Finding a bank or credit card processing company that will 
process credit cards for high risk businesses can be challenging. 

As a business owner you may have already been told that your 
business is high risk or worse yet you may have had your merchant 
account shut down or cancelled. It's common practice for banks 
and credit card processors to close accounts that are deemed 
"high risk". 

Most high risk businesses don't realize they are considered high 
risk until they contact a bank or credit card processor.  If you 
own or are thinking about opening a business you may run into 
difficulties qualifying for a merchant account. This can be a 
huge problem for a small business owner.  Without accepting 
credit cards most businesses are doomed.

A merchant account is basically an account that allows you to 
accept credit cards from your customers and deposits those funds 
directly into your account.  One of the biggest problems a 
business owner faces is the application requirements. Most banks 
and some credit card processors will not even accept applications 
from businesses that are deemed high risk. So how do you know if 
your business would be considered high risk?  Listed below are 
businesses that would definitely be considered high risk 
merchants:

 * Airline and Jet Charter
 * Cruise line/ Tour operators/ Travel Clubs
 * Infomercials
 * Aggregators (3rd party payment processors)
 * Timeshares
 * Credit Repair
 * Collection Companies
 * Lotteries/ Gambling/ Sweepstakes
 * Sports Forecasting
 * Internet Pharmacies
 * Internet Tobacco
 * Adult businesses/ Escort Services/ Dating Services/ Pornographic 
   Material
 * Drug Paraphernalia
 * Vitamin and Supplements


The credit card processing business as a whole is very 
competitive. However, high risk merchant accounts are very hard 
to find and can be very costly to get. The problem with some 
offshore banks or credit card processors are the fees associated 
with submitting an application. It's not uncommon to see a credit 
card processor charge $2500.00 just to submit an application with 
no guaranty that the account will be approved.  Others may want a 
security deposit equal to your monthly credit card volume paid in 
advance. 

This is one reason why you should look for a credit card 
processor that understands your business, your needs, your 
problems, and is willing to devote the time to helping you. There 
are very few high risk merchant account companies.  Finding the 
right credit card processing company to work with is essential to 
your long term business success. 

There are credit card processing companies that specialize in 
placing high risk merchants.  So how do you go about finding 
those companies?

Today's technology provides us the opportunity to do business 
with companies beyond our own neighborhoods.  We do business 
electronically through the use of e-mail, fax machines, and of 
course the internet. What this means for the business owner is, 
you no longer are "locked in" to doing business with just the 
bank or company in your home town. You can "shop online" for the 
best rates, best products, and service. You can now do business 
with a credit card processor or bank in Great Britain, Canada, 
Philippines, or any place else just as easily as the "hometown 
bank". Fact is, nine times out of ten, you will find the level of 
service to be much better with a bank or credit card processor 
half way around the world. Why? They want your business, and are 
willing to go the extra mile to prove it. 

For additional information about obtaining a merchant account, 
high risk merchant account, or offshore merchant account for your 
business click over to http://www.cmscreditcards.com
 

Scott Burke; President of iMAX Business Solutions 
in charge of sales, strategy, and execution and thus 
is responsible for managing all aspects of the company's 
marketing, communications, new accounts, and support. 
Email: scott@cmscreditcards.com 
Website: http://www.cmscreditcards.com