| Policy Title | Credit Card Policy |
|---|---|
| Responsible Office | Senior Associate Vice President for Budget and Business Affairs |
| Policy Type | Business Affairs |
| Policy Number | 223 |
| Last Revision Date | 10/16/2026 |
Binghamton University accepts all major credit and debit cards (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express) as payment for goods and services.
Before accepting credit/debit card payments, university departments must:
- Submit a new merchant request and obtain approval from the Accounting Office.
- Become fully compliant with (Policy #308) Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). Continued compliance is required to maintain merchant status.
- Establish a refund policy. In accordance with this policy, credit cards may be refunded up to the original purchase amount. Online transactions must include acknowledgement and acceptance of the refund policy as part of the checkout process. In accordance with card brand standards, any amount originally paid with a credit card must be refunded in the same manner.
- Consult with the Accounting office to setup and receive training on physical point
of sale terminals, or consult with the Bursar’s Office to facilitate online payments
through Nelnet.
- If a department chooses to work with an outside software vendor, they will be responsible for additional costs associated with doing so.
- Identify a source of funds to cover merchant fees associated with credit card processing. State funding is available to cover credit card merchant fees, however, it is not guaranteed and may vary in amount annually. Departments are responsible for any merchant fees not covered by state funding.
As an approved credit/debit card merchant, university departments must:
- Process credit card batch settlements at a minimum of once per day.
- In the case of a physical terminal, a batch should be submitted for each change in cashier. Cashiers may never share a terminal.
- Nelnet batch settlements are automatically created each evening.
- Each time a batch is settled, funds are deposited in the university’s bank account.
- Complete a deposit transmittal form for each settlement to record this activity in
the general ledger. The form must be emailed to the Bursar’s Office at deptrans@binghamton.edu and recorded in the revenue accounting system within five business days to ensure
timely recording of the activity.
- Campus has developed an automated receipting process for Nelnet Storefront and Commerce Manager.
- Maintain copies of the terminal batch settlement reports, deposit transmittals, and completed receipts in accordance with SUNY record retention policy.
- Designate one department financial representative to be granted access to the bank settlement reports. Regular monthly reconciliations must be completed between department software, the bank, Business Intelligence, and Revenue Web Application/Revenue Details SAS VA Dashboard.
- Provide full transaction information to the Accounting Office upon request in support of settling credit card disputes. If the dispute is lost, the department account will be debited to reflect the lost funds.
To avoid potentially fraudulent transactions:
- In person transactions should require EVM (chip) readers.
- Online transactions should require AVS (address verification) and CVV (security code) authorization.
| Date | Description | Responsible Party |
| 8/22/2024 | Biennial review conducted. No changes. | Business Affairs |
| 10/16/2026 | Revised policy approved by Senior Officers Group on 10/13/2025. | CFO and Sr. Associate Vice President |