RBC Express ACH Direct Payments and Deposits FAQs

 

Payment Groups

How do I create a payment group?

What is the difference between regular and contract payment groups?

Can I send a single payment?

I cannot make any changes to my group, and have received the following message,
"Payment Group [group name] is currently being worked on by [name]." What does
it mean and what should I do?

Can I copy records from one group to another?
 

Payment Files

Can I view/print the contents of an ACH payment file that I just released?

 

Reports

How do I download my service reports?
 

Other

How do I create a payment record?
How do I modify a T-error?
 

How do I create a payment group?

The first step to managing your payments through RBC Express ACH Direct Payments & Deposits is to create one or more Payment Groups. A Payment Group is a collection of Payment Records that allows you to group similar types of payments. Payment groups are static and are usually created only once.

To create a Payment Group:

  1. Select Payment Groups from the left-hand menu
  2. Select the Create button to display the new Payment Group setup screen
  3. Complete the necessary fields, then click on the Continue button
  4. Choose the appropriate selections from the dropdown boxes
  5. If user access to the Payment Group is to be restricted, select the Restricted radio button, then click on the Select button
    1. A list of available users will be displayed
    2. Choose the users who should have access to the Payment Group, then click on OK to return to the setup screen
  6. Click on Continue
  7. Verify the payment group details, then select Confirm


What is the difference between regular and contract payment groups?

Regular Payment Groups

Regular payment groups are a collection of payments without any associated payment frequency details.

Due date:

  • A common due date is selected for all Payment Records of a Payment Group at the time a Payment File is created
  • Alternately, individual due dates are selected for all Payment Records of a Payment Group at the time a Payment File is created

Payment Frequency:

  • Payment due dates are defined at the time a Payment File is created
  • Each payment record will only appear in each file once

Contract Payment Groups

Contract payment groups are a collection of Direct Payments only. Each contract record contains payment frequency details in addition to the details associated with a regular payment record.

Due date:

  • Payment date and frequency is assigned to a contract record at the time it is created. For example:
    • Monthly payment with a payment date of 1st of the month
    • Weekly payment with a payment date of Thursdays
  • A due date range is selected at the time a Payment File is created

Payment Frequency:

  • Payment frequency is assigned to a contact record at the time it is created
  • The number of times each contract record appears in a Contract File depends on the contract frequency and Contract File payment period. For example:
    • A Contract Payment File is to be created for January 1st – 31st
    • Each monthly payment will appear once in this file
    • Each bi-weekly payment will appear 2-3 times, depending on its start date
    • Each weekly payment will appear 4-5 times, depending on its start date
  • Once a Contract Payment File is released for a given payment period, you cannot resend another Contract File for the same group and same payment period


Can I send a single payment?

Yes. To create a single payment:

  1. Select Payment Manager from the left-hand menu
  2. Select Create a Single Payment
  3. Complete the required fields, then select Continue. Required fields are flagged with a red asterisk (*).
  4. Complete the payment details, then select Continue
  5. Verify the details, then select Confirm
  6. If you are an approver, you will be prompted to enter your Pass Phrase and SecurID token value.

    If you are the only approver required for the transaction, you will have the option to Submit for Release or Cancel
    • If you choose Submit for Release, payment instructions will be immediately submitted to the bank for processing
    • If you choose Cancel, you will return to the input screen
  7. If you are not an approver, or another approver is required, click on Submit for Approval (to proceed with your approval) or Cancel (to return to the previous screen)


I cannot make any changes to my group, and have received the following message, "Payment Group [group name] is currently being worked on by [name]." What does it mean and what should I do?

The selected payment group is locked and will not allow any changes at this time. To unlock the payment group:

  1. Ensure that there are no pending payment files for the respective payment group
    1. Select Payment Files from the left-hand menu
    2. Select Delete
    3. Select the blue Details button for any pending files for the respective Client Number
    4. If the payment file has been created for the respective payment group, the group has been locked
    5. Delete or approve/release the file. You may be required to speak to your Administrator if you do not have permissions to approve the payment.
  2. Attempt to unlock the group
    1. Advise the user indicated in the error message to modify a payment record in the payment group
      • No changes are required to the payment record. It is possible to continue through the modification screens and confirm without making any changes.
    2. Attempt to modify a record
  3. If the above steps fail, please contact RBC Client Services at
    1-800-769-2535, for further assistance


Can I copy records from one group to another?

