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Last Update May 15th, 2023
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What is a Recurring ACH Payment
A recurring Automated Clearing House (ACH) payment is a transaction where an individual, business owner, or company is paid directly from a buyer or user’s bank account for a purchase or ongoing service.
This is facilitated by the customer signing an ACH Authorization form to acknowledge and give consent to a future direct payment from their bank account.
This works as a form of legal contract between the 2 parties, as it shows permission has been given for the transaction via the account holder’s signature and provision of banking details.
When, How, and Why to Use an ACH Authorization Form
An ACH authorization form is essential when collecting payment directly from a customer’s bank account. This is especially important if more than one payment is to occur.
It allows businesses to safely and securely obtain the consent of their customers to deduct money from their bank account for services rendered. Ultimately, this authorization makes the payment process much more reliable for both parties.
For the business, it makes a potential chargeback claim or authorization hold less likely. For the customer it allows them to know when payments will be taken to help them distinguish between the genuine transaction and fraudulent activity.
These documents differ slightly from credit card authorization forms. This is because ACH forms make a direct charge to an individual’s personal bank account instead of charging a credit card for the amount owed.
Terms to Include in an ACH Authorization
When using an ACH authorization template, you will notice a number of key details. These are included to make sure that you get exactly the information needed from the customer to successfully help the transaction go through.
You can usually find most of the following details on a draft ACH authorization:
The name of the company collecting payment
The personal data of the client being charged
A statement acknowledging the permissions given
The amount to be taken
The banking details for the account that will be charged
The date of the deduction and frequency of payments
A description of the goods or services provided to the customer
The document must also be signed and dated by the owner of the bank account in order to show they consent to the transaction(s).
How to Fill Out an ACH Authorization Form
Filling out an ACH authorization form is a relatively simple process. You can either do this using our preprepared form or task a lawyer to create and complete the template for you.
After the form is printed off, it can either be given to the client with some or all the necessary information prefilled, such as the payment amount or your company’s name.
Alternatively, the form can be provided as a standard template with blank spaces the customer can fill in themselves.
When filling the form, all you or the client need to do is follow the steps below:
Download and print the template
Indicate how frequent the payments should be
Provide the personal details requested by the form
Complete any information detailing the charges that are to be made
Enter billing information needed to process payment
Sign and date the form
Both you and the payee should keep a copy of the completed ACH form for your records. This will help resolve any issues if disputes arise.
Types of ACH Authorization Templates
There are two main types of ACH authorization templates. These allow for either one-time purchases to be carried out or for multiple recurring payments to be taken.
Let’s look at these in a bit more detail in the following sections.
1-time ACH Authorization
As you might expect, a 1-time ACH authorization allows a single deduction of an agreed amount to be taken from an individual’s bank account. This allows a payment to be confirmed at the time of purchase, with the money taken in a later transaction on a specified date.
Recurring ACH Authorization
This allows money to be taken on either a weekly or monthly basis. This will most commonly be used by subscription-based businesses such as gyms or to make regular payments to someone, such as to pay your monthly rent.
Sample ACH Authorization Form
If using a standardized form, it can be helpful to look at an example template first. Use our sample ACH authorization form below to get a clearer picture of what your document should look like.
FAQs About ACH Authorizations
There are lots of details to consider when you use an ACH authorization form. To get more familiar with the key features of these legal documents browse our FAQs below for more information.
Do I Need an ACH Authorization Form?
It is necessary to use an ACH authorization form if you want to collect payment directly from a customer’s bank account. This allows the client to give clear consent for the payment, so their bank doesn’t block the transaction.
How Long is an ACH Authorization Good For?
Generally, an ACH authorization form is valid for up to 2 years. During this amount of time, the ACH document should be kept by both parties even if the payment is canceled as a record of the consent given at the time of the transaction.
How Can I Get an ACH Authorization Form?
You can create your own ACH authorization form using our preprepared template. This allows you to download and complete the form as necessary before it is signed.
Alternatively, you can hire an attorney to draft the document. This is usually a more costly option, however.
How Can I Receive an ACH Payment?
To receive an ACH payment you first need the payee to complete an ACH authorization. This document informs your bank that you have permission to deduct money from the individual’s account directly.
Once the form has been completed, you can then carry out the transaction using your payment processing software as normal. The payment should only be taken on the agreed-upon date (or dates if the payment is a recurring one).