Paying Bills

Topkey lets you pay vendors directly from your Deposit Account or a connected external bank account using ACH, check, or manual payment. Once a bill is marked Ready to Pay, you can initiate payment, track its status, and manage it through to completion — all from within the bill.

Payment Methods

Topkey supports four payment methods. The right choice depends on your account setup, how quickly the vendor needs to be paid, and how the payment is being made.

ACH (Same-Day)

Funds are sent from your Topkey Deposit Account and typically arrive the same business day. This is the fastest electronic payment option available in Topkey.

ACH (Pass-Through)

Funds are pulled from a connected external bank account and sent to the vendor. Standard processing takes up to 5 business days. If a pass-through ACH payment fails, you can return the funds to the originating bank account (see Returning a Failed Pass-Through ACH Payment).

Check

Topkey mails a physical check on your behalf, drawn from your Topkey Deposit Account. Each check carries a $2 fee. A valid mailing address must be on file for the vendor before you can use this method.

Manual

Record a payment that was made outside of Topkey — such as by cash, wire transfer, or credit card. No funds move through Topkey; this method simply marks the bill as paid in your records.

Paying a Bill

When a bill's status is Ready to Pay, the Pay action becomes available.

1. Open the bill you want to pay.
2. From the bill's action menu, select Pay.
3. In the payment form:
   • Select a payment account — choose your Topkey Deposit Account or a connected external bank account.
   • Choose a payment method — ACH (Same-Day), ACH (Pass-Through), Check, or Manual.
   • Confirm payee details — for ACH, verify the vendor's bank account and routing number; for check, verify the mailing address.
4. Review the payment summary, then confirm to submit.

Combined Payments

If you have multiple outstanding bills for the same vendor, Topkey can group them into a single payment transaction instead of sending separate payments.

Requirements for Combined Payments

All bills included in a combined payment must share the same:

• Vendor
• Payment account
• Payment method

Enabling Combined Payments

Combined payments are configured per vendor. To turn this on for a vendor:

1. Go to Vendors and open the vendor's record.
2. Enable the Combine Payments setting.

Once enabled, eligible bills to that vendor will be grouped automatically when you initiate payment.

Payment Statuses

After a payment is initiated, it moves through the following statuses:

• Scheduled — the payment has been submitted and is queued to be sent.
• Processing — the payment is in transit to the vendor.
• Paid — the payment has been delivered successfully.
• Failed — the payment could not be completed. See Retrying a Failed Payment below.

Managing Payments

Canceling a Scheduled Payment

You can cancel a payment while it is still in Scheduled status.

1. Open the bill.
2. In the payment details section, select Cancel Payment.
3. Confirm the cancellation.

Once a payment moves to Processing, it can no longer be canceled.

Retrying a Failed Payment

If a payment has a Failed status, you can retry it directly from the bill.

1. Open the bill with the failed payment.
2. In the payment details section, select Retry Payment.
3. Confirm to resubmit.

Returning a Failed Pass-Through ACH Payment

If a pass-through ACH payment fails, you have the option to return the funds to the originating external bank account rather than retrying.

1. Open the bill with the failed pass-through ACH payment.
2. In the payment details section, select Return Payment.
3. Confirm to send the funds back to the originating bank account.

Use this option when you want to reclaim the funds before resolving the vendor's banking details and reissuing payment.

Deleting a Payment Record

If you need to completely remove a payment from a bill — for example, to correct an error or reopen the bill for a new payment — you can delete the payment record.

1. Open the bill.
2. In the payment details section, select Delete Payment.
3. Confirm the deletion.

Deleting the payment record reopens the bill so it can be paid again. This action does not reverse or recall any funds that were already sent — use it only when the payment was recorded incorrectly or needs to be replaced.

Viewing a Paid Bill

Once a bill has been paid, the payment details are available directly on the bill. You can see:

• Payment method used (ACH, check, or manual)
• Date paid
• Confirmation details for the transaction

This information stays on the bill for your records and can be used to verify payment history at any time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I don't have enough funds in my Topkey Deposit Account for a Same-Day ACH or check payment? The payment will fail. Before initiating payment, ensure your Deposit Account has sufficient funds to cover the bill amount plus any applicable fees (such as the $2 check fee). If a payment fails due to insufficient funds, you can retry it once funds are available.

Can I combine bills from different vendors into one payment? No. Combined payments only apply to multiple bills from the same vendor. Bills from different vendors are always paid as separate transactions.

How do I know which payment method a vendor supports? You can view the payment methods configured for a vendor on the bill's details panel under Payment Method, or by opening the vendor's record on the Vendors page. If a method is not available for a vendor, it will not appear as an option during the payment flow.

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