Looking for the best and most reputable offshore merchant account providers for your small business? Check out our top options.
Jason VissersJason Vissers has been researching, analyzing, and writing about small business software and finance since 2015. His financial expertise has been cited in numerous publications, including The Ladders. Jason graduated with a Political Science degree from San Diego State University in 2001.
Expert Analyst & Reviewer
UPDATED
Advertiser Disclosure: Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity.
Finding a reputable offshore merchant account provider is no easy task. If your business is in an industry considered high-risk, you’ve likely had your merchant account application denied at least a few times. Perhaps you’ve even had your processing service terminated and your funds withheld.
We understand your struggle. We’ve seen countless businesses go through the exact same thing, and we’re here to help you find the ideal offshore merchant account for your high-risk business. In this article, we’ll discuss the factors to evaluate when considering an offshore merchant account and several features you’ll want to include in your service. We’ll also profile several offshore merchant account providers that offer honest, reliable value compared to the competition.
When Do Merchants Need An Offshore Merchant Account?
Not all high-risk merchants need an offshore merchant account. Businesses considered high-risk can include those not commonly associated with the term “high-risk business,” like web hosts or furniture shops. These businesses can usually get approved for a domestic high-risk merchant account. If you think this may describe your business, read our article on the best high-risk merchant account providers.
Here are the most common reasons for needing an offshore merchant account:
You do significant business in a foreign country and need to accept payments in the local currency.
Your business has offices in multiple countries, and you need separate merchant accounts for each location.
Your business is considered to be so risky that you cannot get a regular high-risk merchant account in your own country.
Five Advantages Of Offshore Merchant Accounts
If you’re an international merchant, it can be beneficial to have an offshore merchant account with an acquiring bank in the market you intend to emphasize. While it will help you to be able to accept payments in the currency most of your customer base uses, it can also help from a tax perspective.
International banks tend to allow higher processing volumes than their US counterparts.
Different regions of the world have different cultural standards as to what products are appropriate to sell, so diversification of merchant accounts can ensure that you’re not reliant on one merchant account in one country to process all your transactions.
Offshore merchant accounts can provide a means of processing payments to merchants who cannot get a domestic merchant account due to the nature of their business.
Banking regulations are more relaxed in certain countries, and the willingness on the part of banks and processors to work with high-risk businesses is also more favorable.
Three Disadvantages Of Offshore Merchant Accounts
While offshore merchant accounts can confer benefits to your business (and can be necessary to do any business under certain circumstances), they carry significant risks as well.
Your ability to pursue a legal remedy against a foreign bank or processor might be severely limited – or even nonexistent. At a minimum, consider legally registering your business in the country where your account will be located. However, even with legal standing, it may be extremely inconvenient and expensive to pursue legal action outside of your own country.
There’s an increased risk of fraud and identity theft. Banks in other countries collect the same personal data about you and your business that US-based banks do, but they don’t always do as good a job of protecting it.
High-risk merchant accounts are notorious for charging higher processing rates and account fees, and offshore accounts can be even worse. Providers know you’re particularly desperate, and some, but not all, will take advantage of your situation by charging you as much as they think they can get away with. We recommend that you shop around and compare multiple quotes when looking for an offshore account.
Some offshore merchant account providers downplay or fail to mention these risk factors, so it’s up to you to look out for yourself. Do some independent research, compare multiple offers, and thoroughly review all contract documents before you sign up for an account.
The 8 Best Offshore Merchant Account Providers For Small Businesses
By and large, you’ll want the same features for an offshore merchant account that you’d expect from a traditional merchant account. The following offshore credit card processing providers give you the advantages of offshore processing along with the business tools you need.
