How long do payments take to process?
Understand standard processing times for invoice payments, bill payments, and Beam Balance transfers — and the most common reasons a payment might take a little longer.
Payment timing in Beam depends on the payment method and where the money is going. Most payments follow the standard timelines below, though a few situations can add a little extra time.
Invoice payments (money coming in from your client)
Timing depends on the payment method and where the funds are deposited. Depositing to your Beam Balance is one business day faster than depositing to a bank account.
| Payment method | To your bank account | To your Beam Balance |
|---|---|---|
| ACH | 2–3 business days | 1–2 business days |
| Credit card | 1–2 business days | Instant |
Bill payments (money going out to your vendors and subs)
Timing depends on where the funds are paid from. Paying from your Beam Balance is one business day faster than paying from a linked bank account.
| Funding source | Processing time |
|---|---|
| Bank account | 2–3 business days |
| Beam Balance | 1–2 business days |
Beam Balance transfers
Moving funds between your Beam Balance and your bank account, in either direction, is as fast as the same day and completes by the next business day at the latest.
Banks typically post funds around 5:00 PM Pacific Time, so a transfer may not appear in your account right away. If it still hasn't posted by the next business day, reach out to your bank first.
Why might my payment take longer than expected?
A few situations can hold a payment up beyond the standard timeline:
- Lien waiver pending: If a conditional lien waiver is required, the bill payment won't be released until your vendor has signed it.
- Vendor bank details missing: For ACH bill payments, the payment can't go out until your vendor has added their bank account information in Beam. They'll receive a notification prompting them to do this.
- Weekends and bank holidays: Processing times are counted in business days. ACH payments don't move on weekends or federal bank holidays, so a payment initiated right before a holiday or long weekend may take a little longer to complete.
- Extra verification: Occasionally, Stripe — our payment processor, and the same one that handles your Beam subscription — adds a short additional review step to a payment as a routine fraud-prevention measure. This is more common early on, before an account has built up a history of sending and receiving payments. When it happens, it can add a few extra business days on top of the standard timeline.
If a payment does get an extra verification step, no action is needed on your part. It resolves on its own and typically won't recur once your account has built up some payment history.
If you have questions about a specific payment, reach out to Customer Support and we're happy to take a look.