AMEX Merchant Registration from Merchant Product Setup page

When setting up a merchant for AMEX, you must consider whether the merchant should be set up as part of a chain with an AMEX Franchise Chain Affiliated Property (CAP) number, or if it simply requires an AMEX Service Establishment (SE) number.

To set up a merchant for AMEX from the Merchant Product Setup page:

1. For an existing merchant record, search for the merchant to display its details on the Merchant Summary page, and then:
   1. In the Merchant Quick Links panel, click Product Setup.

      

      -or-

      From the Merchant menu, click Product Setup.

      

   The Merchant Product Setup page opens.

   

2. If the merchant is already boarded, click Edit.
3. In the AMEX panel, enter the AMEX setup details in the fields provided.
   • Front-end Only Card Type: Select this check box if the AMEX card type is front-end only. This option is for full-service clients whose bank allows them to determine if a card type can be configured as front-end only for a full-service merchant. This option does not appear for front-end only merchants. If selected, this option disables the PCID, Settlement, and Descriptor fields and the Card Plan Details button.
   • Account Number: Enter the AMEX account number, which must Mod-10 check.
   • Franchise CAP: If you are setting up the merchant as part of a chain with an AMEX Franchise Chain Affiliated Property (CAP) number, enter the CAP number here. For more information, see AMEX Franchise CAP Setup.
   • Submitter ID: When available, the selection from this drop-down list refers to a Merchant, Service Establishment (SE), Card Acceptor, Authorized Processor, Third Party Processor (TPP) or other submitter that directly accesses American Express systems to deliver settlement data.
   • Status: This shows the AMEX status code of the merchant account.
   • Date Submitted: This shows the date and time the merchant record was submitted.
   • Amex OptBlue: Select this check box if you want to register the merchant in the American Express OptBlue program. As part of the American Express OptBlue® program, TSYS Acquiring Solutions’ participating clients can enter into contracts with eligible merchants in the United States, with responsibility for determining pricing, risk/liability, and full servicing of American Express® card processing.
   • High Volume: When available, select this check box to indicate that the merchant has exceeded $500,000 in AMEX sales and is reported on the Discount Review Report.
   • Settlement: If the card plan is full service and accepted at the association level, select this option to enable settlement for Amex. If the Card Type is designated as front-end only or the card plan is not accepted at the association level, then the Settlement option is unavailable. This option is for full-service merchants only and does not appear for front-end only merchants.
   • PCID: From the drop-down list, select the appropriate numeric ID used by AMEX to identify the merchant's type of business.
   • Descriptor: Enter the AMEX Standard Industry Code (SIC) for the merchant.
   • Order Number: This shows the order number for the merchant; a unique identifier assigned by the order submitter.
   • Delete Amex Setup: If available, click this button if you want to delete the merchant's AMEX setup.
4. Click the AMEX Registration button to open either the Amex Merchant Registration page or the Amex FE Merchant Registration page, depending on whether you are registering a full service or front end only merchant.

   

   1. Enter the merchant information in these panels as required:

      Merchant Header

      The fields in this panel allow you to enter basic merchant registration information. Some of these fields are automatically populated after the merchant is registered. You will only need to enter the information in the BIN and POS Merchant fields.

      • BIN

        From the drop-down list, select the six-digit number that identifies the client bank. A BIN is assigned by TSYS Acquiring Solutions and is the highest level of the front-end hierarchy. The front-end hierarchy is used by TSYS Acquiring Solutions to route an authorization or batch to the correct Acquirer. BINS contain Agents, the second level of the front-end hierarchy.

      • POS Merchant

        The unique, 12-digit number that identifies the merchant to the client or agent bank.

      AMEX Registration Information

      The fields in this panel allow you to enter details about the merchant contact information and the American Express identification numbers. The American Express identification numbers include the Seller ID and Seller Industry SE fields. These numbers are provided by the back-end processor. The Seller State and the Seller Country will populate based on the number entered for the Seller Postal Code.

      • Seller DBA

        The merchant's DBA (Doing Business As) name.