Exclusive Promo: PaymentCloud will give you $200 if they can't beat your current rate. Get Your Quote
Pros
Reasonable rates and fees
Excellent customer support
Few public complaints
Cons
No publicly disclosed pricing
High-risk merchants may have to accept tiered pricing, monthly minimums, and a reserve account
PaymentCloud Features
PaymentCloud is one of our favorite high-risk offshore merchant account providers, offering a full slate of features for both eCommerce and brick-and-mortar selling:
PaymentCloud doesn’t advertise pricing on its website, but the company offers both interchange-plus and tiered pricing. As always, try your darndest to get interchange-plus pricing, but high-risk merchants may have to settle for tiered pricing. With PaymentCloud, rates and fees are negotiable, but we’ve been able to gather some sample low-risk pricing offered by the company, which we’ve detailed in our PaymentCloud review.
When To Choose PaymentCloud For Offshore Credit Card Processing
PaymentCloud’s stellar customer support and excellent reputation make it one of the most reliable operators in the high-risk scene. In fact, processing behemoth Stripe now refers many of its declined clients directly to PaymentCloud. This should give you an idea of PaymentCloud’s stature. Furthermore, PaymentCloud’s customer feedback is mostly positive, which is decidedly not the norm among high-risk and offshore payment processors (and payment processors more generally).
Full range of products & services for retail & eCommerce businesses
Interchange-plus pricing for low-risk businesses
Excellent customer service and support
Cons
Rates and fees not disclosed on the website
Can only accommodate a small number of high-risk business categories
Host Merchant Services Features
While Host Merchant Services primarily caters to traditional, low-risk businesses, they serve several categories of high-risk businesses and also offer offshore accounts. Features include:
Choice of Authorize.Net or Transaction Express (proprietary) payment gateway
A virtual terminal
Web hosting service included
Full line of countertop and mobile credit card terminals
Free terminal available to merchants processing over $20K/month
Vital and SwipeSimple mobile processing solutions
Choice of Vital or Bonsai (proprietary) POS system
Cash discounting program available
Host Merchant Services Pricing
HMS uses interchange-plus pricing exclusively for its low-risk merchants, but you might have to pay tiered rates if you have an offshore account. While they don’t disclose their rates on their website, they’re based primarily on monthly processing volume and are very competitive. High-risk and offshore merchants should expect to pay higher fees than low-risk merchants, and possibly additional fees. Be prepared to deal with a rolling reserve as well.
When To Choose Host Merchant Services For Offshore Credit Card Processing
A former web hosting company, Host Merchant Services is ideally suited for eCommerce merchants. Retail merchants will also be well-served, however, as the company offers credit card terminals, mobile processing, and POS systems. If your business is in one of the high-risk categories HMS caters to, the company is a top-tier offshore merchant account provider. HMS offers 24/7 customer service and has an excellent reputation both in this area and overall.
Easy Pay Direct provides full merchant accounts for international, high-risk, and traditional non-high-risk merchants. Like most offshore high risk merchant account specialists, Easy Pay Direct works with a variety of banks and processors, both domestic and international, to find one that fits your needs. Features include:
Load balancing
Proprietary Easy Pay Direct (EPD) gateway
Virtual terminal available with the EPD gateway
Countertop credit card terminals
POS systems
Mobile payments
Proprietary QuickClick eCommerce software
Integrates with 250+ eCommerce software services
APIs and SDKs available for site customization
Easy Pay Direct Pricing
As with any processor that serves high-risk businesses, processing rates for Easy Pay Direct’s offshore merchant accounts will likely be under a tiered pricing plan. One plus is that Easy Pay Direct’s contracts don’t have an early termination fee, even for high-risk businesses. While this isn’t true month-to-month billing, it makes it much easier to close your account without penalty.
When To Choose Easy Pay Direct For Offshore Credit Card Processing
We love that Easy Pay direct offers load balancing, which lets businesses divide their incoming funds among multiple merchant accounts. This is particularly helpful for high-risk businesses that often exceed the monthly processing volume limits imposed by the processor underwriting their account. Just be aware that you’ll usually have to pay separate monthly fees for each account, so it might not be cost-effective for some merchants (and you may not need this feature at all).
Overseas merchant account specialist PayKings isn’t shy about its target audience, naming CBD vendors, adult businesses, vape stores, and pawnshops as high-risk business types serviced by the company on its homepage. In fact, the PayKings site has a page devoted to detailing its offshore merchant account services.
