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Whether it’s requesting a deposit or settling an invoice, taking payments over the phone (also known as a card-not-present transaction) can save valuable time and open up opportunities for many types of business.
While payments over the phone using credit cards have been done for decades and are safe and efficient (with the right process), you may still have some questions and concerns. We’ll discuss how to take payments over the phone, as well as the costs, benefits, and risks.
Is it possible to take card payments over the phone?
Yes, and many people actually prefer it. Over-the-phone payments are especially good for remote, delivery-based or service-based businesses, when you work on the go and require a fast transaction, or don’t wish to keep cash on hand.
Customers may feel more comfortable providing payment details over the phone instead of online or when they cannot visit you in person. Many simply prefer human interaction before parting with their money. If they’ve called up to ask about your products, it’s a good idea to have the capability for them to just pay there and then. Plus, if paying over the phone means they’ll get their items faster, that’s a huge bonus.
Is it safe to take payments over the phone?
Yes, it’s safe to take payments over the phone when you follow the right process. As a business, the biggest risks associated with phone payment processing come from not following PCI DSS compliance. In short, this refers to your duty to safely and securely accept, store, process and transmit cardholder data during card transactions.
Non-compliance can result in fines for your business, so it’s always worth ensuring you’re doing things properly. The easy solution? Choose a payment provider complete with a virtual terminal that will do the compliance legwork for you. Square covers PCI compliance, data encryption, and robust account protection to keep payments safe, and ensures that simple errors, honest mistakes and disputes are resolved equitably.
How to take payments over the phone
Taking payments over the phone with Square is simple and secure when you follow these steps:
Taking payments with Square Virtual Terminal
- Sign up for your free Square account.
- From your online Square Dashboard, select Virtual Terminal > Take a Payment.
- Call the customer and ask them to provide their card details.
- Complete all payment fields.
- Double-check the information with the customer.
- Select Charge.
- The sale is complete. The payment will then be transferred into your bank account the next day (or you can transfer it instantly for a small fee).
Keyed-in payments in POS app
If you’re running a brick-and-mortar shop, you might receive an over-the-phone payment request while you’re at the till. Or you might need to manually key in someone’s card details while they’re in store, for example, if they’ve left their card at home. Just like with Virtual Terminal, you can use the Square Point of Sale app to process keyed-in credit card transactions.
Square POS app
- Key in the amount or add the items that the customer is purchasing.
- Tap Charge > Manual Card Entry.
- Key in the customer’s card details, then tap Charge.
With Square POS, you can also easily accept card payments, gain powerful sales insights and manage your team efficiently in an all-in-one solution. Learn more about Square POS.
How much does it cost to take card payments over the phone?
Credit card networks put protection measures in place for manually entered credit card payments due to higher risk of fraud (more on this below), resulting in slightly higher fees from your payment provider.
At Square, we charge 2.2% per transaction for manual card entry payments made through our Virtual Terminal or keyed in via the POS app – with no extra or hidden fees. Learn more about Square payment processing fees.
Benefits of accepting phone payments for businesses
Taking payments over the phone makes life easier for both you and your customers. Not only does it open up your existing customer base, it’s ideal for remote businesses or those on the move, where in-person payments aren’t always possible. It also means you can get paid on the spot rather than waiting for invoices to be settled.
It’s also a handy backup if your usual checkout system goes down, or a customer is having trouble paying another way. Instead of losing a sale, you can simply take their details over the phone and process the payment instantly.
Plus, it gives customers more flexibility in how and when they pay. In the Square 2025 Future of Commerce report, one in three Aussies said they’re unlikely to return to a business that doesn’t provide a convenient payment option. Offering more ways to pay means happier customers who’ll keep coming back.
Regulations for taking payments over the phone
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a set of rules designed to keep cardholder data secure during and after payment transactions and applies to any business that uses a cardholder’s data.
You have a legal requirement to collect, store and dispose of these details correctly, and your compliance can fall under any of the four levels outlined in our PCI compliance guide. Square PCI-compliant software and end-to-end encryption help you adhere to the requirements more easily.
