Professional Services

The work is done. The invoice is still sitting there.

Firms that bill by invoice do not have a collections problem so much as a payments problem: the client has no easy way to pay you, so paying you keeps sliding down their list.

0 Flat fee per ACH debit
0% Faster payment with a pay link
0 Settlement accounts, trust & operating
0 Card numbers read over the phone
Wait Time: 1 Minute Available: 8 Agents

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The problem

Why professional invoices age

Almost never because the client disputes the work. Usually because paying you takes more effort than ignoring you.

Percentage fees on large invoices

A card fee that is negligible on a hundred-dollar sale becomes several hundred dollars on a five-figure engagement — so firms avoid cards and slow themselves down.

Invoice, then wait, then remind

A PDF with bank details at the bottom puts the whole burden on the client. Every reminder costs partner time and a little goodwill.

Card numbers over the phone

Someone reads a card number aloud, someone writes it on a pad. It works, and it is an audit finding waiting to happen.

Trust and operating funds mixed

For regulated firms, retainers landing in the wrong account is not an inconvenience — it is a compliance breach.

Retainers billed by hand

Monthly retainers re-invoiced and re-collected manually every cycle, consuming admin time that should not exist.

Reconciliation by re-keying

Payments arrive in one system and get typed into the practice ledger in another, so the matter balance is always slightly wrong.

The fix

The same engagement, collected properly

Without us

A five-figure fee is paid by card and gives up a percentage in charges.

With Bear Merchant

The same fee moves on ACH for a flat fee, and the difference stays with the firm.

Without us

The invoice PDF asks the client to arrange a bank transfer themselves.

With Bear Merchant

A pay-by-link on the invoice lets them settle in two clicks, from the email.

Without us

A card number is read over the phone and written on a notepad.

With Bear Merchant

The client pays through a secure link, so nothing sensitive passes through the office.

Without us

Retainers and earned fees land in the same bank account.

With Bear Merchant

Payments settle to trust or operating by type, with fees debited from operating only.

Without us

Every monthly retainer is re-invoiced and re-collected by hand.

With Bear Merchant

The mandate is stored once and the retainer runs on schedule with automatic receipts.

Without us

Payments are re-keyed into the practice ledger each week.

With Bear Merchant

Payments post back against the matter reference and reconcile themselves.

Getting it right

What a compliant firm setup looks like

Professional bodies and bar associations have opinions about all of this. Getting it right at setup is much cheaper than fixing it after an audit.

Trust account handling

  • Retainers settle to the trust account, never operating
  • Processing fees debited from operating only
  • No netting of fees against client funds
  • Separate reporting per settlement account

Client authorisation

  • Written consent before storing a card or bank mandate
  • Retainer amount and frequency agreed in the engagement letter
  • Surcharge disclosed before payment where it applies
  • Receipt issued automatically on every charge

Office practice

  • No card numbers taken or written down by staff
  • Named logins with refund limits per role
  • Payment link sent with every invoice as standard
  • Matter reference attached to each transaction
Who It's For

Firms we work with

Law firms

Trust and operating separation, retainers, and matter-level reconciliation.

Accounting & tax practices

Seasonal volume spikes and annual engagement fees billed in instalments.

Consulting & advisory

Project milestones and monthly retainers on a stored mandate.

Architecture & engineering

Stage payments across long projects with certification points.

Agencies & studios

Recurring retainers plus variable media and production pass-throughs.

Staffing & recruitment

Placement fees invoiced large and collected without a percentage bite.

By the numbers

What changes when paying you is easy

0%
Faster with a pay link
0
Reminders avoided per invoice
0
Flat fee per ACH debit
0
Card numbers handled in office
Our average invoice is well into five figures, so we had always refused cards and simply waited on bank transfers. Adding a pay link and ACH cut about three weeks off our average collection time without changing a single thing about how we bill.
HV Helena VasquezManaging Partner, corporate law firm
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Still unsure about something? Our team answers in plain language — no sales script.

Ask a question

Because your invoices are large. A percentage fee on a $15,000 engagement costs several hundred dollars; the same payment on ACH is a flat fee of about a dollar. On card-sized invoices the difference is trivial — on yours it is a line item.

Yes, and for regulated firms you must. Payments can settle to separate accounts by payment type, so retainers land in trust and earned fees land in operating, with fees debited from the operating account rather than trust.

In many US states and for many card types, yes — with conditions on disclosure, receipt wording and which cards it applies to. Surcharging is supported with those rules enforced automatically, but check your jurisdiction and your bar or professional body first.

A secure payment link attached to the invoice. The client clicks and pays without a phone call, a portal login or anyone reading a card number aloud. It typically shortens payment time more than any reminder sequence.

Yes. Store the card or bank account once with written authorisation and run the retainer on schedule, with automatic receipts and a record of the mandate for your file.

Payments post back with the matter or engagement reference attached, so your ledger reconciles without anyone re-keying. Most major practice systems either integrate directly or can consume the REST API.

Make paying your invoice the easy option

Tell us how your firm bills and where funds have to land. We will map the ACH, pay-link and trust setup around it.