PayKings’s available features include:
Authorize.Net and NMI payment gateways
Shopify integration
High-risk ACH processing
Currency conversion & international payment acceptance
Developer support
Countertop terminals
Card readers
Recurring billing
Surcharging & cash discounting
PayKings Pricing
PayKings doesn’t have any pricing information publicly available, so don’t be surprised if three-year contracts, monthly minimums, and rolling reserves are the order of the day. PayKings does charge a monthly fee (the amount is undisclosed), but on the plus side, the company doesn’t charge any application or setup fees.
When To Choose PayKings For Offshore Credit Card Processing
For businesses in the highest risk categories, PayKings represents perhaps the best chance you’ll get (amongst reputable providers) at landing a merchant account.
PayKings gets a largely (though not entirely) favorable reception from merchants. Combine this with a large selection of terminals and card readers, eCommerce support, ACH processing, recurring billing, and surcharging/cash discount programs, and you have a high-risk offshore processor with a lot to offer the right kind of merchant.
PaynetSecure actually publishes sample rates on its website
Cons
Little merchant feedback available
No information given regarding terminals or mobile card readers
PaynetSecure Features
PaynetSecure specializes in providing domestic and overseas merchant accounts for high-risk businesses. Along with its offshore payment processing, PaynetSecure provides more than 80 different alternative payment methods used around the world. The company highlights its ability to accept UnionPay cards. With UnionPay now the largest card brand in the world (it is very popular in the Asia-Pacific region), PaynetSecure can position you well for international sales even if you’re not a high-risk merchant.
Additional features include:
A virtual terminal
Recurring billing
Chargeback management/prevention
QuickBooks integration
Developer tools
PaynetSecure Pricing
Unlike the vast majority of merchant account providers in this space, PaynetSecure actually publishes the following sample pricing rates on its website:
Discount rate: 3.5–6.95% for high-risk offshore accounts, 2.95–4.95% for lower-risk international eCommerce
Per-transaction fee: Up to 0.65% for high-risk offshore accounts, up to 0.45% for lower-risk international eCommerce
Reserve requirement: 5–10% for high-risk offshore accounts, 0–5% for lower-risk international eCommerce
Monthly fee: $50–150 for high-risk offshore accounts, $0–50 for lower-risk international eCommerce
While the rates you ultimately face will depend on the usual factors, it’s unusual to see this level of transparency from a high-risk/offshore merchant account specialist.
When To Choose PaynetSecure For Offshore Credit Card Processing
PaynetSecure’s support for a huge number of international payment methods, combined with the company’s unusually transparent high-risk/offshore account pricing disclosures, make PaynetSecure a solid choice for merchants looking to get an offshore merchant account. Unfortunately, very little feedback from merchants is available online.
Offers two unique payment processing solutions for cannabis merchants
A free hosted payments page is offered
Cons
Rolling reserve fund required for offshore high-risk merchant accounts
Some public complaints
Instabill Features
Instabill isn’t one of the better-known providers on our list, but its services jibe nicely with the needs of high-risk businesses. Instabill advertises its ability to accept and process credit card payments in 160+ currencies with its international merchant account offerings. The company partners with a wide variety of overseas acquiring banks, making it easier to match your businesses with the bank that makes the most sense for you.
Features include:
Proprietary Instabill Payment Gateway
Credit card terminals
Mobile POS
ACH processing
Specialized CBD & cannabis processing
Instabill Pricing
While many high-risk/offshore merchant processing providers are publicly silent on the issue of cost, Instabill has a page explaining why your rates will depend on the size & nature of your business. Instabill also details the fees that eCommerce merchants can expect to face:
Merchant Account Fee
Transaction Fee
Discount Rate
Merchant Account Registration Fee
Monthly Statement Fee
Chargeback Fee
Refund Fee
Instabill states that with high-risk/offshore merchant accounts, a rolling reserve of between 5-10% of your weekly sales volume will be withheld by the acquiring bank.
