JP2007529819A - Selective third-party deposit using electronic funds transfer - Google Patents

Abstract

  Employs electronic third-party deposits from merchant cash sales to deposit for third-party deposits for later use, such as consumption tax payments associated with merchant sales. Is done. A merchant uses a credit / debit card terminal to seek approval for the purchase / sale of a credit / debit card. An electronic money processor (EFP) sends a request for approval to one or more credit / debit card issuers. At the end of the deadline period, the merchant uses the terminal to report cash sales and credit / debit card sales with relevant amounts to be held in third party deposits, and credit card / Charges for transactions related to debit card sales. The third party deposit amount is determined by the EFP and compared with the amount of payment charged. If the amount to be third party deposited is less than the requested payment amount, this amount is subtracted from the requested payment amount and deposited by EFP into the third party deposit account. In this way, the third party deposit of funds related to cash sales is made automatically upon the merchant's request for payment for credit / debit card sales.

Description

  The present invention relates to a third party deposit (escrow) method for funds associated with sales made by a merchant. In particular, the present invention relates to a method for depositing funds from a cash sale supplied from a debit / credit card payment made electronically to a merchant.

  Computers allow a large number of myriad commercial transactions, including credit card transactions, to be performed quickly, accurately and easily. In addition to collecting retail payments for purchased goods and services from customers, in addition, merchants who collect customer payments for sales taxes on those purchases receive tax payments received and collected. Responsible for regular delivery to appropriate tax authorities, generally to state tax authorities every month or every three months. Some merchants find that at the end of each such period, they have either used up enough funds to pay the tax authorities or have not kept them separately. Some people.

  Accordingly, there is a need for a method that allows merchants to save money for regular payments of consumption tax from customers and make deposits to third parties that are obligated to pay tax authorities. For such purposes, collection, third party deposits and payments are made by one or more third parties so that the direct involvement of the merchant can be limited primarily to a “passive” role. There is a need for a method that enables the

  Published on June 12, 2003, Brown et al., International Patent Application Publication No. 03/048996 (“Brown Patent”), includes a number of reports to merchants as a result of customer credit and debit card transactions. From the amount to be paid, it is disclosed how a merchant can save some taxes (eg state sales tax) for tax authorities.

  According to the method disclosed in the Brown patent, an approval closed by the merchant via an electronic fund processor (EFP) if the method is not used (eg at the end of the sales day) A third party depositor, a third party, will transfer a portion of the funds that would be transferred to a merchant, for example, by EFP, from a series of transactions based on credit and debit cards Deposit in a deposit account. This process is managed by the EFP that determines the third party deposit amount and sends it to the third party deposit account.

  As described in the Brown patent, for example, a merchant may use a conventional credit card to obtain payment authorization from one of multiple credit or debit card issuers at the time of purchase. / Debit card terminals ("merchant terminals") can be used. Information entered into the terminal (eg, card number read by the reader, purchase amount by keypad entry and card expiration date) is received by the EFP and forwarded to the issuer for approval. Approval is granted (eg, as indicated by the confirmation number assigned by the issuer) and forwarded by the issuer via EFP to the merchant for storage in the credit card terminal. At the end of the selected period (eg at the end of each business day), the merchant again uses the credit card terminal to close the approved purchase transaction to request payment from the issuer. do.

  Once the transactions are closed, the EFP will usually credit the merchant's account by electronic transfer of funds equal to the amount of the closed transactions, which will be used for these transactions. Supported by issuer payment. Alternatively, the EFP may transfer the closed transaction directly to the issuer so that the issuer can pay the merchant directly by electronic funds transfer. In any case, the revenue from the closed credit card-based purchase transaction is electronically deposited, for example, into the relevant merchant's bank account. The EFP and / or issuer may optionally debit the amount representing the associated service fee of the EFP and / or issuer prior to deposit from electronic funds transfer.