Risks and challenges of phone payments
While taking card payments over the phone is convenient, it does carry some risk. One is simple human error: misreading or mistyping card details leads to failed transactions, while inappropriate recording of details can result in misuse of sensitive data.
Another key consideration is card-not-present fraud: since the card isn’t physically sighted, it’s harder to verify the buyer’s identity, meaning fraudsters can use stolen numbers to make unauthorised purchases. According to the 2025 Australian Payment Fraud Report, the total value of card-not present fraud in Australia in 2024 was $362 million, an increase of 11% from the previous year.
Using Square Risk Manager can help you stay protected against fraud. Our software automatically detects suspicious payments, verifies real transactions and ensures the card issuer confirms the identity of the customer before completing a purchase.
Chargebacks can also pose a problem with payments taken over the phone. Due to the difficulty in verifying cardholder identity, customers have greater opportunity to dispute charges, even if they relate to a legitimate sale. In the case of a dispute, a hold is placed on the funds in your Square account until the dispute is resolved.
It’s down to the card issuer to decide who wins or loses a dispute, and this can be a complicated and time-consuming process involving a lot of paperwork and documentation. If you sell with Square, we’re here to help you every step of the way and charge no additional fees for dispute management services.
Best practices for secure phone payments
Following simple precautions can help keep your phone payments secure. Always verify the customer’s identity by asking for details like their billing address or the security code on their card. This helps ensure the person paying is actually the cardholder.
Additionally, don’t write down or store card details anywhere, even for a short time. Enter them directly into your secure payment system. This protects both you and your customers, reduces the risk of fraud and helps you stay compliant with security standards.
Square Virtual Terminal and POS options
Perfect for remote billing and taking credit card payments via phone, Square Virtual Terminal is a PCI-compliant payment solution that keeps data safe end-to-end. With encrypted transactions, fraud monitoring tools and dispute management support, Square has you covered so you can process payments worry-free.
The Square POS app accepts any payment type and has security engineered into its hardware and software, so you can make sales over the phone with confidence.
Faster payments, on-the-go flexibility and quicker deliveries for your customers are all great reasons to accept over-the-phone payments. With Square Virtual Terminal or POS app, you can provide that flexibility safely and securely.
FAQs about card payments over the phone
Here are answers to some common queries about taking payments over the phone.
Is it safe to take card payments over the phone?
Yes. With Square’s PCI-compliant software and end-to-end encryption, you can trust that your payments are safe and secure, with added protection against fraud.
What equipment or software do I need to accept phone payments?
To accept remote payments, you will need hardware such as Square Virtual Terminal or Square POS system (and reliable internet!).
Do I need a payment terminal if I’m only taking payments by phone?
No. That’s the good thing about Square Virtual Terminal: It turns your computer into a credit and debit card terminal, which makes it perfect for taking card payments over the phone.
Is taking a payment over the phone more expensive than in person?
Yes, because a card-not-present transaction carries greater risk of fraud and chargebacks. Square charges a remote processing fee of 2.2% per transaction, which is a little higher than the in-person transaction fee of 1.6% to cover the increased risk.
Whether it’s requesting a deposit or chasing an invoice, taking payments over the phone (a card-not-present transaction) can save you valuable time. People are busy, but that doesn’t stop you from needing things to move fast.
Although the process is decades old, there’s some unease surrounding how to accept credit cards by phone. Still, over-the-phone payments hold incredible potential for all businesses, so let’s clear up some of the biggest questions and worries that sellers have.
Is it possible to take card payments over the phone?
Yes, and many people actually prefer it. Over-the-phone payments are especially good for business when:
- You have a remote, delivery-based or service-based business where the customer doesn’t visit you or your shop in person.
- You work on the go, leaving no time to take immediate payments or visit customers at a later date.
- You and the customer would both prefer a quick, convenient payment process on the spot.
- You don’t want to keep cash on your person or at your premises.
- You want to create safeguards for your business by taking upfront deposits from customers.
- The customer feels more comfortable providing payment details over the phone instead of online or through a form.