Unlike many high-risk merchant account providers, Instabill offers its services to cannabis merchants (not just CBD but actual cannabis) with both a debit card-like system and a crypto payment system, so if you operate a marijuana dispensary in a legal-weed state, Instabill may enable you to accept more than just cash.
When To Choose Instabill For Offshore Credit Card Processing
Instabill’s specialized services for marijuana dispensaries and CBD vendors make it an excellent offshore processing choice for businesses in these industries. Furthermore, the company’s expansive international currency acceptance is great for eCommerce merchants, and its unusual honesty regarding pricing and rolling reserve requirements speak well of the company’s integrity.
eMerchantBroker is a high-risk and offshore merchant account specialist with one particular compelling draw: it accepts nearly everybody who applies for an account. The company claims to have an astonishing 99% acceptance rate, so unless you’re involved in some super dubious/illegal stuff, you shouldn’t have a problem getting approved for an account!
Available features include:
Proprietary & third-party gateways
ACH/eCheck processing
Chargeback protection
Integrates with numerous eCommerce shopping carts
Cryptocurrency payment support
eMerchantBroker Pricing
eMerchantBroker’s broad merchant acceptance won’t come cheap. If you’re a particularly risky merchant, expect a tiered pricing scheme and rates that exceed even those of other high-risk processors. Some merchants may be able to get an interchange-plus deal, however.
When To Choose eMerchantBroker For Offshore Credit Card Processing
eMerchantBroker’s claim to accept 99% of applicants makes it a compelling option for the highest-risk businesses who might struggle to be accepted elsewhere. Plus, eMerchantBroker is one of the few entities marketing itself as a provider of cannabis banking services, so marijuana businesses struggling with being cash-only should definitely see what the company has to offer. What’s more, the company is accredited by the BBB with an A+ rating and a host of positive customer reviews, so this isn’t some shady fly-by-night operation.
Offers international merchant accounts to a wide variety of industries
Reasonable pricing and contract terms
Excellent customer service
Cons
No proprietary mobile app
Little feedback available from merchants
SMB Global Features
SMB Global specializes in providing merchant accounts to high-risk and offshore businesses. Using a variety of backend processors, they’re able to approve a merchant account for almost any high-risk business, including adult entertainment and CBD products.
SMB Global’s features include the following:
Choice of payment gateways
175+ eCommerce shopping cart integrations
Multi-currency processing
Dynamic currency conversion
APIs for developers
Credit card terminals
Mobile processing
ACH processing
Chargeback prevention suite
Business funding products
SMB Global Pricing
Because they work with so many banks and processors to get you approved for an account, the company doesn’t offer any pricing information. Processing rates, account fees, and contract terms will all vary widely depending on which backend processor is handling your account. While you should request an interchange-plus pricing plan, be prepared to have to accept a tiered plan instead, particularly if you haven’t been in business for very long. Likewise, expect to deal with a standard three-year contract with an automatic renewal clause, an early termination fee, and a rolling reserve.
When To Choose SMB Global For Offshore Credit Card Processing
SMB Global has an excellent reputation for fair prices and top-notch customer service. Plus, the fact that the company offers multi-currency processing and dynamic currency conversion makes SMB Global a great fit for our list of preferred offshore merchant account providers. And while SMB Global requires a minimum processing volume of $50,000 per month for an offshore merchant account, they may waive this requirement if your business has a very strong financial history.
7 Noteworthy Features In An Offshore Merchant Account
For the most part, you’ll want the same services and features for an offshore high risk merchant account that you would want for a traditional merchant account:
Processing hardware (credit card terminals and POS systems) for retail merchants
A robust payment gateway and an online account dashboard for eCommerce merchants
A virtual terminal for mail-order and telephone-order (MOTO) businesses
A smartphone- or tablet-based mobile processing system (depending on your business needs)
In addition to these basic merchant account features, there are several special features that your offshore credit card processor might (or might not) include.
Multi-Currency Support
If you’re going to do business in a foreign country, you’ll want your customers to be able to pay in their local currency. Multi-currency accounts allow you to maintain balances in multiple currencies and can save you a ton of money in currency conversion costs.