  As disclosed in the Brown patent, this process is accomplished by adding an agent, a third-party institution that takes a portion of the funds to be deposited into the merchant's bank account and deposits it to a third party. Can be extended. For example, many state tax authorities require sales tax payments for purchases made within the state, so money is deposited from a third party through electronic funds transfer and then paid to the relevant state tax officials. May be directed to. The consumption tax that is obligated to pay can be easily determined from the quantity, nature, and location of the merchant's sales, so the EFP can be ordered to automatically and easily make third-party deposits (e.g., electronic (In the form of software added or modified for funds transfer processing), whereby a third party agent treats the merchant to hold the funds separately Or effectively free from the need to manage the process of paying the consumption tax. In the method disclosed in the Brown patent, the consumption tax funds are deducted directly from the associated electronic funds transfer for third party deposits before the funds are deposited electronically into the merchant's account.

  Once the funds are deposited in a third-party deposit account, the funds can be transferred to a state tax authority (or other institution) on a predetermined schedule to meet the merchant's tax obligations. In view of performing this service, for example, by holding interest generated by funds in the account within the payment period, the third party deposit agent can obtain compensation.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the processing of the Brown patent. The numbered components of this process can be summarized as follows.

  1. The customer making the purchase presents a credit or debit card at the point of sale.

  2. A merchant uses a merchant terminal (shown as “merchant bank” in FIG. 1) to seek approval from a credit / debit card supplier / issuer via EFP To do.

  3. The merchant bank issues a payment authorization and a billing notice to the card issuer containing details about the account and transaction, including the transaction signal for the account for third party deposit. This notification may also be forwarded to a third party deposit agent.

  4). The credit / debit card issuer reviews the request for approval, decides to accept or decline it, and responds to the EFP. The issuer may also forward the response to a third party depositor agent.

  5). The EFP forwards the issuer's response to the merchant. The reply may also include information for refusing, allowing, and sending account information for third party deposits to a third party deposit agent.

  The Brown patent further discloses that taxable cash income may also be deposited using this process to a third party. Taxable cash transactions that occur over the entire payment period are made by the so-called “forced entry” (for example, using a password or personal identification number to secure entry on the device) Of credit card terminals. Once entered, cash sales tax is debited to the merchant's bank account, for example, to credit a third party deposit account.

  The Brown patent proposes two methods for depositing taxes on cash transactions to a third party, both of which rely on the same method of debiting the consumption tax. The merchant is required to enter a card or personal identification number with readable information to perform a process of debiting the cash transaction tax from the merchant's terminal (CTTD), for example, when closing. (PIN).

  Forced input provides information to the EFP indicating all cash sales and the amount of consumption tax to be debited. The consumption tax on cash sales is deposited with a third party by, for example, debiting the merchant's business checking account. For example, if the sales tax is 6% and the cash sales are $ 100, $ 6.00 will be credited to the merchant's checking account, the sales tax will be deducted from the credit card sales, Filled in the credit of the account for the three-party deposit. The merchant keeps cash from the cash sales and deposits it into his business checking account.

  Third-party deposits from cash sales can be done this way, but this process can be a little inconvenient for merchants, for example, a merchant's account can be used for cash sales. You need to be diligent in order to always maintain sufficient funds to debit for third party deposits.

  An improved method of saving funds for third party deposits by an electronic money processor (EFP) associated with a merchant cash transaction within a deadline is disclosed. The method includes determining a first sales amount associated with one or more transactions other than a credit card / debit card transaction of a merchant within a deadline period; Determining a second sales amount associated with the one or more credit card / debit card transactions, determining a third party deposit amount based on the first sales amount, and a second sales amount. Determining whether the amount exceeds the third party deposit amount, and if the second sales exceeds the third party deposit amount, the third party deposit amount Crediting the merchant's account with an amount equal to the difference between the second sales amount and the third party deposit amount.

  In this way, merchants can be prepared for continuous and automatic collection of funds, for example by EFP and a third-party deposit agent to pay sales tax related to merchant cash sales. It is. Similarly, merchants can be prepared for regular and automatic tax payments from the collected funds to the tax authorities. In this way, the direct role of the merchant in such collection and payment becomes practically passive.