      • Seller ID

        This number identifies a single merchant. A merchant may operate under multiple MCCs so they may be assigned multiple Industry SE numbers under their Seller ID.

        • For full service and back end only merchants, the Seller ID is a combination of the four-digit bank number and the back-end merchant ID, and the field is populated automatically.
        • For front end only merchants, you need to enter the Seller ID as defined by the Back End Processor.
      • Seller MCC

        The four-digit Merchant Category Code (MCC) for the merchant.

      • Seller Industry SE

        This is an identification number required for authorization, settlement, and reporting. A single Participant CAP number is assigned 10 unique Industry SE numbers. Every Industry SE number correlates with a Merchant Category Code (MCC) to represent the business type. Merchants with the same MCC are assigned to the same Industry SE number.

        • For full service and back end only merchants, the Seller Industry SE is populated automatically based on the Participant CAP number.
        • For front end only merchants, you need to enter the Seller Industry SE as defined by the Back End Processor.
      • Seller Email Address

        The merchant’s business email address. This field is required for MCC 5969. Use standard email format (for example, email@server.com).

      • Seller Phone Number

        The merchant phone number.

      • Seller Address

        The physical address of the merchant location. This cannot be a PO Box number.

      • Seller Postal Code

        The ZIP code associated with the merchant’s physical address. This postal code must be within the 50 US states and Washington DC.

      • Seller City

        The city associated with the merchant’s physical address. This field will automatically default based on the postal code; however, you can also manually change the city.

      • Seller State

        The state associated with the merchant’s physical address. This field will automatically default based on the Seller Postal Code.

      • Seller Country

        The country associated with the merchant’s physical address. This field will automatically default based on the Seller Postal Code. The only valid value for this field is the United States.

      • PSP Name

        The Payment Service Provider name.

      Additional Terminal Information

      This panel allows you to identify additional MCCs set up for the terminals. This information is required in order to board terminals under a different MCC than identified in the Merchant Header panel. To add an additional MCC:

      1. Enter information in these fields:
         • Additional Merchant Category Code: Enter the MCC.
         • Additional Industry SE: Enter the Industry SE number as defined by the Back End Processor.
      2. Click ADD.

         The combined MCC/Industry SE number appears in the Additional MCC - Additional Industry SE list.

      3. To remove an MCC/Industry SE number, select it in the Additional MCC - Additional Industry SE list, and then click REMOVE.

         The MCC/Industry SE number is deleted from the Additional MCC - Additional Industry SE list.

   2. To save the merchant information, click Save.

      Saving the merchant allows you to store the registration if you need to board it at a later date. Once you are ready to board the request, you can search for the merchant from the AMEX Merchant Registration Homepage, edit the required information, and then board the request. Boarding the merchant will register the merchant for American Express in the TSYS system and send the merchant information to American Express.

      Note: If the merchant's AMEX Merchant Registration record has been saved but has not yet been registered, a Delete button appears at the bottom of this page, which you can click to delete the record. This enables you to remove any saved merchant registration record that is no longer valid or no longer needed. Once a merchant’s registration record has been boarded, this button and the delete functionality will no longer be available for the record.
      
      
      Tip: You can view a list of saved records by searching for merchants whose Registration Status is Saved.

   3. If you opened this page from the Merchant Product Setup page, click Next.

      -or-

      If you opened this page from the Homepage, and have completed the fields on this page and validated all required information per the American Express OptBlue Operating Regulations, board the merchant by clicking Board.

   

   1. Enter the merchant information in these panels as required:

      Merchant Header

      The fields in this panel allow you to enter basic merchant registration information. Your selection from the Bank drop-down list may auto-populate some of the other fields in this panel if the merchant already exists in Express, and some fields are not populated until after the merchant registration is boarded. For example, the Original Registration Date, Last Maintained Date, and Last Maintained By fields are read-only fields that populate after registration.

      

      • Bank

        From the drop-down list, select the bank number for the merchant.

      • BIN

        From the drop-down list, select the six-digit number that identifies the client bank. A BIN is assigned by TSYS Acquiring Solutions and is the highest level of the front-end hierarchy. The front-end hierarchy is used by TSYS Acquiring Solutions to route an authorization or batch to the correct Acquirer. BINS contain Agents, the second level of the front-end hierarchy.

