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ACH Transactions

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What is an ACH Transaction?

As a payroll processor, Gusto uses the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network to debit from a company’s bank account, deposit into an employee or contractor’s bank account, and remit payroll taxes to external tax agencies (both state and federal). Whenever an ACH transaction occurs, Gusto will create an internal record which captures the transaction details (ex: payment event type, error code, credit / debit, payment date, etc.).

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National Automated Clearing House Association (NACHA)

The National Automated Clearing House Association (NACHA) is the governing body overseeing electronic money movement via ACH within the US.

Pulling ACH Transactions for a Company

This GET companies/{company_uuid}/ach_transactionsendpointis useful to gain visibility into the flow of funds within ACH transactions on a per company basis, both successful and unsuccessful (the latter of which result in bank errors). Partners may use this endpoint to track granular bank ACH transaction data as it pertains to the movement of money, to whom the money was transferred, and when those funds were moved.

The following call will fetch all ACH transactions for a specific company:

curl --request GET \
     --url https://api.gusto-demo.com/v1/companies/company_uuid/ach_transactions \
     --header 'accept: application/json'

const fetch = require('node-fetch');

const url = 'https://api.gusto-demo.com/v1/companies/{company_uuid}/external_payrolls/tax_liabilities/finish';
const options = {method: 'PUT', headers: {authorization: 'Bearer <<COMPANY_API_TOKEN>>'}};

fetch(url, options)
  .then(res => res.json())
  .then(json => console.log(json))
  .catch(err => console.error('error:' + err));

Query Parameters

Optional parameters can be added to requests in order to help filter for specific company ACH transactions (ex: “transaction_type”: “Debit net pay,”).

Query ParametersDefinition
contractor_payment_uuidThe UUID of the contractor payment.
payroll_uuidThe UUID of the payroll.
transaction_typeUsed to filter the ACH transactions to only include those with a specific transaction type, such as "Credit employee pay". Click here for a full list of transaction types.
payment_directionUsed to filter the ACH transactions to only include those with a specific payment direction, either "credit" or "debit". Credit = outgoing money from Gusto (ex. Refund to customer, employee payment, tax payment to tax agency). Debit = incoming money to Gusto (ex. Customer funding payroll)

Response

An example response is attached below:

 [
  {
    "uuid": "123e4567-e89b-12d3-a456-426655440000,",
    "company_uuid": "456e7890-e12b-34c5-d678-901234567890,",
    "payment_event_type": "Payroll,",
    "payment_event_uuid": "789e0123-e45f-67ab-c890-123456789012,",
    "recipient_type": "Employee,",
    "recipient_uuid": "012e3456-f78d-90ab-12cd-345678901234,",
    "error_code": "null,",
    "transaction_type": "Credit employee pay,",
    "payment_status": "submitted,",
    "payment_direction": "credit,",
    "payment_event_check_date": "2023-10-02,",
    "payment_date": "2023-10-17,",
    "amount": "123.00,",
    "description": "PAY 380654"
  }
]

Response Fields - Descriptions

A full list of response fields and values are attached below:

Response FieldDescription
transaction_typeACH transaction type; Click here for a full list of values.
payment_event_typeProvides further segmentation whenever payments are made. Returned values include Payroll, ContractorPayment, nil
Note: Nil values returned may represent Gusto's payment to external tax agencies on behalf of employers
recipient_typeDictates the recipient of the transaction. Returned values include Employee, Contractor, nil
Note: Nil values returned may represent external tax agencies, Gusto, or a company bank account
error_codeError codes help troubleshoot the payment issue or failure and help the partner identify / resolve the issue. More information regarding bank errors can be found here and a full list of ACH Return Codes can be found here.
payment_statusStatus of the ACH transaction.
Unsubmitted = Pending submission to bank
Failed = Payment has failed due to some “R-code” bank error
Successful = The payment has been settled with the bank and is now successful. A “C-code” bank error may or may not be present.
Submitted = The payment has been submitted to the bank.
payment_directionShows the direction funds are flowing.
Debit = Funds leaving Company or Employee's bank account
Credit = Funds coming into Company or Employee's bank account
payment_event_check_datecheck_date of the corresponding payment event (payroll or contractor payment). This is the date on which the recipient would see the transaction in their bank account.
payment_dateDate on which the funds "clear" or are considered "good". Per NACHA Operating Rules, the Receiving Depository Financial Institution (RDFI) has 2 business days from receipt to notify the Originating Depository Financial Institution (ODFI) of any returns via bank error codes.
descriptionSee Manage company bank account details (Bank transactions and code glossary section). Some responses (but not all) will include this as some RDFIs surface this info to their account holders.

Updated about 1 year ago