  This method may be used by merchants to deposit funds from sales transactions or third party deposits (for example, local, state, and federal tax authorities, judicial authorities, and legal judgments against merchants). Other applications that are required (by the recipient) have also been contemplated. In addition, this method can be used to save the merchant's third-party deposit funds and pay the merchant's deposit account to pay additional payroll tax or property tax surcharge. It is also intended to reserve funds for merchant third party deposits.

  A more complete understanding of the present invention can be obtained by reading the following description of the illustrated embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

  The following detailed description includes a description of one or more best embodiments of the invention that are presently contemplated. Such description is not intended to be understood in a limiting sense, but is merely intended to illustrate one example of the present invention, by referring to the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Those skilled in the art will know the advantages and configurations of the present invention.

  An improved method for automatically depositing merchant funds associated with cash sales to a third party is disclosed. In this description, “cash sales” is defined as comprising any of a variety of conventional means used to facilitate trading transactions that are deemed not to include a credit card or debit card. With this definition, cash sales were made using, for example, one or more of personal checks, money transfers, bank checks, traveler's checks, gift checks, gift certificates, and cash to complete the sales. It is considered to include sales.

  According to the improved method, the merchant terminal collects the total of three trading transactions for each closeout period: credit card sales, cash sales, and tax-free sales. It is configured to report. This can be accomplished, for example, by appropriate programming of the terminal (eg, a conventional credit / debit card terminal is programmed to ask the operator whether the transaction is taxable or tax-exempt. ) For each tax authority (tax jurisdiction), the merchant's terminal adds credit card sales and cash sales, subtracts tax-free sales, and the percentage of taxes that should be deposited with third parties based on the tax authorities. Programmed to calculate Next, the tax percentage from the sum of credit card sales and cash sales is debited electronically from approved payments for credit card sales for the deadline period, and is used for third-party tax deposits. Deposited into an account. The merchant retains all funds received from cash sales (eg, it may be deposited in the merchant's bank account).

  Three examples illustrating third party deposit transactions at merchant terminals are shown in FIGS. 2A-2C. In FIG. 2A, all sales transactions reported within the deadline period are credit sales, each with a duty to pay 6% tax to the tax authorities. Third-party deposits for all consumption taxes are calculated on a computer based on the tax rate and all credit card sales, and the net credit card deposit is (third-party deposited tax funds Be subtracted from the merchant's account.

  In FIG. 2B, all credit sales and all cash sales are reported for each deadline period, each with an obligation to pay 6% tax to the tax authorities. Credit sales and cash sales are summed, and a third party deposit for all consumption taxes is calculated on the computer based on the tax rate and total sales. Net credit card deposits are deposited in the merchant's account (minus any third-deposited tax funds representing taxes that are payable based on both credit and cash sales).

  In FIG. 2C, the sum of taxable and taxable credit sales and cash sales is reported. For example, state law may consider certain sales tax-free (for example, in New Jersey, purchasing clothing is generally tax-free). Each taxable sale is obliged to pay a tax of 6% to the tax authorities. The sum of taxable and non-taxable sales is prepared for both all credit sales and all cash sales within the deadline, and all third-party deposits for all consumption taxes are taxable and taxable. It is calculated by computer based on all credit sales and cash sales. For example, all cash sales and credit sales can be summed, and all taxable sales can be calculated by subtracting tax-free cash sales and tax-free credit sales from all cash sales and all credit sales. it can. The tax rate is then applied to all taxable sales to determine a third party deposit for tax. Net credit card deposits (all credit card sales minus third-party deposits for taxes and any other applicable service charges) are deposited in the merchant account. All collected cash remains in the merchant's hands.

  In addition to depositing funds for consumption taxes that are payable for cash sales, the methods disclosed above are performed, for example, via email / phone / fax ordering and Internet sales. Can be expanded to

  Thus, to extend the method, mail / phone / fax sales and Internet sales are identified with tax codes for taxable and tax-exempt sales. Now, if you place an order from the same state where the merchant is based, or if the merchant you are ordering has a retail window in your state, these sales are taxable Only. The associated rules are fairly straightforward and are therefore easy to incorporate easily into existing software that may be used, for example, by merchants to track orders and delivery for such trades. According to this method, such merchant sales information can be obtained from an EFP and a third party deposit via an interface from the tracking software to the merchant's terminal or by other automated communication means (eg, electronic commerce means). Reported to the agent. The merchant terminal interface has the advantage that the merchant can close these transactions at the same time as closing other transactions recorded at the terminal.

