Card Payments

Can Debit Cards be used with Tuition Express?

Yes, debit cards with a Visa or MasterCard logo can be used if your center accepts credit card transactions. Since there is no PIN entry system debit cards will be treated like credit cards and processed at the credit card rate.

Point of Sale (Card Swipe)

To use debit cards for Point of Sale (card swipe) transactions just follow the standard Point of Sale instructions.

Recurring (ACH) Payments

Debit cards should not be used for recurring payments. Instead set up the Bank Account Information for the family. This way payments are withdrawn from the family’s bank account (just as they would be with a debit card) but the center will not incur any credit card processing fees.

Can I Charge Extra to Families that Pay with a Card?

Surcharge Rules and State Laws

In some cases you are allowed to pass fees on to your customers; however, we believe the rules can be cumbersome and managing the surcharges for your child care business may be challenging. At least 10 states have surcharge restrictions including: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma and Texas.
Get information on surcharge rules:

• Visa Surcharge Rules
• Mastercard Surcharge Rules
• Contact your state attorney general’s office for state-specific regulations.

Summary of Credit Card Surcharge Rules

In short, this is what a merchant must do in order to impose surcharges:

1. Notify the card companies and Tuition Express 30 days in advance of beginning to surcharge.
2. Limit surcharging to credit cards only (no surcharging of debit or prepaid cards).
3. Limit the amount to your merchant discount rate for the applicable credit card (in other words you cannot charge more than you were charged by the credit card company for that particular card).
4. Disclose the surcharge as a merchant fee and clearly alert consumers to the practice at the point of sale and on every receipt.

Our Recommendation

We suggest the best way to pass processing fees on to your customers is to build those fees right into your tuition and fee structure for all customers. For example, if a credit card transaction costs you, on average, 2% and half your families pay by credit card, then raising rates across-the-board by just 1% would cover your costs without requiring you to jump through the legal hoops associated with charging a separate credit card surcharge. So, the next time you have a tuition and/or fee adjustment, simply plan for the fees associated with processing credit card and ACH transactions with Tuition Express.

Please Note: Procare Desktop is unable to differentiate between credit and debit. This means, all card transactions (including debit) will be processed as a credit card.

May I make changes or issue refunds through Tuition Express?

Yes. You may make changes or issue refunds as follows. Note: Refunds may be issued for credit card payments; however, payments made by ACH (withdrawn from checking or savings accounts) may not be refunded.

What is the CVV number and where do I find it?

The CVV number (Card Verification Value) is a security feature for credit (and debit) cards used to confirm the person making the payment physically has the card with them. This is required if you manually enter credit card information for a Point of Sale transaction rather than swiping the card through the card reader.The location of the CVV and number of digits varies depending on the type of card as follows:

Visa, MasterCard, Discover
For Visa, MasterCard & Discover the CVV is a 3 digit number located on the back of the card on the signature line. In some cases there may be 7 or more digits. Just use the last 3.

American Express
For American Express the CVV is a 4 digit number located on the front of the card just above the card number itself.

What should I know about EMV cards?

EMV credit cards have new rules, but the effect on child care is expected to be minimal.

What is EMV?

EMV (which stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa—the three companies that created the standard) is a technology that helps limit credit card fraud by preventing the creation of counterfeit cards and makes point-of-sale card payments more secure. EMV cards have microprocessors in them (known as “chips”) that protect cardholder information. EMV cards are sometimes called “smart cards”.

How do changes in October 2015 affect child care providers?

As a child care provider, there is no significant change. You will continue to assume liability for any fraudulent transactions, just as you have in the past. The good news is child care has an extremely low, practically non-existent fraud rate. That’s because child care is a service your families rely on and use week after week—it’s not a one-time purchase of merchandise by someone unknown to you.

What percentage of Tuition Express payments are reported as fraud?

Our history shows that just .0026% of payments made through Tuition Express come back as fraud chargebacks… that means 1 out of every 37,000 transactions is affected. In other words, if you processed 130 credit card transactions each month, you would see a fraud occurrence once every 24 years!

What types of card transactions are affected?

Only point-of-sale payments, where the card is present. This means payments made at a check-in computer or payment station and those made at the front desk by swiping a card.

Will I need a new card reader for Tuition Express?

Eventually, yes. EMV cards work in either new or old card readers, but you will want a new EMV reader when they become available (see next question below). The new card readers will be for EMV cards only—you’ll continue to use your existing magnetic card reader for traditional cards.

What if I swipe an EMV card in my old card reader?

It will work fine. You will receive payment as usual. However, in the unlikely event the transaction turns out to be fraudulent, you would continue to be liable just as you are today. As stated above, the chances of this are extremely low since it is highly doubtful a family would use a stolen or counterfeit card to pay their child’s tuition.

When are Point of Sale payments deposited to my account?

Point-of-sale payments are typically processed the following business day subject to bank funding and processing approvals. Any items posted before 7:00 p.m. (in your local time zone) count toward your daily total. Depending on the types of credit cards you process, the amount may be broken into more than one deposit*.

All point-of-sale credit card transactions from all card types (Visa, MC, Discover and AMEX) are deposited together. Fees are charged as a separate transaction on the 2nd business day of each month.