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Lessons Catalogue
Lesson 4c: Payments outside the U.S.
Payment Options
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Learn about various payment options that are available to AdWords advertisers, and how to select the option that is best suited for you.
Google's payment options can be divided into two categories: prepay and post-pay.
Our prepay option allows you to pay for advertising before you accrue charges while post-pay allows you to pay for advertising after you accrue charges.
To find out the payment options that are available to you, visit https://adwords.google.co.uk/select/AfpoFinder.
Post-pay: Credit/Debit cards and Direct debit
Post-pay means that you pay Google only after your ads run and charges are accrued. Your ads are served almost immediately after you submit valid billing information. For more details on how and when Google bills your account, please review the Billing Cycle lesson.
Payment methods for post-pay:
- Credit/Debit card: You can use a Visa, MasterCard/Eurocard, American Express or JCB credit card or a debit card with a MasterCard/Eurocard or Visa logo (accepted in all countries). This is the most popular and widely available billing option for AdWords advertisers.
- Direct debit: Selecting this method authorises Google to submit appropriate charges to your bank. Funds are withdrawn directly from your bank account once the advertising costs reach the criteria for billing (currently available in Germany, France, Austria, Spain and the Netherlands only).
Qualifying AdWords advertisers can apply for monthly invoicing. Typically, an established payment history and minimum spending requirements (varying by country) are necessary. To learn more, please see the Monthly billing lesson.
Prepay: Credit/Debit cards and Bank Transfer
Prepay requires advertisers to pay before their ads run and begin to earn charges. As users click your ads, Google deducts the charges from your prepaid balance. To help keep your account balance up-to-date and your ads running, you'll receive emails when your funds run low and approach a zero balance.
Payment methods for prepay:
- Credit/Debit card: If you choose this payment method, Google charges your credit or debit card for the amount that you specify. Your ads will begin running almost immediately after you enter valid credit/debit card information and specify a payment amount. You can use a Visa, MasterCard/Eurocard, American Express or JCB credit card or a debit card with a MasterCard/Eurocard or Visa logo (accepted in all countries).
- Bank transfer: With this payment method, you transfer funds from your bank to Google. Transfers can take several weeks to process, so it's important to add funds before your balance draws too close to zero. Bank transfer is not available to advertisers in some countries, including the U.S.
To pay for your advertising via bank transfer, you must first generate a reference number. Bank transfers can be initiated following these steps:
- Sign in to your AdWords account at https://adwords.google.co.uk.
- Click the My Account tab and then click Make Payments.
- Enter the amount of money that you plan to transfer to your AdWords account in the Payment amount field and click Go.
- Click Transfer Information page to view the details of your bank transfer. Here, you can access your reference number, the amount that you entered for transfer, your account information as well as the information of the bank to which the funds should be transferred.
- Click Print page in the upper or lower left corner of the page and fill in the necessary information about your bank account in the space provided.
- Use the printed sheet, complete with your bank account information, to perform the transfer of funds at your bank. **It is very important that you include the entire reference number along with the bank transfer. We will not be able to process your payment without this number. If you cannot fit it on your bank's transfer form, insert the entire number in the 'Name' field before your name.**
Once Google receives the funds and complete reference number, we will send you a confirmation message via email and your ads will start running on Google. It can take several weeks for Google to receive a bank transfer, depending on your bank's process.
Note that different countries may require different treatment of the reference number; you will be given instructions specific to your country.
Post-pay advertisers may switch back and forth between available post-pay options (credit card to direct debit, for example) as well as between different payment providers (such as Visa to MasterCard). Prepay advertisers may also switch back and forth between bank transfer and prepay by credit card, if the options are available in their country and currency.
It is currently not possible to switch from a prepay method to a postpay method, and vice versa. For example, it is not possible to switch from credit card prepay to direct debit.
Similarly, once a currency has been selected, it is not possible to switch to a different currency. The currency selected applies to both billing and payment.
In order to change currencies or to switch from prepay to postpay, you must close your existing account and create a new account with the preferred currency.
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