You may only copy regular payment records from one group to another. Contract records may be exported; they cannot be imported as contracts.

Please call RBC Client Services at 1-800-769-2535, for assistance.


Can I view/print the contents of an ACH payment file that I just released?

Regular Payment File

When creating a regular payment file, all Valid records with an amount greater than $0 are included. If you have not made any changes to the group since you last created the file, you may obtain a listing of payments from your last file.

To view/print a listing of payments:

  1. Select Reports from the left-hand menu
  2. Select Payment Records
  3. Choose the desired Client Number from the dropdown selection box, then click on Filter to determine the Payment Groups associated with the selected Client Number
  4. Highlight the desired Payment Group(s), then select Submit
  5. The details of your payment group will be displayed in PDF format

Contract Payment File

After a contact file is released, the contents of your last contract file cannot be re-produced. If you have opted to receive the Payments Register Report, it will be your source of official file content details.

If you have not made any changes to the group since you last created the file, you may obtain the following details as follows:

  1. Select Reports from the left-hand menu
  2. Select Payment Contracts
  3. Choose the desired Client Number from the dropdown selection box, then click on Filter to determine the Payment Groups associated with the selected Client Number
  4. Highlight the desired Payment Group, then select Submit
  5. The details of your payment group will be displayed in PDF format
  6. If no changes have been made to the group since your last contract file, your previous file will not include:
    • All records with a status of New
    • All records with a status of Deleted
    • Some records with a status of Active, depending on their previous status
    • Some records with a status of Expired, depending on their previous status


How do I download my service reports?

You may view ACH service report from the previous 14 calendar days. To download your service reports:

  1. Select Reports from the left-hand menu
  2. Select Service Reports/Data Files
  3. Select Refresh Reports List to update the reports list
  4. Select the name of the desired report
  5. The report will be displayed in PDF format


How do I create a payment record?

Once you have created one or more Payment Groups, the next step is to create Payment Records to include in the Payment Group.

A Payment Record is a reusable collection of instructions, such as an account number or receiver name. Payment Records are static and usually created only once.

Single Payment Records

To create single Payment Records:

  1. Select Payment Records from the left hand menu
  2. Select Create
  3. From the dropdown selection box, choose the Payment Group to which the records will be associated
  4. Select the Payment Type, Destination Country, then click on Continue
  5. Complete the required fields, then select Continue
    • Required fields are flagged with a red asterisk (*)
  6. Verify the payment record details, then select Confirm
  7. You will receive confirmation that the payment group was successfully created
  8. You will be redirected to the initial screen to create a new payment record

Multiple Payment Records

To create multiple Payment Records using Express Entry:

  1. Select Payment Records from the left hand menu
  2. Select the Express Entry option
  3. From the dropdown selection box, choose the Payment Group to which the records will be associated
  4. Select the Payment Type, Destination Country and Currency
  5. Click on Continue
  6. Complete the Customer Number, Customer Name, Banking Information and Amount fields for up to 10 records per page
    • If you are uncertain about the amount associated with a payment record, enter 0 at this time
    • RBC Express will time out after 5 minutes. You may choose to enter a few records at a time instead of all records at once to ensure no information is lost if you get timed-out.
  7. Verify the payment record details, select Save, then Continue
  8. You will receive confirmation of the number of payment records that were successfully created
    • All mandatory information that was left blank will default and be filled with the information from the Payment Group


How do I modify a T-error?

A T-error is a payment that has been submitted to RBC for processing, but has been flagged as a transactional error. Payments flagged as T-errors will not be processed until they are corrected and will be deleted after 40 calendar days.

To modify a pending payment:

  1. Select Payment Manager from the left-hand menu
  2. Select Inquire/Modify
  3. Select the location Pending at Bank, then Continue
  4. Enter at least 3 selection criteria for your payment, then select Search
    • You may specify the Client Number, Due Date and Amount
  5. Select the desired payment, then Modify
  6. If necessary, modify any payment details, then select Continue
  7. Verify the details, then select Confirm
  8. If you are an approver, you will be prompted to enter your Pass Phrase and SecurID token value

    If you are the only approver required for the transaction, you will have the option to Submit for Release or Cancel
    • If you choose Submit for Release, payment instructions will be immediately submitted to the bank for processing
    • If you choose Cancel, you will return to the input screen
  9. If you are not an approver, or another approver is required, click on Submit for Approval (to proceed with your approval) or Cancel (to return to the previous screen)