American Express (Amex) has specific requirements for businesses in the United States that process large payment volumes.
If your total Amex processing volume exceeds $1,000,000 per year, Amex requires you to transition to a direct Amex Merchant ID (MID). This ensures uninterrupted acceptance of Amex cards and keeps your business compliant with Amex network rules.
Why a Direct Amex MID Is Required
Once your Amex volume reaches the $1M annual threshold, Amex mandates that transactions be processed under your own merchant account instead of an aggregated program like GuestyPay.
Important:
If a direct Amex MID is not established in time, Amex transactions may begin to decline, while Visa and Mastercard will continue to process normally.
Enable Amex With a Direct MID in GuestyPay
Follow the steps below to apply for and connect your direct Amex MID.
Step 1: Apply for a Direct Amex MID
Apply for an Amex merchant account directly with American Express. Guesty cannot apply on your behalf.
Start your application here: Apply to Accept American Express Directly.
During the application process, Amex typically requests the following information:
- Legal/Corporate business name
- DBA (Doing Business As) name
- Business address
- Federal tax ID
- Bank routing and account number
- Significant owner’s details (address, date of birth, or SSN)
- Signed DocuSign package sent by Amex
Step 2: Complete the Amex review
Amex may ask for supplemental documents, depending on your setup and volume. Once your application is approved, Amex will issue your Amex MID.
Step 3: Send us your Amex MID
Once you receive your Amex MID, send it to the GuestyPay Payments Team. We will connect it to your GuestyPay account so you can start accepting Amex immediately.
What Changes Once Your Amex MID Is Connected
Connecting a direct Amex MID changes how your Amex transactions are processed and managed.
Payment processing
Amex payments are routed to your Amex MID and processed directly by Amex, not GuestyPay.
Receive funds
- Amex deposits funds directly into your bank account
- Amex transactions are excluded from GuestyPay settlement and payouts
- GuestyPay applies an Amex Direct Settlement Deduction Fee to offset the transaction amount that Amex settles directly
Processing fees
- Guesty does not charge processing fees for Amex transactions. Amex bills you directly.
- GuestyPay charges a Transaction Fee per Amex payment for enabling and routing the transaction
Reporting
- Amex payments appear in your GuestyPay dashboard reports
- Amex processing fees and settlements are not visible in GuestyPay
- Amex issues monthly Amex statements directly to you
Chargebacks
- Amex chargebacks are not delivered through Guesty or GuestyPay
- Receive chargeback notifications directly from Amex
- Handle any Amex disputes directly with American Express
- We recommend recording Amex disputes manually inside the Guesty reservation for full visibility