  Sales tax collected from email / phone / fax orders and Internet sales is generally based on the tax authority of the place where the sale began, and the merchant is based on the tax authority of the place where the sale started. The applicable consumption tax must be collected and the tax must be declared in accordance with the tax law of the tax authority. Thus, each taxable sale will be further identified by the relevant tax authorities. The tax authority can also be easily determined from the customer order information, and thus the means for determining the tax authority can be easily incorporated into the merchant's existing order and delivery tracking software.

  As a result, such information can be collected and provided to third party depositors, and therefore payable from email / phone / fax sales and Internet sales within the deadline. Taxes are deposited from third-party credit sales revenue within that period, and sales tax declarations and payments for sales of orders via email / phone / fax and the Internet are deposited on behalf of the merchant. Will be automatically submitted by a representative on time and as required by each of the tax authorities. For orders placed in this way using personal checks, money transfers, bank checks, traveler's checks, gift checks, gift certificates, cash, or any other financial instrument used like cash The consumption tax may be deposited with a third party. Future tax obligations (eg, for Internet sales initiated outside the merchant's jurisdiction) can be easily adapted in this way and reflected in modifications to merchant orders and delivery tracking software.

  This method can also be used for other tax collections, liens, seizure notifications and collections that may be imposed on merchants by state and / or federal government agencies. For example, the Brown patent describes a process for adjusting the rate of consumption tax collection to handle additional taxation. Thus, for example, a merchant can reimburse the state consumption tax authorities at a manageable rate for the additional tax that is payable until the additional tax is repaid. For example, if the sales revenue subject to taxation is taxed at a tax rate of 6%, the percentage of third-party deposits is increased (for example, to 16%) in order to collect the additional consumption tax. ) May be adjusted. This third party deposit process can also be used to collect money that is obliged to pay from legal judgments.

  The present invention is intended to be applied to any practical application in which a merchant desires or needs to withhold funds collected from credit-based sales transactions. For example, in addition to the previously disclosed applications, to pay additional payroll tax or additional property tax, or to create a merchant deposit account (in the latter case, a third party deposit) It is contemplated that the method can be applied to generate funds for third party deposits of merchants.

  Furthermore, it is contemplated that the method may be used to simultaneously withdraw multiple third party deposit funds. For example, a merchant can specify a percentage of two or more third party deposits that apply to one or more types of eligible trading transactions, respectively. The merchant's terminal is programmed to enter such a percentage and report this percentage and the relevant merchant and transaction information to the EFP and the third-party deposit agent. It is preferable. The reported information preferably identifies, as specified, the tax authorities and / or organizations that are paid on a designated percentage and schedule for the relevant third party deposit funds, Preferably, it includes a conventional safeguard that authorizes (eg, by digital signature) the initiation and / or termination of these transactions. For example, it is optionally possible to extend such secure approval means to other organizations for payments related to legal judgments.

  An important function of the present invention is to provide information about third party deposited funds to merchants and each tax authority to which sales tax revenue is declared. As explained in the Brown patent, account information for third party deposits is in a format similar to sales payment orders generated by the terminal in response to each sale transaction, for example, at the time the revenue is closed. Can be provided to merchant terminals. In addition, the method may, for example, create an account for third party deposits to report a monthly summary to the merchant and / or prepare a tax return for tax revenues in the tax authorities. The software it manages is intended to be used regularly by third party depositors. If one or more types of funds are deposited with a third party, the monthly summary to the merchant may report, for example, the following information for each type: a) Funds collected for third-party deposits accumulated over the current deadline period and for a specified number of past deadline periods. b) Third-party deposit funds paid, accumulated for the current payment period and for a specified number of past payment periods. c) The balance of funds that are obliged to pay (if the type of funds is related to additional taxation, for example, or other debt that does not go away in a single payment period).