      • BE Merchant Number

        The 9-16 digit back end merchant identification number.

      • POS Merchant ID

        The unique, 12-digit number that identifies the merchant to the client or agent bank.

      AMEX Sales Lead

      The fields in this panel provide details about the sales channel, the merchant, the sales disposition, and other registration details used for the AMEX Sales Performance and Sponsored Merchant files sent to American Express. Some fields are mandatory, depending on whether the merchant is signing up for the American Express OptBlue program, the American Express ESA program, or if they choose not to accept American Express.

      American Express requires sales lead information about merchants who have declined to participate in the OptBlue program. Merchants not participating in the OptBlue program either chose not to accept American Express at all or have signed up directly with American Express through their American Express External Sales Agent (ESA) program.

      

      • Merchant Type

        From the drop-down list, select one of these options to indicate whether the merchant processes on the TSYS back-end or is a full service merchant (processing on both the front end and back end systems):

        • BE Only
        • Full Service
      • AMEX Cap Number

        An American Express identification number assigned to each PSE per transmit bank to distinguish who gets paid. A PSE client/bank will have one CAP number for each transmit bank. This field is automatically populated based on the Bank number.

      • Sales Channel Name

        The name of the direct or indirect TSYS client that is registering the merchant for the American Express OptBlue program. Typically, there is only one default option available here, and it is the name of the sales channel set up for the AMEX CAP Number.

      • Sales Channel Indicator

        The type of sales channel selected in the Sales Channel Name field. This field is auto-populated and read only. Possible values are:

        • Direct Sales Channel (DS)
        • ISO Sales Channel (IS)
        • PSP Channel (PS)
        • Referral Agent or ISV (RA)
        • Wholesale ISO (WI)
        • Retail ISO (RI)
      • Sales Representative ID

        The identification information for the sales representative registering the merchant. If the Sales Channel Indicator is set to PSP Channel, then this field will default to the name of the PSP.

      • ISO Registration Number

        This number identifies the individual ISOs under an acquirer (Participant Sales Entity - PSE) and is assigned by TSYS during the ISO registration process. The number is linked to a specific Participant CAP number. ISOs will register their merchants under their ISO Registration number. If the sales channel is an ISO, wholesale ISO, or retail ISO, then this field will automatically populate.

      • Seller ID

        This number identifies a single merchant. A merchant may operate under multiple MCCs so they may be assigned multiple Industry SE numbers under their Seller ID.

        • For full service and back end only merchants, the Seller ID is a combination of the four-digit bank number and the back-end merchant ID, and the field is populated automatically.
        • For front end only merchants, you need to enter the Seller ID as defined by the Back End Processor.
      • Marketing Indicator

        When this check box is selected, it enables American Express direct mail, newsletters, or messages about products, services and resources to be sent to the merchant. Communications may also be sent via inbound telephone, email, fax, website and any other means identified by sales channel. If the merchant does not enable this option, they may still receive messages from American Express regarding services and programs designed to enhance the value of the American Express Network.

      • Seller Legal Name

        The legal business name of the merchant.

      • Seller DBA Name

        The merchant's DBA (Doing Business As) name.

      • Seller Address

        The physical address of the merchant location. This cannot be a PO Box number.

      • Seller Postal Code

        The ZIP code associated with the merchant’s physical address. This postal code must be within the 50 US states and Washington DC.

      • Seller City

        The city associated with the merchant’s physical address. This field will automatically default based on the postal code; however, you can also manually change the city.

      • Seller State

        The state associated with the merchant’s physical address. This field will automatically default based on the Seller Postal Code.

      • Seller Country

        The country associated with the merchant’s physical address. This field will automatically default based on the Seller Postal Code. The only valid value for this field is the United States.

      • Seller Currency Code

        The currency type accepted by the merchant. This field is automatically populated based on the Seller Postal Code.

      • Seller MCC

        The four-digit Merchant Category Code (MCC) for the merchant.

