B2B payments for online stores

Hey everyone,

Been grinding lately trying to figure out some logistics for my online store. Quick question: do I actually need a POS system or a cash register if my site only handles B2B payments?

Basically, a client picks an item, places the order, I process it and ship it out, they receive the goods and pay via business check or wire transfer upon delivery, and then I get the funds?

I’d be depositing all that money directly into my business account at Chase, and my accountant would just log everything through the standard bookkeeping reports?

“Cash transactions consist of payments for delivered goods or services made via bills or coins considered legal tender, cards, checks, or similar methods, excluding direct transfers to bank accounts unless otherwise specified by this Law.” (Section 2, Subsection 5)

Based on that definition, since I’m not running credit card transactions, can someone give me a straight answer on whether I need a register?

Best,

Paying via bank transfer means the customer sends funds directly to your account through something like Zelle or an online wire transfer. There is zero cash involved in this transaction.

It doesn't count if you take cash you've already collected and deposit it into your account later. 🙂

By your logic, nobody would ever need to report sales to the IRS, since everyone is required to deposit their daily cash intake by the next business day anyway.

If a customer pays you in cash for an order, you still have to issue a formal receipt and then make sure that cash hits your bank account by tomorrow at the latest.

Casey Bennett2 said:Paying via bank transfer means the customer sends funds directly to your account through something like Zelle or an online wire transfer. There is zero cash involved in this transaction.

It doesn't count if you take cash you've already collected and deposit it into your account later. 🙂

By your logic, nobody would ever need to report sales to the IRS, since everyone is required to deposit their daily cash intake by the next business day anyway.

If a customer pays you in cash for an order, you still have to issue a formal receipt and then make sure that cash hits your bank account by tomorrow at the latest.

FedEx offers to take the cash they collect from the recipient and drop it straight into the seller's account. That's likely what the OP meant.

Otherwise, at my company, we have to log those kinds of payments for tax purposes...

I have no clue how you think people are actually gonna pay a company like that.

Richard Perez3 said:I have no clue how you think people are actually gonna pay a company like that.

He must be talking about cash on delivery.

I’ve got my doubts. Actually, I’m pretty sure about it.

Richard Perez3 said:I’ve got my doubts. Actually, I’m pretty sure about it.

Just hammer out a deal with FedEx and they'll wire the cash straight to your account.

It doesn’t matter whether you deposited the funds into a bank account the following day or if the courier service transferred them directly to your balance; you are legally obligated to issue a retail receipt and complete the fiscalization process immediately.

Paying via COD is functionally identical to paying with cash—the only difference is that instead of handing over bills yourself, you're sending some guy from FedEx to collect the money and bring it back to you.

dustysurfer3 said:It doesn’t matter whether you deposited the funds into a bank account the following day or if the courier service transferred them directly to your balance; you are legally obligated to issue a retail receipt and complete the fiscalization process immediately.

Paying via COD is functionally identical to paying with cash—the only difference is that instead of handing over bills yourself, you're sending some guy from FedEx to collect the money and bring it back to you.

So, look, we’ve actually got this workaround—even with the USPS—where when you’re shipping a package, you can basically just toss in a standard money order or a general payment slip. It works like this: the buyer handles the cash, then hits up the post office to wire it straight to your account using that slip. Since their info is on there, it ends up looking like they just sent the funds directly to your bank account. Pretty slick, honestly.

I mean, honestly? Feels like this whole thing is being handled as some kind of wire transfer or direct business payment, so you wouldn't even need a receipt for tax purposes at that level. Just my two cents.

dustysurfer3 said:It doesn’t matter whether you deposited the funds into a bank account the following day or if the courier service transferred them directly to your balance; you are legally obligated to issue a retail receipt and complete the fiscalization process immediately.

Paying via COD is functionally identical to paying with cash—the only difference is that instead of handing over bills yourself, you're sending some guy from FedEx to collect the money and bring it back to you.

That's wrong.

Like others already pointed out, if a customer pays the delivery service in cash and then FedEx transfers those funds to the online store's account, it counts as a cashless transaction. No fiscalization required. (You still have to issue an invoice, record it in the books, and send it to the buyer, but it doesn't need to be fiscalized.)

Delivery services are essentially providing a service where they collect cash from the customer and then deposit it into the merchant's account.

Casey Bennett2 said:That's wrong.

Like others already pointed out, if a customer pays the delivery service in cash and then FedEx transfers those funds to the online store's account, it counts as a cashless transaction. No fiscalization required. (You still have to issue an invoice, record it in the books, and send it to the buyer, but it doesn't need to be fiscalized.)

Delivery services are essentially providing a service where they collect cash from the customer and then deposit it into the merchant's account.

Exactly—you can just set up a contract with FedEx. They collect the cash, wire it to your business account, charge you a fee for the service, and you get an invoice for that.
Since the money hits your account through them, it doesn't count as a direct cash sale, so you don't have to worry about fiscalizing those specific receipts!

Now, if you go the "cash on delivery" route where the mail carrier actually hands the physical cash back to you personally—and then you deposit it later—that's pure cash. In that case, yeah, you definitely have to fiscalize the sales.

There’s one more detail I think is worth noting—the USPS also allows for payments via standard money orders, rather than requiring a specific postal money order to settle a COD shipment.