For customers, many simply prefer the human interaction before parting with their cash. If they’ve called up to ask about your products, it’s also easier for them to just pay there and then. Plus, if paying over the phone means they’ll get their items faster, that’s a huge bonus.
Over-the-phone payments done properly require a virtual terminal. This feature allows you to manage transactions without a card reader wherever you are, whatever time of day.
Is it safe to take payments over the phone?
Yes, when you follow the right process.
As a business, the biggest risks associated with phone payment processing come from not following PCI DSS compliance. In short, this refers to your consent to safely and securely accept, store, process and transmit cardholder data during card transactions.
Non-compliance can result in fines for your business, so it’s always worth ensuring you’re doing things properly. The easy solution? Choose a payment provider, complete with a virtual terminal, who will do the compliance legwork for you. Square does it all, ensuring that simple errors, honest mistakes and disputes are resolved equitably.
How to take payments over the phone
Taking payments over the phone is simple and secure when you follow these steps:
Square Virtual Terminal
- Sign up for your free Square account.
- From your online Square Dashboard, select Virtual Terminal > Take a Payment.
- Call the customer and ask them to provide their card details.
- Complete all payment fields.
- Double-check the information with the customer.
- Select Charge.
- The sale is complete.
The payment will then be transferred into your bank account the next day (or you can transfer it instantly for a small fee).
Keyed-in payments in POS app
If you’re running a brick-and-mortar shop, you might receive an over-the-phone payment request while you’re at the till. Or you might need to manually key in someone’s card details while they’re in-store, for example, if they’ve left their card at home. Just like with Virtual Terminal, you can use the Square Point of Sale app to process keyed-in credit card transactions:
Square POS app
- Key in the amount or add the items that the customer is purchasing.
- Tap Charge > Manual Card Entry.
- Key in the customer’s card details, then tap Charge.
With Square POS, you can also easily accept card payments, gain powerful sales insights and manage your team efficiently in an all-in-one solution. Learn more about Square POS.
How much does it cost to take card payments over the phone?
It’s worth noting that manually entered card transactions carry a higher risk than those when the cardholder is present to complete the information themselves. As a result, credit card networks put protection measures in place, resulting in slightly higher fees from your payment provider.
At Square, we charge 2.2% per transaction for manual card entry payments made through our Virtual Terminal or keyed in via the POS app – with no extra or hidden fees. Learn more about Square payment processing fees.
Benefits of accepting phone payments for businesses
Taking payments over the phone makes life easier for both you and your customers. It’s ideal for remote businesses or those often on the move, where in-person payments aren’t always possible. It also means you can get paid on the spot rather than waiting for invoices to be settled.
It’s also a handy backup if your usual checkout system goes down or a customer is having trouble paying another way. Instead of losing a sale, you can simply take their details over the phone and process the payment instantly.
Plus, it gives customers more flexibility in how and when they pay. In the Square 2025 Future of Commerce report, one in three Aussies said they’re unlikely to return to a business that doesn’t provide a convenient payment option. Offering more ways to pay means happier customers who’ll keep coming back.
Best practices for secure phone payments
Following some simple precautions can help keep your phone payments secure. Always verify the customer’s identity by asking for details like their billing address or the security code on their card. This helps ensure the person paying is actually the cardholder.
Next, be careful with how you handle card details. Don’t write them down or store them anywhere, even for a short time – enter them directly into a secure payment system. This protects both you and your customers, reduces the risk of fraud and helps you stay compliant with security standards.
Using a PCI-compliant payment solution like Square Virtual Terminal for phone payments adds extra protection. With encrypted transactions, fraud monitoring tools and dispute management support, Square has you covered so you can process payments worry-free.
Faster payments, on-the-go flexibility and quicker deliveries for your customers are all great reasons to accept over-the-phone payments. Though it may feel a little unnatural when you’re so used to one-click ordering online, the more flexible you can be as a business, the better.
Rest assured that with Square Virtual Terminal, you can provide that flexibility safely and securely.
And remember, if your customers prefer not to pay over the phone, Square Invoices or Square Payment Links are great alternatives, allowing them to pay from their own device.
