amount and will add the surcharge amount based on the Surcharge Percentage entered. It will then pass the amounts to the Merchant for processing and then record then as separate transactions on the Student Account.

'Surcharge Applied By: Merchant'. ampEducator will disable the surcharge disclaimer and amount and will only add the surcharge amount if the merchant applies it.

Example, Elavon Converge lets ampEducator know how much surcharge was charged and then it adds that to the student's financial records. If Elavon Converge does not report a surcharge (i.e. debit for example) then the surcharge is not applied.

If you require a disclaimer, you can enter it under 'Surcharge Disclosure' ie. "We impose a surcharge of 3% on the transaction amount on all credit card products, which is not greater than our cost of acceptance."

Finally, you can also select where the Surcharge will apply in ampEducator as you may not want it to be applied in all payment options.

5. Processing Credit Card Payments directly in ampEducator

Once you have configured a Merchant (above) you will have the option to process credit card payments over the phone or in person directly using the Student Profile / Payments / New Payment and selecting Payment Type "Online". Options for Credit Card information will then appear below the Payment Details:

This will process the card response from the Merchant, add the payment if successful to ampEducator and issue a receipt to the Prospect / Student.

6. Stored / Saved / Deleting Student Credit Cards in ampEducator.

Note: ampEducator doesn't store credit card information in the database. We reference the last 4 digits of the card and the expiry date for card identification purposes only. The card information is securely collected and then encrypted and sent to the Merchant configured in ampEducator. The Merchant then returns a token (numerical key) via API to ampEducator that authorizes it to request billing of the card on a recurring basis.

Students have the option of saving a credit card to their account when they make a payment. When they do this it is stored to their Student Profile. This feature is designed to allow Students to store and authorize recurring billing to their card in ampEducator for use with Payment Plans and Recurring Billing. Staff can add a provided credit card in the Student Profile / Accounts / Credit Cards / Add Credit Card.

If a Student wishes to Delete a credit card then they can do this in the Student Portal by clicking X to the right of the Card if the feature is enabled in the Merchant setup. Otherwise they will need to request a Staff member to remove the card setup for them.

Note: This feature will only work if the Merchant supports it and it is configured in ampEducator. Currently, Moneris, Banquest and Authorize.net are the only Merchants in ampEducator that can store credit cards - if you would like to add support for stored credit cards with your Merchant, please contact us at support@ampeducator.com.

Additionally, you may need to contact your Merchant to ensure that your have the ability to Store credit cards within your Merchant account service. For example, Moneris requires clients to have Moneris Vault enabled in their account in order for this feature to work in ampEducator. If you are not sure, please contact your Merchant Gateway provider and ask them about Recurring Billing and Storing Credit Cards with them and third parties like ampEducator.

7. Payment Plan 'Auto Pay' in ampEducator.

Note: If you have configured a Merchant that supports saving credit cards (Currently this is Moneris, Banquest or Authorize.net) then you can use this feature. If you wish to add this support or your existing Merchant then please email support@ampeducator.com.

When setting up a Payment Plan for a Student there is an option to enable "Auto Pay from Saved" and to select "Saved Credit Card". This allows ampEducator to bill the Student credit card on the dates for the Payment Plan automatically.

8. Recurring payments in ampEducator.

Recurring payments have most of the same settings as a regular payment except they need to be tied to a saved credit card. They have a start date and either an end date or they can stop when the balance is above a minimum. You can also set a frequency (weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually) as well as which invoices / charges / payment plans to apply the payments to.

a. Name. The name of the Recurring payment.

b. Type: Select the Type or Recurring payment.

- By Date: Payments will be processed until the end date.

- By Balance: Payments will continue to process (unless the minimum Balance has been met ie. $0.00).

c. Min. Balance. Sets the minimum balance that the Student must meet in order to avoid the payment. Example. Student pays the Balance in full for the month and Balance is $0.00 - no payment is taken for that month.

d. Credit Card. Select the Saved Credit Card that will be used for this Recurring payment.

e. Frequency. Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, Annually based on the start date of the Recurring payment. Example, if the weekday start date it Monday, Jun. 10, 2024 then the weekly Recurring payment will occur each Monday.

f. Payment Amount. The amount of the Recurring Payment.

g. Description. The description that will appear with the Payment.

h. Payment Account. The payment account to be associated.

i. Apply To: Select how these payments will be applied.

- Auto Apply. Applies to any outstanding Invoice or Charge.

- Select Invoice. Apply the Payment to an existing Invoice.

- Select Charge. Apply the Payment to an existing Charge.

j. Apply to Payment Plan: Applies to any Payment Plan Selected or None.

- Auto Apply. Applies automatically to the existing Payment Plan.

- Select Plan Items. Specifically apply the Payment to a Payment Plan Item.

- None. Do not apply Payment to the Payment Plan.

k. Notes. Internal notes visible only to Staff with access to the Student Profile / Accounts.

9. Late Fees (Interest Charges) by Overdue Balance or Account Balance.

Under Institution Config / Accounts / Defaults there are 2 choices for applying Late Fees (Interest Charges) Prospects or Students Overdue Balance and Account Balance.

a) Overdue Balance - Late Fees (Interest Charges) will be applied on Overdue Balance amounts from Invoices and Charges.

Example. If the Student owes $1,500 for an Invoice at the end of the month and you have set a 12% Annual (1% Monthly) Late Fee (Interest Charge) then ampEducator will add $15 Charge to the Student Account.

b) Account Balance - Calculates the Late Fee (Interest Charge) on the average balance for the period in question i.e. for Monthly it will calculate the average balance for the month and charge late interest on it. However, it will only do this if your balance is greater than $0.00 at time the late fee is being calculated.

Example: Charge the Student a Late Fee (Interest Charge) of 1% per month on any Account Balance greater than 0 each month. A Student who pays in full if the minimum Balance is $0.00 will not be charged any Late Fee (Interest Charge).

Apply To: Account Balance

Charge Period: Monthly

Annual Interest %: 12 (1% per month).

ampEducator will then calculate the Average Monthly Balance for each day in the month and then apply the Late Fee (Interest Charge) amount to the Student Account based on this. This amount will varying depending on when the Student is Charged / Invoiced, what they have paid over the month and whether or not they have met the minimum Balance requirement.

Note: Late Fees (Interest Charges) are calculated and applied before any Recurring payments or Payment Plan Auto Pay payments are made in order to apply payments to Late Fee (Interest Charges) before being applied to the Principal Balance.