Currency Conversion Services
Having offshore credit card processing will require you to convert funds into your own local currency at some point. Most overseas account providers include built-in currency conversion services when it comes time to transfer funds to your business account. While these services often offer much lower conversion fees than what a bank would charge you, it still pays to shop around for the best deal. You may save money by using an international transfer service such as TransferWise or OFX.
Expanded Anti-Fraud Features
Offshore merchant accounts involve a higher degree of fraud risk than their traditional counterparts, so you’ll need extra anti-fraud protection. With most offshore payment processing providers, enhanced anti-fraud features come standard. These features automatically detect suspicious activity, hopefully stopping any fraudulent activity before it can affect your business. Providers are increasingly turning to AI features to improve their ability to detect potential fraud beyond what’s possible with a traditional algorithm.
How To Choose The Best Offshore Merchant Account Company
While many offshore merchant account providers also specialize in high-risk accounts more generally, not all high-risk processors work with international merchants or provide offshore credit card processing for domestic merchants. Many high-risk specialists only work with US-based businesses and only provide accounts through US-based banks and processors.
Before you apply for an offshore account, confirm that the company you’re considering works with businesses located in your country. If the info isn’t on the company website, talk to the sales staff to get a confirmation.
Providers that specialize in setting up offshore payment processing can usually get you an account in just about any country around the world, though obviously, there are exceptions (Afghanistan, North Korea, etc). But with the exception of countries limited by political considerations or severe instability, the possibilities are wide open.
In most cases, get an account in a country where you expect to do a significant amount of business. On the other hand, if your business is going to operate exclusively in the US, an offshore account serves mainly as a last resort for getting a merchant account when you simply can’t get approved for a domestic high-risk account. Banking regulations are relatively relaxed in many countries, and the willingness on the part of banks and processors to work with high-risk businesses is also more favorable.
All the while, bear in mind the disadvantages of offshore credit card processors that we listed near the beginning of this article. As always, special advantages come with particular downsides.
Tips To Help Get Your Offshore Merchant Account A Quick Approval
When applying for an offshore merchant account, it obviously helps to have your required documents in order (and the necessary amount of business & processing history) first. While requirements will vary depending on the processor, country, and acquiring bank, let’s look at what PaynetSecure recommends you have ready when applying.
Color copy of driver’s license or passport for the signer on the account
Voided check from the bank to which processing funds will settle
Three months of business bank statements
Six months of payment processing statements
Business formation documents such as Articles of Incorporation
PaynetSecure also states the following in the referenced article:
Most jurisdictions require companies to establish a corporation and bank account in the region where the acquiring bank is located (. . .) Some acquiring banks let you wait until the offshore merchant account is approved prior to you completing this step.
Which Offshore Merchant Account Is Right For My Business?
Having a hard-to-place business doesn’t mean you have to run your company through Bitcoin (though some processors do offer crypto payment support!). You can accept credit card payments just like any other business by finding a payment processor that will set you up with the right acquiring banks. At the same time, be fully aware that signing up for an offshore merchant account is a risky endeavor. Be cautious and carefully research any provider you consider, even the ones we’ve recommended above.
To that end, here are some final tips regarding your search for offshore credit card processing:
Be sure your account includes additional fraud prevention features to protect your sensitive financial data
Consider registering your business in the country where your merchant account is located
Compare multiple offers and choose the provider offering you the best terms & prices
Review all contract documents very carefully before signing up
For more information on high-risk and international merchant services, check out the following helpful resources!
Jason Vissers has been researching, analyzing, and writing about small business software and finance since 2015. His financial expertise has been cited in numerous publications, including The Ladders. Jason graduated with a Political Science degree from San Diego State University in 2001.
Let us know how well the content on this page solved your problem today. All feedback, positive or negative, helps us to improve the way we help small businesses.
Help us to improve by providing some feedback on your experience today.
The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.
Our Experts Recommend PaymentCloud 🏆PaymentCloud can help almost any business get approved for payment processing.Whether you're looking to save money on processing or to get approved for a merchant account, PaymentCloud can help.Get StartedAt PaymentCloud
