Terms of Service
Effective Date: March 26, 2026
Canonical URL: https://www.sagepaymentsgroup.com/terms-of-service
1. Acceptance of Terms
These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the website located at sagepaymentsgroup.com (the "Site"), operated by Sage Payments Group LLC ("Sage Payments Group," "we," "our," or "us"). Binding acceptance of these Terms occurs when a visitor accesses or uses the Site. By using sagepaymentsgroup.com, you agree to comply with and be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, you must immediately cease use of the Site.
2. Description of Services
Sage Payments Group LLC provides high-risk credit and debit card processing facilitation, payment gateway services, merchant account placement, chargeback management tools, rolling reserve administration, transaction reporting, and fraud mitigation services. We act as a B2B payment processing facilitator and independent sales organization. We are not a bank, a credit card issuer, or a card brand network.
3. High-Risk Merchant Classification and Acknowledgment
Sage Payments Group LLC specializes exclusively in high-risk payment processing. By applying for or using our services, you acknowledge that your business operates in a regulated, restricted, or chargeback-prone industry classified as "high-risk" by acquiring banks and card networks. You agree to cooperate fully with the enhanced underwriting and monitoring required for this classification.
4. Merchant Eligibility, Onboarding, and Enhanced Due Diligence
Access to our processing services requires successful completion of our enhanced due diligence and underwriting process. You must submit accurate business documentation, financial statements, processing history, and compliance frameworks. We reserve the right to perform background checks on principal owners and comprehensive website reviews. Approval for a merchant account is at the sole discretion of Sage Payments Group LLC and its acquiring bank partners.
5. Supported High-Risk Verticals and Vertical-Specific Compliance Obligations
We explicitly support the following high-risk verticals. Merchants operating within these categories must comply with the specific regulatory obligations outlined below:
5.1. Online Gaming and Gambling
Merchants must hold all applicable gaming licenses for the jurisdictions in which they operate. You must enforce strict age verification (18+ or 21+, depending on jurisdiction), implement robust geo-blocking controls to prevent access from prohibited regions, and comply fully with the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) regarding restricted transactions.
5.2. Adult Entertainment (Digital Content, Platforms, Subscription Services)
Merchants must maintain strict record-keeping in compliance with 18 U.S.C. § 2257. You must enforce robust age verification to prevent access by minors, comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), and operate strictly under Visa and Mastercard adult content program requirements (including BRAM and VAMP). All content must feature verified, consenting adults only.
5.3. CBD (Cannabidiol) Products
Merchants must sell only hemp-derived CBD products containing 0.3% THC or less on a dry-weight basis, in compliance with the 2018 Farm Bill. You must provide third-party laboratory Certificates of Analysis (COAs) for all products, refrain from making unsubstantiated health or disease-cure claims in violation of the FTC Act and FDA enforcement discretion guidelines, and comply with all state-level CBD distribution laws.
5.4. Nutraceuticals and Dietary Supplements
Merchants must comply with the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) labeling standards. You must maintain accurate ingredient and allergen disclosures and strictly refrain from making disease-cure claims without formal FDA approval, in accordance with FTC Act advertising substantiation requirements.
5.5. Peptides and Research Chemicals
Merchants must clearly designate products as "For Research Use Only" where applicable. You must comply with all applicable FDA regulations and DEA scheduling watches, ensure products are not marketed or packaged for human consumption unless explicitly FDA-approved, and abide by state-level controlled substance analogue laws.
5.6. Telemedicine and Online Healthcare Services
Merchants must maintain systems compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. You must hold all required state medical board licenses, ensure that prescribing practitioners comply with DEA telehealth controlled substance regulations, and adhere to the FTC Health Breach Notification Rule.
5.7. Travel and Timeshare
Merchants must comply fully with the FTC Travel Rule and hold all required state seller-of-travel licenses. Due to the high chargeback exposure in this vertical, you must maintain a chargeback ratio below the thresholds established by the card brand networks and honor all required disclosure and refund policies.
5.8. Subscription Box and Recurring Billing Merchants
Merchants must provide clear, conspicuous recurring billing disclosures and simple, easy-to-use cancellation mechanisms. You must comply strictly with the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act (ROSCA), state auto-renewal laws (including those in California, New York, and Florida), and the FTC's updated Negative Option Rule (2023).
5.9. Credit Repair, Debt Relief, and Financial Services
Merchants must comply fully with the disclosures mandated by the Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA). You must adhere to the prohibited advance fee rules under the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) and follow all applicable guidance issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
5.10. Other Emerging and Regulated High-Risk Categories
This includes, but is not limited to, vape and e-cigarette products (PACT Act), kratom, nootropics, offshore pharmacy referral, ticket resale, and multi-level marketing. Merchants in any high-risk category not explicitly listed above must completely and accurately disclose their full business model during onboarding and comply with all applicable federal, state, and card brand rules governing their specific vertical.