  A third-party deposit agent may, for example, set up a secure web site to present merchant and / or other recipients (eg, tax authorities) with account information for third-party deposits. Good. Alternatively, the third party depositor may provide the account information for third party deposits directly to the merchant and / or payee on a regular basis (eg, by email, facsimile, or other electronic commerce means). ) It can be sent physically or electronically.

  As mentioned above, although the present invention is not foreseen, the insubstantial amendment of this invention may represent the equivalent of this invention, The embodiment foreseeable by this inventor with which the description which can implement this invention is prepared. It explains about.

FIG. 3 is a first schematic diagram illustrating components of the method of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the third party deposit of the transaction containing sales other than a credit card / debit card. It is a figure which shows the example of the third party deposit of the transaction containing sales other than a credit card / debit card. It is a figure which shows the example of the third party deposit of the transaction containing sales other than a credit card / debit card.

Claims (14)

A method of saving funds for third party deposits by an electronic money processor (EFP) from a merchant's credit / debit card transaction associated with a certain deadline period,
The method
Determining first sales related to one or more transactions of the merchant within the deadline other than credit / debit card transactions;
Determining a second turnover associated with one or more credit / debit card transactions of the merchant within the deadline period;
Determining a third party deposit amount based on the first sales amount;
Determining whether the second sales exceed the third party deposit amount,
If the second sales exceeds the third party deposit amount,
Filling the third party deposit amount in the credit of the third party deposit account;
Crediting the merchant's account with an amount equal to the difference between the second sales and the third party deposit amount,
How to save funds for third party deposits.   The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more transactions other than the credit / debit card transaction is a cash transaction.   The one or more transactions other than the credit / debit card transaction is a payment selected from the group consisting of a personal check, money order, bank check, traveler's check, gift check, gift certificate, and cash. The method according to claim 1, wherein each method is easily performed using means. Determining a payment amount to be paid from the third-party deposit account;
Filling in the debit of the third-party deposit account with the payment amount;
The method of claim 1, further comprising: A method of saving funds for third party deposits by an electronic money processor (EFP) from a merchant's credit / debit card transaction associated with a certain deadline period,
The method
Determining first sales related to one or more taxable transactions other than credit / debit card transactions of the merchant within the deadline period;
Determining a second turnover associated with one or more taxable credit / debit card transactions of the merchant within the deadline period;
Determining a third party deposit amount based on a sum of the first sales and the second sales;
Determining whether third sales exceed the third party deposit amount,
If the third sales exceeds the third party deposit amount,
Filling the third party deposit amount in the credit of the third party deposit account;
Crediting the merchant's account with an amount equal to the difference between the third sales and the third party deposit amount,
How to save funds for third party deposits.   The method of claim 5, wherein the third sales amount is equal to the second sales amount.   The third sales is a fourth sales related to the merchant's tax-free one or more credit / debit card transactions related to the second sales and the deadline period. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the method is equal to the sum of high. Determining a payment amount to be paid from the third-party deposit account;
Filling in the debit of the third-party deposit account with the payment amount;
The method of claim 5, further comprising:   The payment amount is debited for payment to one or more of local tax authorities, state tax authorities, federal tax authorities, judicial authorities, legal judgment recipients, and merchants 9. The method of claim 8, wherein:   The method of claim 5, wherein the third party deposit amount is determined as a predetermined percentage of one or more of the first and second sales.   9. The method of claim 8, wherein the third party deposit amount is determined as a sum of one or more predetermined percentages of one or more of the first and second sales.   The method of claim 10, wherein the predetermined percentage is determined from a commercial tax rate.   The method of claim 12, wherein the predetermined percentage is greater than the commercial tax rate to facilitate additional tax payments.   The predetermined percentage creates sufficient funds for third party deposit to pay a predetermined total amount from one or more of the first and second sales over a predetermined number of sales periods The method of claim 10, wherein the method is determined by estimation.

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