There are several methods of making payments for an invoice from Central Office beyond the standard opening of a financial institution (“bank”) account and writing checks. Some of them will require the same documentation as any bank, but we list them so that the choices are understood – and add some of the “catch-clauses” where relevant.
Most banks require several of the supporting documents, if not all of those listed in the advice offered within Opening a Financial Institution Account. Even an option like PayPal is becoming more restrictive as the terrorists continue to try to work their way around the agencies tracking their funding.
All international chapters must deal with rate exchange, regardless of the method of payment. Please keep that in mind as you read on. All payments must be USD, United States Dollars.
* Bank check, Savings Loan, Credit Union, money order, or cashier’s check.
* EFT, Electronic Funds Transfers. Our ACH & Wire account information can be found here – Link
* PayPal is extremely practical for North America, but may not be available in all countries (your country may offer a competitive alternative). This service accepts payments from your students and permits payment to third parties, like Central Office and for other invoices. Requires a service fee.
* Charge Card payments can be arranged when you provide the appropriate information to Central Office. However we add a 5% fee to offset our costs for processing payments in that fashion. On the plus side, currency exchange differences are handled automatically.
All chapters in good standing have an open account with payment terms of 30 days of receipt of the electronic notification of shipment – which will include an attached invoice with shipping charges. Should a chapter abuse their open account and expect the rest of the Society to bear the burden of sustaining their extended balances, they will be placed on a pre-pay basis.
Pre-pay – chapters with a poor payment history may be notified that they are being placed on a pre-pay basis. Their open account is no longer available. Pre-payments may utilize any of the above methods. A reasonable estimate of shipping costs must be included in the prepaid amount.
For additional assistance for anything not covered here, contact Central Office.
IF your institution requires the use of Purchase Orders, do not send them to Central Office, with or without our required forms. Here is the suggested method of handling your purchase orders internally. Link