Place your pipeline, earn residuals for the life of the account
For veteran payment professionals with an active merchant pipeline. Place high-risk and specialty volume across our 70+ banking and acquirer relationships with priority underwriter desk access, gateway-level support, and transparent monthly statements — and earn ongoing residuals.
What the ISO agent program is
The Gray Merchants ISO agent program is a residual-based partnership for veteran payment professionals who already sell merchant services and want a home for the high-risk merchant accounts their current processors keep declining. You place low-risk and high-risk payment processing volume with us, and you earn ongoing residuals for the life of every account. Because we serve every risk level — from standard retail and e-commerce payment processing to 50+ specialty verticals — you can place your entire book, not just the deals that get declined elsewhere.
The core of the program is ongoing residual revenue for the life of the account. You are not paid a one-time bounty and then cut loose; as long as the merchants you place keep processing, you keep earning. That makes every account you build a compounding asset rather than a single transaction.
We place accounts across 70+ banking and acquirer relationships spanning 50+ high-risk industries, with a 99% approval rate for qualified applications and $0 setup. When a merchant in your pipeline is ready to go live, they can get approved in minutes. If you meet merchants who need high-risk accounts but do not sell payments yourself, the referral partner program is a better fit.
From pipeline to residual
Bring your pipeline
Send us the high-risk and specialty merchants your current processors keep declining or offboarding. We confirm your program fit and agree your residual terms directly, tailored to your volume.
We underwrite and place
Your deals go to a priority underwriter desk and get placed across our 70+ banking and acquirer relationships — with multi-MID and backup-gateway configurations built in where the merchant needs them.
Earn residuals for the life of the account
Once accounts are live, you earn ongoing residual revenue for as long as those merchants process, settled monthly with transparent statements down to the MID.
Built for professionals who move volume
Residuals for the life of the account
You earn ongoing residual revenue on the accounts you place, not a one-time bounty. A book you build now keeps paying as long as those merchants keep processing.
Priority underwriter desk access
Your deals skip the general queue. Direct access to a priority underwriter desk means faster decisions and a real human to work edge-case files with.
Gateway-level support
Hands-on support on NMI and Authorize.net so your merchants get provisioned, configured, and troubleshot without you becoming the help desk.
Multi-MID and backup gateways
Build redundancy into every deal. Multi-MID and backup-gateway configurations protect merchant volume — and your residual — from a single point of failure.
Transparent monthly statements
Clear, itemized statements down to the MID, settled monthly. You always see exactly what processed, what settled, and what you earned on every account.
A dedicated point of contact
No ticket queues. A real point of contact carries the technical and operational load so you can stay focused on selling and growing your book.
What you need to qualify
This is a program for experienced professionals, not a starter path into merchant services. To be a good fit as an ISO agent, you should bring all three of the following:
- Real payments experience — you have sold merchant services and understand how the industry works.
- An active merchant pipeline — you regularly meet or already work with businesses that need processing.
- Familiarity with card-brand rules — you know how Visa and Mastercard treat high-risk MCCs, chargeback thresholds, and underwriting.
Splits agreed with you directly
We do not publish a one-size-fits-all split. Your residual structure is agreed with you directly when you join and tailored to your volume and the verticals you work in, then settled monthly with transparent, itemized statements down to the MID. The book you build stays yours and keeps paying for the life of each account.
Retention is what protects your residual, so we help your merchants stay live: proactive chargeback prevention and dispute defense to keep ratios healthy, and multi-MID load balancing so no single processing path is a point of failure. Read why merchants choose Gray Merchants, or compare both partner programs side by side.
ISO agent program FAQ
Who is the ISO agent program for?
It is built for veteran payment professionals with an active merchant pipeline — independent agents, sub-ISOs, and consultants who already sell merchant services and want a place to send high-risk and specialty volume. You should be comfortable with card-brand rules and underwriting basics. If you occasionally meet a merchant who needs a high-risk account but do not sell payments yourself, the referral program is the better fit.
How do residuals work?
You earn ongoing residual revenue for the life of each account you place, not a one-time bounty. As long as the merchant keeps processing, you keep earning. Residuals are settled monthly with transparent, itemized statements down to the MID. Your exact residual terms are agreed with you directly when you join and tailored to your volume and the verticals you work in.
What underwriting and support access do agents get?
ISO agents get priority underwriting desk access, so your high-risk deals move faster than the general queue. You also get gateway-level support on NMI and Authorize.net, plus help structuring multi-MID and backup-gateway configurations for merchants who need redundancy or load balancing. When a placed account starts seeing disputes, our chargeback prevention team steps in to protect the merchant — and your residual. A dedicated point of contact carries the technical work so you can focus on selling.
What gateways and configurations do you support?
We support NMI and Authorize.net at the gateway level, and we routinely build multi-MID and backup-gateway setups so a merchant is never dependent on a single processing path. If one MID or gateway has an issue, volume can route to a backup, which protects both the merchant and your residual. We place accounts across 70+ banking and acquirer relationships.
What do I need to qualify as an ISO agent?
You need real payments experience, an active merchant pipeline, and familiarity with card-brand rules. This program is for professionals who already know the business and want better underwriting access, transparent statements, and residuals for the life of the account — not a starter program for someone new to merchant services.
How and when do ISO agents get paid?
Residuals settle monthly with clear, itemized statements so you can reconcile every account and MID. Because residuals continue for the life of the account, a book you build now keeps paying as long as those merchants process. Exact splits and residual structure are agreed with you directly when you join.