6. Prohibited Transactions
Sage Payments Group LLC strictly prohibits the use of our services for universally illegal activities. Prohibited transactions include, but are not limited to, the processing of payments for: Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM); entities or individuals sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC); terrorism financing; money laundering; and the sale of counterfeit goods. The high-risk verticals explicitly supported in Section 5 are not prohibited, provided they operate within the legal and regulatory frameworks outlined.
7. Fees, Billing, Rolling Reserves, and Chargebacks
Fees for processing services are detailed in your specific Merchant Processing Agreement. Due to the nature of high-risk processing, Sage Payments Group LLC or its acquiring banks may require a rolling reserve. A rolling reserve holds a specified percentage of your daily processing volume for a set duration to cover potential chargebacks and fraud. The percentage, duration, and conditions for the release of reserve funds will be determined during underwriting and clearly stated in your processing agreement.
8. Chargeback Thresholds, MATCH List Risk, and Remediation Obligations
Merchants must maintain chargeback ratios below the acceptable thresholds defined by Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express. Excessive chargebacks may result in your placement in card brand monitoring programs. Failure to remediate excessive chargebacks can result in account termination and addition to the Member Alert to Control High-Risk Merchants (MATCH) list, which may prevent you from obtaining merchant services globally.
9. Fraud Monitoring, Velocity Controls, and Account Review Rights
We employ fraud monitoring tools and velocity controls to detect anomalous processing behaviors. Sage Payments Group LLC reserves the right to review your account, suspend batch settlements, or hold funds temporarily if we detect suspicious activity, severe spikes in processing volume, or deviations from your approved underwriting profile.
10. Transaction Representations and Warranties
By submitting a transaction for processing, you represent and warrant that the transaction represents a bona fide sale of goods or services, complies with all applicable laws, and aligns with the business model approved during your underwriting process.
11. Website and Marketing Compliance Review Rights
Sage Payments Group LLC and its acquiring bank partners reserve the right to periodically review your website, merchant-facing content, and marketing materials to ensure ongoing compliance with regulatory obligations and card brand rules. You agree to make requested compliance adjustments to your website promptly upon notification.
12. Acquiring Bank and Card Network Flow-Down Obligations
Our services are facilitated through acquiring banks and the major card networks (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express). You agree to comply with all applicable operating regulations, rules, and flow-down obligations passed down from these acquiring banks and card networks. In the event of a conflict between these Terms and the rules of a card network, the card network rules shall prevail.
13. Suspension, Termination, and Reserve Release Conditions
We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account immediately if you breach these Terms, exceed allowable chargeback ratios, violate card brand program rules, or if regulatory action is taken against your business. Upon termination, any funds held in a rolling reserve will be held for the duration specified in your Merchant Processing Agreement to cover trailing chargebacks, after which the remaining balance will be released to you.
14. Limitation of Liability and Disclaimer of Warranties
The Site and our services are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. Sage Payments Group LLC disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall Sage Payments Group LLC be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of your use of the Site or our processing services.
15. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Sage Payments Group LLC, its affiliates, directors, officers, and employees from and against any claims, fines, liabilities, damages, losses, or expenses (including legal fees) arising from your breach of these Terms, your violation of any law or card network rule, or any claim initiated by a third party related to your goods or services.
16. Intellectual Property
All content, branding, design elements, text, graphics, and materials found on sagepaymentsgroup.com are the exclusive intellectual property of Sage Payments Group LLC. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from our intellectual property without our express written consent.
17. Third-Party Services, Links, and Integrations
sagepaymentsgroup.com may contain links to third-party websites or services. Sage Payments Group LLC is not responsible for the content, privacy practices, or operations of these third-party sites. Accessing third-party links is at your own risk.
18. Dispute Resolution / Binding Arbitration
Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or your use of the Site shall be resolved by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) in accordance with its Commercial Arbitration Rules. The arbitration shall take place in Florida. You waive the right to participate in a class action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration.
19. Governing Law
These Terms and your use of sagepaymentsgroup.com shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Florida, without regard to its conflict of law principles.
20. Modifications to Terms
Sage Payments Group LLC reserves the right to update or modify these Terms at any time. The authoritative and most current version of the Terms of Service is always available at sagepaymentsgroup.com/terms-of-service. Continued use of sagepaymentsgroup.com following the posting of any changes constitutes your binding acceptance of those modifications.
21. Severability and Entire Agreement
If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that these Terms shall otherwise remain in full force and effect. These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and Sage Payments Group LLC regarding your use of the Site.