This article is for US contractors who get an email from Gusto with an option to receive a payment instantly. If you're an admin, see what to know about instant payment for contractors.
Instant payment is a closed pilot for certain eligible US contractors and eligible payments. If a payment is eligible, you can choose to receive it instantly for a 1.75% fee, which is deducted from your payment. It is always optional. If you do nothing, your payment arrives on its original date, with no fee from Gusto.
Instant transfers typically occur in seconds, but may take up to 30 minutes.
The fee is 1.75% of the payment, and it is deducted from the payment. The page shows the exact fee and the amount you receive before you confirm.
Example: for a $225.00 payment, the instant fee is $3.94, so you receive $221.06.
You are not charged the fee if you do not choose instant payment, or if the instant payment does not go through. The company paying you does not pay the fee.
If a payment is eligible, we email you the payment amount, the fee, and how long the option is available. To receive the payment instantly, follow these steps:
Open the email from Gusto and click the link to receive the payment instantly.
Sign in to Gusto if asked.
On the Receive your payment instantly page, review the payment amount, the Instant fee (1.75%), and the amount You receive.
Select the checkbox to agree to the fee. It also confirms that you understand an instant payment cannot be reversed once sent.
Click Confirm and send payment.
The page then says Your instant payment is on the way. Instant transfers typically occur in seconds, but may take up to 30 minutes.
The option is available until the time shown in the email and on the page (Pacific time). After that, the page says This payment cannot be received instantly, and your payment arrives on its original date with no fee.
If the page says Receiving this payment instantly is temporarily unavailable, you can come back to the page before the time shown to try again. Otherwise, your payment arrives on its original date with no fee.
If you change your bank account before you confirm, the payment can no longer be received instantly. It arrives on its original date.
We send it by the fastest available bank transfer instead and email you. You are not charged the fee, and your payment arrives by its original payment date.
An instant payment cannot be canceled or reversed once sent.
The payment date in Gusto changes to the date you received the money.
Your payment statement shows the Instant payment fee.