Helpful Hints and Payment Set-up FAQs:

Helpful information and guidance on the most frequently asked questions regarding setting up a payment account

Helpful Hints & FAQ:

  1. Industry and Website Information: 
    Stripe asks for some basic business details—like your industry and a website—because they’re legally required by banking regulations to verify who is receiving funds. This doesn’t create a business, cost anything, or affect your taxes. Just choose “Other Business Services” for the industry (located inside of the Professional Services drop-down), and enter your event’s website URL. It’s simply part of Stripe’s secure setup process.

  2. Every time I log into Stripe, it requires a 2-step authentication.  Why?

    Stripe requires two-step authentication to keep your account and payment information secure. This extra layer of protection helps prevent unauthorized access, supports compliance with financial regulations, and protects sensitive data like your bank and tax details.

    It’s a standard security measure used by most financial platforms to ensure your information stays safe.

  3. I keep seeing "Welcome Back" instead of "Let's Get Started"; why?
    Stripe's “account links” are single-use URLs, but Stripe also drops a cookie on the stripe.com domain to remember that you’ve already launched onboarding (aka clicked the create account button). As soon as you hit that URL a second time in the same browser session, even if you refresh, Stripe will present the Welcome back! screen, not the very first Let’s get started splash.  If you start the process but do not complete it, please reach out to us at info@tourneydirect.com so that we can send you a new single-use URL.
  4. Why am I seeing an error message in Stripe after entering my EIN or SSN?
    Stripe verifies your tax ID against IRS records, so the legal name or business name you enter must match exactly what’s on your IRS-issued documentation (including spelling, hyphens, accents, commas, and spaces). Any discrepancy will trigger a verification error. This is a government regulation that all payment processors must adhere to.  In addition to providing the correct tax identification number, the spelling and formatting of the Legal business name that you provide must exactly match your official IRS-issued documentation. Any minor difference in the business name – including spaces, hyphens, accents, apostrophes, etc – will result in an error.

If you use a SSN

  1. Refer to your social security card to see how your name is formatted.
  2. If you don’t have your social security card, or if you believe you’ve entered the correct information but still receive an error, contact the Social Security Administration to request a copy of your social security card or update your name here: https://www.ssa.gov/ssnumber/

If you use an EIN

  1. Refer to an IRS-issued official document with your business name, such as an SS-4 confirmation letter or Letter 147C, you can see how the IRS has recorded your business name. Refer to this guide to learn how to interpret these documents.
  2. If you don’t have an IRS-issued document, or if you believe you’ve entered the correct information but still receive an error, contact the IRS Business & Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933.