Founded in 2010 in Sweden, Zettle is a payment service and POS software provider owned by PayPal. Their payment management and expense tracking tools cater to businesses of all sizes, especially those in the hospitality and retail industries.
While Zettle’s solutions are suited for different types of businesses, they are not available to high-risk companies that offer specific services or sell illicit items.
In this article, we’ll explore which businesses are prohibited from using Zettle and the reasons behind these restrictions. After that, we’ll continue with the solutions on what you can do if you’d like to use the company’s services but your business is defined as high risk.
Sections
What Businesses Are Not Allowed To Use Zettle & Why
Zettle has a regularly updated list of prohibited business activities. If your company engages in any activities that violate Zettle’s regulations and policies, they may temporarily or permanently ban you from using their services.
Here’s a list of high-risk business activities that will get your account banned:
- Selling, reselling, or producing any type of illegal drugs, including prescription drugs, narcotics, drug equipment, steroids, etc. You can be exempted from this rule if you’re supplying medicines that are created or sold in line with the laws, policies, and regulations of the country where your business is registered.
- Selling and reselling any type of weapons and weapon accessories, including firearms, knives, guns, ammunition, pepper spray, etc.
- Engaging in adult activities, such as live streaming videos and pictures that contain any kind of pornographic elements, sexual dating services, exotic dancing activities and services, escort services, online dating apps, prostitution, erotic magazines, etc.
- Conducting activities that promote any kind of racism, hatred and radical political beliefs.
- Trading, selling or reselling any kind of wildlife.
- Offering specific financial solutions and services. To find out more about the types of financial solutions that Zettle allows, contact customer service.
- Conducting activities based on Ponzi or Pyramid scheme models.
- Offering or selling fortune-telling services and multi-layered marketing.
- Offering gambling, gaming, betting, bingo, casino-related activities and lotteries.
- Selling or reselling goods and services via eCommerce marketplaces.
- Infringing intellectual property laws, including trademark, patent, and copyright infringement.
- Covering an individual’s identity online or issuing any illegal documents to other individuals.
- Conducting any type of activity that is illegal or is listed as an illicit type of activity in the GBPP and BRAM guidelines. Also, any business that can put Zettle at risk, ruin its reputation, or cause complaints from customers.
- Reselling replicas, electronics tools, and devices that were obtained illegally.
- Offering anonymity-based services.
Additional Business Activities Restricted By Zettle
Zettle also prohibits businesses from using their services for transactions where the cardholder does not physically present the card to the merchant at the time of the transaction.
Here’s a list of the forbidden activities:
- Selling, reselling, or creating any type of tobacco products (cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and vapes).
- Offering any types of charity and donation services.
- Offering pharmaceutical items and services (with or without prescription), including chemicals, drugs, and nutraceuticals.
- Offering any type of illicit goods and services that are not compliant with the laws, bylaws, and policies in the specific region where the business is targeting their customers, marketing, and overall sale campaigns.
Requirements for Businesses Suspected of Conducting High-Risk Activities
Zettle requires their subscribers to meet the following criteria:
- Proof your business is eligible and in line with Zettle’s policies and regulations
- You’ve registered your account under the registered name of your company
- Your business offers services that are fully compliant with the legal framework, regulations, and policies, including the Consumer Rights Act from 2015, Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations from 2008, and the EU’s Electronic Commerce Regulations
- Proof that you reside in the same country where your business is registered
- Proof that your company’s operations are based in the country where it’s registered
Zettle is not obliged to give you prior notice if they decide to ban your account. Keep in mind that if you get banned once, you’ll probably be denied future access to Zettle.
Zettle has the full right to decide if your company is eligible to use its services or not. If they notice you’re selling or reproducing any prohibited item or service, they can ban your access to the platform at any time.
What Can You Do if Your Company Offers Prohibited Services
If your business offers any goods or services on Zettle’s prohibited list, you won’t be able to use their solutions. If you’re unsure whether your activities are prohibited, contact the company directly for clarification.
In some cases, they might find you are in a so-called “grey zone”, however, to determine eligibility, you may need to provide additional documentation for monitoring purposes.
Alternatively, you can seek a merchant service provider that accepts high-risk merchants, but be prepared to pay much higher fees.
Don’t worry, though; this is a regular and standard practice. POS providers such as Zettle do this so they can compensate for the potential losses or increased administrative costs associated with high-risk money transfers.
To stay informed about prohibited services and items, regularly review the company’s list, which is usually updated throughout the year.
Zettle Guidelines and Contact Options
If you believe Zettle has banned your account based on incorrect information about your business and you need further assistance, consider these options:
Contact Zettle: If your account is banned after an unwanted or unexpected activity, the first thing you should do is contact the company’s customer support at support.uk@zettle.com.
If your account is only temporarily restricted, you can log in to your Zettle account and go to Account Credentials, where you can update your business details. The company will also ask you to send further documentation about your business and will even opt for a full investigation on why there was unusual activity from your Zettle business account.
Contact FOS: If your company is based in the United Kingdom, you can contact the Financial Ombudsman Service (also known as FOS) within six months of receiving a ban or restriction by Zettle.
FOS offers free advice and services to help resolve legal complaints. To learn more about FOS’ services, you can get in touch with their customer support via the official website.
Send a complaint to FCA: If your business is based in the United Kingdom and you’d like to send an official complaint about a specific tool or feature offered by Zettle, contact the Financial Conduct Authority.
Zettle can make changes, add new rules, or delete existing ones at any time. The company usually sends a notice to their subscribers one month in advance.