Is it okay for a customer to send me less than the amount I invoiced because of their wire charges? For example, I invoice $380 and they send me $365. I understand I may have additional charges from my bank, but the $365 is before those are applied.
1 Answer
No.
If you invoice for $380, you should receive $380... then if your payment processor has fees, they are deducted from the $380.
In no instance is it "okay" for a client to send less than the invoiced amount, for whatever reason. If the client must pay fees, then those fees are their problem they should be paid above and beyond any invoice amount. If it costs the client $15 to send you $380, then the client needs to pay $395 to ensure you receive the $380 which was invoiced. All invoices indicate the amount you are to receive, not merely the amount a client should send.
It is not acceptable for any client deduct or factor in any processing fees for the client from your invoice. As your example stands, the client has made you responsible for double processing fees. That would not be acceptable to me. And I'd demand the client send the remaining $15.
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Thanks for the opinion. I thought maybe it was expected behavior even though it seems unreasonable to me.– Chris94Commented Jan 26, 2021 at 21:41
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Fees should be equitable. You should not be responsible for all fees, only fees due to your payment processor. Client pays an extra $15 due to their processor... then you pay $x due to your processor. You both "feel the burn" a little. No one party is inflicted with all fees. Chances are, your client would be unhappy if you invoiced for an extra $15 to cover your processing fees (especially since they are trying to get you to pay for their processing fees). In all fairness though, it may not be malicious on the client's part. They may simply be unaware.– ScottCommented Jan 26, 2021 at 21:49
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Your fees should include all your overheads - including relevant taxes and payment processing costs you are liable for. It is worth clearly stating in your terms of trade or your contract that a client is responsible for paying costs they are liable for (like wire transfers costs or customs charges for accepting a delivery), and deducting them from a payment to you is a form of non-payment. Best case, it will avoid a client getting confused over who pays what; worst case, it allows you to say the client breached their contract with you by failing to pay in full. Commented Jan 27, 2021 at 10:58
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Actually... it's a long-standing battle between merchants and processors. Some processors will stop processing for you if they discover you are raising your fees to cover their processing. They see it as bad practice and expect you to eat their processing fees since you are their customer. Can't say I agree with it at all. But places like PayPal will frown heavily upon you raising invoices 4% to cover their 4% processing fee.– ScottCommented Jan 27, 2021 at 20:10
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Don’t charge extra on specific invoices for payment processing. Processing fees, like bank fees, are a cost of doing business. So calculate how much they are over a financial period - same as with with utilities, bank fees, wages etc - and factor that amount in when working out what to charge customers or clients. Providers probably don’t like separate charges because people can see how much the provider is ripping the downstream off for. Commented Jan 27, 2021 at 20:31