      • Federal Tax ID

        The merchant’s Federal Tax ID assigned by the IRS.

      • Estimated Sales Volume

        The estimated annual American Express sales volume for the merchant.

      • AMEX Signed Date

        The date the merchant signed up for American Express.

      • Registration Status

        The current status of the American Express registration. Possible values are:

        • Amex Closed (A): This option is used when American Express notifies that a merchant needs to be removed from the OptBlue program, typically via the Seller Canceled Derogatory Notification file.
        • Client Denied (D): This indicates that the client has denied the merchant from the OptBlue program; this could be for any reason.
        • Closed (C)
        • Registered (R)
        • Reinstatement (I): If a client changes a merchant's registration status to Reinstatement (I), the status will be updated to Registered (R) within the TSYS Express AMEX Merchant Registration screen, after the Global SPOIG file creation. This logic is incorporated so that the merchant record is only sent once to American Express as Reinstated.
        • Saved (S): This indicates that the registration data has been saved, but the full registration process is not yet complete.
        • TSYS Closed (T): This option is for TSYS use only, should TSYS close an American Express registration account.
      • Reg Status Change Date

        The date the registration status changed on the American Express merchant registration.

      • Disposition

        From the drop-down list, select one of these options to indicate the disposition status of the merchant with American Express:

        • 1B- AMEX ESA: This indicates the merchant is participating in ESA. This disposition status is intended for your internal reporting and tracking purposes only, along with the disposition status of 3F- ESA-New Provider.
        • 1C- AMEX OptBlue: This indicates the merchant is participating in OptBlue. If selected, the page refreshes to include the panels Acknowledgement, AMEX Registration Information, and Additional Terminal Information. This disposition status should be used to register merchants who are accepting American Express for the first time, if known, at the time of registration.

          Note: Once a merchant has been boarded with a disposition status of 1C- AMEX OptBlue or 3E- OptBlue-New Provide, its disposition status can only be changed to either of those options.

        • 2F- Declined AMEX: This indicates the merchant has declined to accept American Express transactions.
        • 3E- OptBlue-New Provider: This indicates the merchant was previously accepting American Express (either ESA or OptBlue) under a different PSE/processor but has now moved to a new PSE/processor. If selected, the page refreshes to include the panels Acknowledgement, AMEX Registration Information, and Additional Terminal Information.

          Merchant registration records with this disposition status will be considered as registered for OptBlue, along with those having a disposition status of 1C- AMEX OptBlue, and will be reported to American Express as an OptBlue Seller. Using the disposition status of 3E- OptBlue-New Provider will help to distinguish merchants who have previously accepted American Express from those who are new to American Express card acceptance. The disposition status of 1C- AMEX OptBlue should be used to register merchants who are accepting American Express for the first time, if known, at the time of registration.

          Note: Once a merchant has been boarded with a disposition status of 1C- AMEX OptBlue or 3E- OptBlue-New Provide, its disposition status can only be changed to either of those options.

        • 3F- ESA-New Provider: This indicates the merchant was previously participating in ESA or AMEX-Direct under a different Service Provider but has now moved to a new Service Provider. You should use this disposition status to indicate that the merchant is being loaded as ESA or AMEX-Direct (similar to the current disposition status 1B- AMEX ESA) but is already accepting American Express.

          This disposition status can provide flexibility when boarding merchants. Merchant registration records with this disposition status will not be considered as an OptBlue opportunity and will not be reported to American Express.

          This disposition status is intended for your internal reporting and tracking purposes only, along with the disposition status of 1B- AMEX ESA.

      • Disposition Change Date

        The date the merchant disposition was changed.

      Acknowledgement

      The page refreshes to include this panel if you select AMEX Non-Acceptor Signed OptBlueSM from the Disposition drop-down list in the AMEX Sales Lead panel.

      

      • AMEX Annual Volume

        When selected, this check box indicates that the sales channel has verified the merchant’s annual American Express sales volume. The annual American Express sales volume cannot exceed one million USD to participate in the American Express OptBlue program.

