# Setting Up Stripe Payments

ForkLine processes card payments through **Stripe**. Every restaurant gets its own Stripe account, and money from your orders goes into your bank account — not into a ForkLine account that pays you later.

You cannot accept any card payment, online or at the counter, until this is finished.

## What "your own Stripe account" means

This is the part worth understanding, because it's different from how food delivery marketplaces work.

- **You are the merchant of record.** Card payments are charged directly on your Stripe account. The charge on your customer's statement is yours.
- **Payouts go from Stripe to your bank**, on Stripe's schedule. ForkLine never holds your money and never pays you out. See [Payouts & Timelines](/payouts).
- **ForkLine takes no cut of a payment.** Stripe's processing fee is deducted by Stripe; the rest is yours. See [Processing Fees Explained](/processing-fees).
- **Refunds and disputes are yours to manage**, and come out of your balance. See [Refunds & Cancellations](/refunds).

Your account is a **Stripe Express** account, which means Stripe handles identity verification, tax forms, and payouts, and gives you a Stripe-hosted dashboard for the money side.

## Before you start

Have these ready — Stripe will ask for all of them, and stopping halfway means starting the form again:

- **Your legal business name and structure** (sole proprietor, LLC, corporation) exactly as registered.
- **Your EIN**, or your SSN if you're a sole proprietor without one.
- **Your business address and phone number.**
- **A bank account and routing number** for payouts. It must be a checking account in the business's name — Stripe rejects most savings accounts.
- **A government photo ID** for the person who owns or controls the business. You may need to photograph it.
- **Date of birth and home address** for that person. Stripe is legally required to verify a real human behind every account.

> Stripe asks for this because payment processors are legally required to identify their merchants. It isn't a ForkLine requirement, and none of it is visible to ForkLine.

## Step 1: Start Stripe onboarding

1. In the admin, go to **Settings → Payments**.
2. Find the Stripe card and choose **Set up payments** (or **Continue setup** if you've started before).
3. You'll be handed off to a Stripe-hosted form. This is Stripe's own page, not ForkLine's — your details go straight to Stripe.

## Step 2: Complete Stripe's form

Work through Stripe's questions using the details you gathered above.

- **Enter your legal name exactly as registered.** A mismatch between your legal name and your EIN is the single most common cause of a stuck account.
- **Your "statement descriptor"** is what customers see on their card statement. Use the name they'd recognize from your sign, not your holding-company name — a descriptor nobody recognizes causes disputes.
- **Double-check the bank account and routing number.** A wrong digit here usually isn't caught until your first payout fails days later.

## Step 3: Return to ForkLine and confirm

When Stripe finishes, it sends you back to ForkLine automatically.

Go back to **Settings → Payments** and confirm the status. You want it to say your account is connected and **fully set up**.

If it says **"onboarding is not yet complete"**, Stripe still needs something. Choose the link to return to Stripe and finish. This status is Stripe's, read live — ForkLine cannot mark you complete.

## Step 4: Take a test payment

Don't wait for a real customer to discover a problem.

1. Open your ordering page and place a small order.
2. Pay with a real card.
3. Confirm it appears as paid in [the order queue](/orders).
4. [Refund it](/refunds) — refunds return the processing fee's percentage portion, though not always the fixed portion.

If you also take counter payments, run one charge on the card reader too. See [Using the Register](/register-pos).

## Two things that surprise people

**Stripe can ask for more information later.** As your volume grows, or at random for compliance review, Stripe may request additional documents. It will email you. Answer promptly — an unanswered request can pause payouts.

**Your first payout takes longer than the rest.** This is normal and universal for new accounts. See [Payouts & Timelines](/payouts) before you plan around the money.

## Troubleshooting

**"Onboarding is not yet complete" after finishing the form.** Stripe needs something else. Return to Stripe from Settings → Payments — it'll show what's outstanding. Common causes: an unverified ID photo, a business-name/EIN mismatch, or an unconfirmed bank account.

**Customers can't pay.** Confirm Settings → Payments shows the account fully set up. If it does, see [Troubleshooting](/troubleshooting).

**Wrong business name on statements.** Fix the statement descriptor in your Stripe dashboard.

## Where to go next

- [Processing Fees Explained](/processing-fees) — exactly what each payment costs
- [Payouts & Timelines](/payouts) — when the money reaches your bank
- [Refunds & Cancellations](/refunds)
- [Subscription & Billing](/subscription-billing) — your $49.99 ForkLine subscription