# Bank Payments with Invoices

Finix Invoices support bank account payments, including ACH (US) and EFT (Canada). To accept bank payments on an invoice, select **Bank account** under **Allowed Payment Methods** when [creating the invoice](/low-code-no-code/invoices/invoices-quickstart).

You can combine the bank account payment method with other payment methods like card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay to give buyers multiple options.

## How bank payments differ from card payments

Unlike card payments, which are applied to an invoice immediately after a successful submission, bank transfers are not final at the time of submission. A bank payment can appear successful but later be returned by the bank. This affects how invoice state and totals are tracked.

When a buyer pays an invoice with a bank account:

1. The payment amount is added to `total_amount_processing` on the invoice.
2. Finix groups the payment into a [Settlement](/guides/platform-payments/seller-payouts/accruing-settlements). When that Settlement is approved, the amount moves from `total_amount_processing` to `total_amount_paid` and the invoice updates to **Paid** (or **Partially Paid**).
3. If the bank returns the transfer, the amount is removed from `total_amount_processing` if it is still processing, or from `total_amount_paid` if it was already applied. The invoice is then recalculated as **Open** or **Partially Paid**.


Paid is not always final with bank payments
When an invoice includes a bank account payment, **Paid** is not a terminal state. A return can revert a **Paid** invoice back to **Open** or **Partially Paid**. Returns typically arrive within 1-7 days but can occur months later.

## When bank payments are applied

A bank payment is applied to an invoice when the Settlement containing the payment is approved. Finix groups transactions into Settlements on a daily or configured schedule. Once a Settlement is finalized and [approved](/guides/platform-payments/seller-payouts/approving-settlements), the bank payment amount moves from `total_amount_processing` to `total_amount_paid`.

If no settlement event is received within 7 days of the payment. For example, if the merchant is on a monthly settlement plan, Finix automatically applies the payment to the invoice.

When a bank payment is applied, the following statuses are updated:

| Resource | Status | Description |
|  --- | --- | --- |
| Transfer | `SUCCEEDED` | The bank transfer has been submitted successfully. |
| Transfer Attempt | `SUCCEEDED` | The Transfer Attempt on the invoice is created with a status of `SUCCEEDED`. The payment amount is reflected in `total_amount_processing` until the Settlement is approved, at which point it moves to `total_amount_paid`. |
| Invoice | `PAID` or `PARTIALLY_PAID` | If the full invoice amount has been collected, the invoice moves to **Paid**. If the settled amount only covers part of the balance, the invoice moves to **Partially Paid**. |


## Returns

If the bank returns a transfer, Finix removes the returned amount from `total_amount_processing` if it is still processing. If it was already applied, Finix removes it from `total_amount_paid` and adds it back to `total_amount_payable`. The invoice state is recalculated. Returns typically arrive within 1-7 days but can occur months later.

When a return happens, the following statuses are updated:

| Resource | Status | Description |
|  --- | --- | --- |
| Transfer | `RETURNED` | The bank has returned the transfer. |
| Transfer Attempt | `RETURNED` | The Transfer Attempt on the invoice is updated from `SUCCEEDED` to `RETURNED`. |
| Invoice | `OPEN` or `PARTIALLY_PAID` | If no other settled payments remain, the invoice reverts to **Open**. If other settled payments still cover part of the balance, the invoice moves to **Partially Paid**. |


Subscribe to invoice and transfer [webhooks](/additional-resources/developers/webhooks/integrating-into-webhooks) to be notified when a return occurs.

## Partial payments

If [partial payments](/low-code-no-code/invoices/accepting-partial-payments) are enabled on the invoice, buyers can make multiple bank payments. The total of all in-flight bank payments cannot exceed `total_amount_payable`, which prevents overpayment while payments are processing.

If a partial bank payment is returned after another payment has already settled, `total_amount_paid` is decremented by the returned amount. The invoice moves to **Partially Paid** if settled payments remain, or back to **Open** if no settled payments remain.

## Best practices

- **Wait for the invoice to reach Paid before fulfilling orders.** Don't release goods or services based solely on a bank payment submission. Wait until the Settlement is approved and the invoice state reflects **Paid** or **Partially Paid**.
- **Monitor for returns.** Subscribe to invoice and transfer webhooks to be notified when a bank payment is returned and the invoice state changes.
- **Plan for late returns.** Returns typically arrive within 1-7 days but can occur months later. Build your workflows to handle invoice state reversals even after a payment appears settled.