      • Franchise Listing

        When selected, this check box indicates that the sales channel has verified that the merchant is not on the American Express Franchise Exclusion List.

      • High Risk Consent

        When selected, this check box indicates that the sales channel has completed all high risk merchant verification requirements. If the merchant falls into one of the High Risk Merchant Categories, the sales channel must follow all high risk verification requirements.

      AMEX Registration Information

      The page refreshes to include this panel if you select AMEX Non-Acceptor Signed OptBlueSM from the Disposition drop-down list in the AMEX Sales Lead panel.

      

      • Ownership Type

        The ownership type for the merchant's business.

      • Seller Business Phone

        The merchant’s business phone number.

      • Authorized Signer XXX

        Various required fields for the authorized signer's information; Authorized Signer Title, Authorized Signer First Name, etc.

      • Seller Email Address

        The merchant’s business email address. This field is required for MCC 5969. Use standard email format (for example, email@server.com).

      • Seller URL

        The merchant’s business website URL. This field is required for MCC 5969. Use standard URL format (for example, http:/companyname.com or companyname.com).

      • Signif/Benef Owner XXX

        These significant or beneficiary owner fields (Signif/Benef Owner 1 First Name, Signif/Benef Owner 1 Last Name, etc.) are required.

      • Industry SE Number

        An identification number required for authorization, settlement, and reporting. A single Participant CAP number is assigned 10 unique Industry SE numbers. Every Industry SE number correlates with a Merchant Category Code (MCC) to represent the business type. Merchants with the same MCC are assigned to the same Industry SE number.

        • For full service and back end only merchants, the Industry SE is populated automatically based on the Participant CAP number.
        • For front end only merchants, you need to enter the Industry SE as defined by the Back End Processor.

      • Front End Processor

        These fields identify the front-end processors for the merchant. Entry is only required if the merchant only processes back-end transactions on the TSYS platform. For each appropriate processor, select the Accept Processor check box and enter its relevant Processor MID.

      Additional Terminal Information

      The page refreshes to include this panel if you select AMEX Non-Acceptor Signed OptBlueSM from the Disposition drop-down list in the AMEX Sales Lead panel. This panel allows you to identify additional MCCs set up for the terminals. This information is required in order to board terminals under a different MCC than identified in the Merchant Header panel.

      

      To add an MCC:

      1. In the Additional Merchant Category Code field, enter the MCC, and then click ADD.

         The MCC appears in the Additional MCC - Additional Industry SE list. The Additional Industry SE number for the MCC will automatically populate based on the bank setup.

      2. To remove a MCC, select it in the Additional MCC - Additional Industry SE list, and then click REMOVE.

         The MCC is deleted from the Additional MCC - Additional Industry SE list.

   2. To save the merchant information, click Save.

      Saving the merchant allows you to store the registration if you need to board it at a later date. Once you are ready to board the request, you can search for the merchant from the AMEX Merchant Registration Homepage, edit the required information, and then board the request. Boarding the merchant will register the merchant for American Express in the TSYS system and send the merchant information to American Express.

      Note: If the merchant's AMEX Merchant Registration record has been saved but has not yet been registered, a Delete button appears at the bottom of this page, which you can click to delete the record. This enables you to remove any saved merchant registration record that is no longer valid or no longer needed. Once a merchant’s registration record has been boarded, this button and the delete functionality will no longer be available for the record.
      
      
      Tip: You can view a list of saved records by searching for merchants whose Registration Status is Saved.

   3. If you opened this page from the Merchant Product Setup page, click Next.

      -or-

      If you opened this page from the Homepage, and have completed the fields on this page and validated all required information per the American Express OptBlue Operating Regulations, board the merchant by clicking Board.

5. Click the Amex Setup button to open the The AMEX Setup (1) page, where you can configure further details for the merchant's AMEX setup and create an AMEX SE number request. See Create and maintain an AMEX SE Number request.

   Note: The Amex Setup and Delete Amex Setup buttons only appear if the merchant in context was registered using the ESA Program.

6. Click the Card Plan Details button to open the Merchant Card Plans page, where you can configure the card plans for the merchant. See Configure card plans.