Questions

1. What does “ACH Processing Time” mean?

2. What is a “Transaction Review Hold Period”?

3. What are the U.S. statutory holidays?

4. What is a “Funding Hold”?

5. What are the differences between “Transaction Review Hold Period” and “Funding Hold”?

6. Why are funds placed on hold?

7. When can I expect to receive the funds after they are released by CSG Forte from a funding hold?

8. Can I get my funds faster?

9. What are the differences between “funded” and “settled” transactions?

10. What are the submission to funding and settlement timeframes for ACH?

11. Do hold day timeframes work the same way for Canadian merchants?

12. Will a less-day hold guarantee I can collect funds from my customers?

1. What does “ACH Processing Time” mean?

ACH Processing Time refers to how long it takes for funds to move from your customer’s bank account to your business bank account after you submit an ACH transaction. This process includes several steps, starting from when you send the transaction file, through network processing and risk review, to when the funds are fully settled and available in your account.

2. What is a “Transaction Review Hold Period”?

The Transaction Review Hold Period refers to the number of business days (from Monday to Friday, excluding U.S. statutory holidays) during which a payment transaction is temporarily held by the payment processor or financial institution for risk assessment, fraud detection, and compliance checks before it is cleared for settlement. This hold applies to individual transactions and is part of the standard payment processing workflow. 

Note: The hold period begins on the next business day after the customer is debited, not on the calendar day.

3. What are the U.S. statutory holidays?

Statutory holidays, also known as public holidays or general holidays, are days recognized by law as holidays, and most employees are entitled to take them off. These holidays are established by governments typically to commemorate cultural, historical, or religious events. In U.S., the following days as recognized as statutory holidays: New Years Day, Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day & Christmas Day.

4. What is a “Funding Hold”?

A Funding Hold is a temporary restriction on the availability of funds that have been transferred or are in the process of being transferred due to a risk alert identified during the Transaction Review Hold Period. In these cases, your funds are held by CSG Forte, preventing deposits from being received to avoid immediate access or use of those funds while certain checks are completed. Usually, you can continue processing transactions during a Funding Hold; however, funding may be delayed until CSG Forte receives the requested documentation, if applicable, to release the funds.

5. What are the differences between “Transaction Review Hold Period” and “Funding Hold”?

These two key concepts can be distinguished based on their scope, duration, impact, and other characteristics listed below.

Feature	Transaction Review Hold Period	Funding Hold on Merchant Account
Scope	Apply to individual transactions.	Apply to the entire merchant account.
Purpose	Risk and fraud review of a specific payment.	Risk mitigation or compliance review of the merchant.
Duration	Typically 1–4 business days, or depending on the faster funding times.	Indefinitely or until the issue is resolved.
Impact	Delays processing of a single transaction.	Prevents all fund transfers to the merchant’s bank.
Who is affected	Customer and merchant (per transaction)	Merchant (account-wide)
Common triggers	Large or unusual payments, new customers, and fraud flags.	High return rates, regulatory issues, suspicious activity.

6. Why are funds placed on hold?

Funding Hold may be applied for several reasons:

• Verification of funds: It is needed to confirm that the sender has sufficient funds and that the transaction is legitimate.
• Fraud prevention: Holds are often used as a security measure to detect and prevent fraudulent activity.
• Regulatory compliance: Some holds are required by law or banking regulations, especially for large or international transfers.
• Bank policies: Each bank may have its own internal policies regarding how long funds are held before being released.
• Transaction returned: This hold prevents future issues and assesses account status after a transaction is returned. Its duration depends on the reason for return, which can be consulted on the ACH Return Codes resource.

7. When can I expect to receive the funds after they are released by CSG Forte from a funding hold?

Once you have addressed the issue that caused the Funding Hold, such as resolving any billing returns, our teams will remove the hold on your account and will do a final review to ensure everything is in expected conditions. If no further issues are found, you can expect your funds to be deposited within 3 to 6 business days after the hold is lifted.

8. Can I get my funds faster?

Yes—under certain conditions. While CSG Forte cannot accelerate the ACH network itself (which determines how quickly return notifications are received), you may be eligible for Faster Funding, a service that allows you to receive your funds before the usual 3–5 business day Transaction Review Hold Period is complete. 

