High-risk accounts
Vape merchant accounts & high-risk processing
Stratamize places merchant accounts for vape and smoke shops: we put your full product list, licenses and age checks in front of underwriting the first time.
About two minutes. Our team follows up.
What we set up
- Merchant accounts for vape, tobacco and smoke shops
- Application prepared with you before it goes to underwriting
- Clover at the counter or online checkout, set up after approval
Vape & smoke shops
Who we work with
Vape and smoke shops are a high-risk category for card processing, and underwriting reviews them closely. As a registered ISO, we place merchant accounts for vape and tobacco retailers, prepare the application with you and set up payments after approval.
We work with vape shops, smoke shops and tobacco retailers that sell in a store, online or both: e-liquids and devices, tobacco and cigars, hookah, glass and accessories, and often hemp-related products alongside them. A shop with one counter and a shop with several locations and a web store go through the same review; the second simply has more to show.
Card processing for this category goes through underwriting that looks closely at what you sell and how you check age. Mainstream providers often decline the category outright, or approve it and close it later when the catalog comes into view. Our job is to get the full picture in front of underwriting the first time.
Underwriting
What underwriting asks for
Bring as much of this as you have. We help you fill the gaps before anything is submitted.
- Your complete product list, including tobacco, e-liquids, devices, accessories and any hemp-related products. Leaving products out is the most common reason an account is closed later.
- State and local tobacco or vape retail licenses for each location.
- How you verify age at the counter and, if you sell online, at checkout and at delivery.
- Your website, with shipping, refund and contact policies, and the states you ship to.
- Recent processing statements, if you take cards today, and any notice from a provider that closed or restricted your account.
The FDA's guidance for tobacco retailers sets out federal retail obligations, including checking photo ID for customers under 30. Underwriting expects your age checks to match what you sell and where.
Setup
How setup works
After approval we set up how you take payment. Online sales run through an NMI or Authorize.net gateway with a hosted payment form, so card numbers go straight to the processor and never through your website or our team. At a counter, we set up Clover: the devices, your item list and your staff, tested with a live sale and a refund.
If you sell in a store, the POS side of your shop has its own page: Clover POS for smoke and vape shops covers the devices, age-restricted item flags and the ID-scanning apps we set up. If you sell online, the gateway connects to your web store and the merchant account settles your sales to your bank.
Reserves
Reserves and chargebacks
Underwriting may set a reserve: a share of each settlement held back as a cushion against chargebacks and released on a schedule your agreement states. Whether one applies, and its terms, depend on the review. What keeps an account in good standing afterward is ordinary practice done consistently: a business name customers recognize on their statement, a refund policy they can find, and a support line that answers before a customer calls their bank.
Selling online? The gateway is set up with the account: see the high-risk payment gateway. From our blog: Vape payment processing: connect age checks, products and orders.
Can you place a shop that sells more than vape products?
Yes. Put the full catalog on the application, tobacco, hemp-related items and accessories included. Mixed inventory is normal for this category; what underwriting objects to is finding products later that were never disclosed.
Can I keep my current POS?
Often, yes. Tell us what you use today and we tell you whether it can stay on the new account. If it is time to replace it, we quote a Clover setup with the merchant account.
What if my last account was closed?
Bring the closure notice and your recent statements. The reason for the closure shapes the new application, and underwriting will ask about it whether or not you mention it, so we address it up front.
Do you set up online sales too?
Yes. An NMI or Authorize.net gateway handles your web store with a hosted payment form. Your age verification at checkout and delivery needs to be in place before the application goes in.
High-risk accounts
Get your application ready for underwriting.
We tell you what underwriting will ask for and prepare the file with you before it goes in.
Approvals usually come back within hours, three days at most.
Book a call