Paying bills in installments helps small businesses have more control over their cash flow. Melio lets them buy what they need now and pay for it over time.
We’re always working to protect our users from fraud. As a result, not every business or bill payment is eligible for installments.
There are 2 types of eligibility checks:
1. Business account eligibility
When a business account is applying for Pay over time, it goes through an eligibility check. After it is found eligible, every payment is reviewed individually.
Business account eligibility
A business that wants to start splitting its bill payments needs to apply for Pay over time with Melio.
Applying is done once the first time a business owner wants to make a bill payment in installments.
The business account eligibility is checked in 2 steps:
2. Eligibility by Credit Key, our financing partner.
Preliminary eligibility check
Businesses that meet the eligibility criteria, which include, among other things, previous payment history and other credit and risk factors, will be presented with the option to pay bills in installments. When they select the option 'Pay over time' they start their application process.
Eligibility by Credit Key
The next step is an eligibility check run by Credit Key, our financing partner. This comes once a business meets the preliminary criteria and selected the option to pay over time.
Eligible businesses for Pay over time must meet the following criteria:
a. Have a FICO®/credit score of 600 or above.
b. Have a total gross annual business revenue of $40,000 or more.
To check this information, Credit Key runs a soft credit pull on the owner who is applying. Once a business meets all these requirements, it is approved to pay bills in installments.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Soft credit pull doesn't affect the applying owner's credit score.
There’s no need to reapply every time you make a bill payment with installments. Eligibility is maintained as long as the financial status of the business hasn't changed (for example, all repayments are paid on time).
Payment eligibility
After a business is approved for Pay over time, Melio only checks the eligibility of each bill payment to offer the best installment terms.
A bill payment is eligible when:
- Every previous repayment was paid in full.
- The account’s status at Credit Key hasn’t changed.