This service is charged with a fee that varies depending on the chosen Faster Funding tier (Next Day, Expedited or Accelerated) and it is calculated based on the total amount of credits or debits processed each month, which means the fee may vary from month to month. You can review the details of Faster Funding charges directly within your monthly invoice. The charges will appear under specific line items depending on the type of funding request, as follows.

If you need to receive funds more quickly for a specific transaction or group of transactions, you can request Early Funding. Unlike Faster Funding, which is a permanent service, Early Funding is a one-time option that applies only to the transactions you choose. Once your request is approved, you will be billed with a one-time fee of $35.

To request Early or Faster Funding, please contact your Account Manager to discuss eligibility, pricing, and next steps or contact Customer Service at 866-290-5400 (Option 1 for Merchants; Option 2 for Partners) or by submitting a ticket through Contact Payment Support | CSG Forte.

9. What are the differences between “funded” and “settled” transa?

When a transaction is “funded”, this means the funds have been released by CSG Forte and are on their way to your bank account, whereas the “settled” status refers to the final confirmation that the funds have been successfully transferred and received by your bank. It is the end of the transaction lifecycle.

10. What are the submission to funding and settlement timeframes for ACH?

ACH payments go through several stages, and settlement (the official transfer of funds between banks) can take up to 6 business days, which means that processing does not take place on Saturday, Sunday, Bank Holidays, and U.S. Statutory Holidays. The timeframe may vary depending on the merchant’s risk profile, transaction type, and whether any funding holds or reserves are applied.

Day	Stage	Status	Explanation
Day 0	File submission	Initiation	Merchant submits ACH file, and it is processed by the ACH network.
Day 0-1	Customer account debited	Pending for Settlement	Funds are pulled from the customer’s account.
Days 1 to 4	Risk & Fraud review	Risk Checks (Funding Hold may apply)	CSG Forte performs risk checks; Funding Hold may be applied for risk mitigation.
Day 5	Funds released to merchant	Funded (if cleared)	If there are no issues, funds are released to the merchant.
Day 6	Final confirmation	Settled	Transaction is fully settled. End of the transaction lifecycle.

The Transaction Review Hold Period takes place from day 1 until the transaction is funded. If any additional validations are required, a Funding Hold will apply until the identified causes of the risk alert are clarified. The timeline for standard ACH funding and settlement is shown below.

Note: Times may vary depending on whether the transaction was submitted before or after the cutoff times, which can be consulted here. For example, if a transaction is submitted on Monday after the cutoff time, the origination date will be on Tuesday.

In case the “Risk & Fraud review” stage takes three days, the timeline will be shorter as follows.

For merchants with Accelerated Funding, the Transaction Review Hold Period is two days. The timelines for this Faster Funding category are as follows.

On the other hand, merchants with Expedited Funding will receive their funds in approximately 2 business days, having a Transaction Review Hold Period of 1 day.

Finally, merchants with Same Day ACH (Next Day Funding) will receive their funds in approximately 1 business day. Which can be extended to 2 or more days depending on whether manual review is required during the Risk & Fraud review. This is ideal for urgent transactions like corrections, refunds, or time-sensitive customer payments.

11. Do hold day timeframes work the same way for Canadian merchants?

Merchants processing transactions in Canadian dollars (CAD) may encounter a delay of one additional day in funding. For instance, those subject to a 3-day hold will receive funds on the 5th day (instead of the 4th), while those with a 4-day hold will receive funds on the 6th day. For example, a transaction in CAD submitted on Monday before cutoff time will have the following funding and settlement timeline depending on whether Faster Funding options are applied or not.

12. Will a less-day hold guarantee I can collect funds from my customers?

No. For any return received from your customer’s account within a period shorter than the standard hold time, there’s a risk that the funds may not actually be available—even if they have already been advanced to your account. With a less-day hold, CSG Forte releases the funds to you before confirming that your customer’s bank has cleared the transaction. If the transaction is later returned (for example, due to insufficient funds, a stop payment, or an unauthorized debit), CSG Forte must debit your settlement account to recover the previously funded amount.