PayIt POS

Question 1

What is PayItPOS?

Answer 1

PayIt Point of Sale is our third-party processing system to take credit and debit card transactions in the office. It is also available to be used online for taxpayers to pay by card or by e-check/bank information, or via phone by card.

Question 2

Where can someone go online to pay this way?

Answer 2

www.buncombecounty.org/tax will take you to the tax department’s main page, then https://buncombe-county-nc-payments.mobilgov.com/ will take you directly to the payment site.

Question 3

Is there a transaction minimum?

Answer 3

Yes, $1.00

Question 4

How can someone pay by phone?

Answer 4

Call 828-656-5636- you need a bill number.

General steps:
1. Call 828-656-5636
2. English or Spanish
3. Enter the Bill # only
4. Verify the account # and Owner Name
5. Verify amount due
6. Pay in Full or Partial
7. Input CC information
8. Verify
9. Complete Transaction, get transaction #

Question 5

What is the general process to pay online?

Answer 5

1. Go to https://www.buncombecounty.org/governing/depts/tax/tax-collections.aspx
2. Pay Tax Bills online
3. https://buncombe-county-nc-payments.mobilgov.com/
4. Log In (Make Account) or Pay as Guest
5. Find & Pay Bill
6. Search via Bill #, Name (individual or business), Parcel #, Address (# and St name only)
7. Select account
8. Account linked
9. Pay My Bills
10. Yes, proceed to payment
11. Enter contact information if guest
12. Add to cart
13. Pay
14. Input payment information (can do this on profile)
15. Submit

Question 6

Can you pay with an e-check/bank information via the phone?

Answer 6

No

Question 7

Is our pay-by-phone service automated or do you speak with someone?

Answer 7

It is automated. If a taxpayer claims they paid with us over the phone and spoke to a live person, they likely got scammed :(

Question 8

What is the fee for using a credit card?

Answer 8

2.35% per transaction

Question 9

What is the fee for using a debit card?

Answer 9

$3.95 per transaction

Question 10

Can a taxpayer pay more than one bill at a time over the phone?

Answer 10

No

Question 11

If a taxpayer is having trouble with the PayIt site itself, and we can’t help them, who do we direct them to?

Answer 11

We can send people to PayIt for app-specific support, they will send people to us for bill-specific support.

PayIt Customer Service: 800-268-9153

Question 12

What is the fee to use an e-check/bank information online (not over the phone)?

Answer 12

There is none. That option does not have an extra 3rd party fee.

Question 13

How is this process changing on July 1st, 2025?

Answer 13

Effective July 1, 2025, processing fees will be added to ALL debit and credit card payments - in person, online, and over the phone.

Buncombe County is no longer absorbing the fees in person, or at all, due to budget changes, and especially after Helene.

The transaction limit will be lifted, but there will be automatic fees added.

We will be working with CAPE on messaging and make a slight change to the bill.

Question 14

When searching online, if you don’t have a bill number, are there other ways to search for a bill?

Answer 14

Yes. Name (individual or business), Parcel #, Address (# and St name only) can be searched.

Question 15

Does the online PayIt system have a fuzzy search function?

Answer 15

Yes. There are no special characters to input, such as * or ?, but you just type in partial information and it will look for information that includes that.

Question 16

Can you search for a mailing address only one the PayIt online system?

Answer 16

No. This would only work if the mailing address matches the situs address. Otherwise, the only address searchable is the physical situs address.

Question 17

Taxpayers want reminders that their bill is due. Can they set this up via PayIt? How about paperless notifications?

Answer 17

Online, yes. Once an account is linked, you can set up reminders when you have new bills.

Set up an account with PayIt and link their account, they can set up reminders when they have new bills.

So, they don’t set up an account with PayIt to go paperless, that would just be a way for them to get electronic reminders when they have a bill come out.

To go paperless for real, they need to have a code and create an account at www.eNoticesOnline.com , which is managed by our billing print vendor. (Our print vendor has the list with the codes, so we could also provide that once we have the list, but I’m not sure if they sent it yet.) We would be able to give them a code from that list once we have it.

If the property owner has not signed up for e-notices the code would print on their notice as well.

Question 18

Can you pay more than one bill at a time in PayIt online? (not over the phone)

Answer 18

Yes. You can only link one account at a time, but once that account is linked and there are multiple bills available for those accounts, you can choose to pay those multiple bills at once from the home dashboard.

You can also just add multiple bills to the cart without signing in or linking anything, like how we do it in the office.

Question 19

Can a taxpayer sign up for e-notice paperless notifications if they don’t have or lost their bill?

Answer 19

Yes. We can provide a code for them from a master spreadsheet if they don’t have it.

Please note that this service is entirely separate from PayIt, and has nothing to do with online billpay, but rather is an electronic service provided by our print vendor who mails the bills out for us. Once they have their code, taxpayers can sign up at www.eNoticesOnline.com to opt out of paper, and instead receive an email notification when their bills are available.

Question 20

Why may a bill not show up in PayIt?

Answer 20

1. It has $0 balance
2. It has unpayable flags of ATT REF and/or 10-COMPLAINT
3. It is a pre-bill, thus not a “real” bill yet
4. Spelling/user error

Question 21

In Person: Before processing a CC payment, what should you check first?

Answer 21

NCPTS. Get the bill # and check any flags & notes.

Question 22

In Person: Do card payments in PayIt have a place in a NCPTS batch like checks and cash?

Answer 22

No. They live in their own IVR batch. There is no paperwork needed to keep for your own batch, like receipts, since they are separate.

Question 23

How quickly does a transaction in PayIt show up in NCPTS?

Answer 23

Immediately. PTS INSTANTLY updates in real time!

This only goes one way, however. Payments from PayIt POS are applied to PTS in real time, but changes in PTS, like the addition/removal of a flag, will not update in PayIt POS until the following day.

PayIt will update overnight, so if they have a balance to pay, they should wait until the next day or allocate that specific amount.

Question 24

What kinds of cards can we take? What can we not?

Answer 24

Can: Visa, Mastercard, AMEX, and Discover (and their associated gift cards)

Can’t: Gift cards that are not issued by these credit card companies

Question 25

In Person: Can people use their smartphone or watch to pay?

Answer 25

Yes! It works like a tap does.

Question 26

Can someone change the name on the receipt for a CC transaction?

Answer 26

Not yet, unfortunately. We can’t change the name of who’s paying a bill with PayIt. BUT we can put a note in the bill, and they will be able to track the payment with their bank account.

Question 27

In Person: What kind of errors happen?

Answer 27

If they don’t hold the card there long enough, you might have to restart the transaction. It might give you a detailed NSF error if they don’t have enough funds in the account or have a limit. If it’s not connecting to the card reader, try refreshing the browser, restarting your browser, and unplugging the terminal as a last resort. Their bank might think it’s a fraudulent transaction If they take too long to tap/swipe/insert their card, it might time out If they hit the red X button during the transaction, it will be Canceled Sometimes it just declines and we don’t know why.

Question 28

In Person: If someone comes in to pay with a card on a bill that has an ATT REF flag on it and are authorized to pay, can they do so?

Answer 28

Not that same day, unfortunately. We're hoping to get this changed. Because PayIt updates overnight, flag removal/addition will show up in PayIt the following day if they want to pay with a card/e-check. They are welcome to pay with cash or check same day, or wait until the next day to pay with a card.

Question 29

In Person: Why is the tap function most likely "not working"?

Answer 29

Because people move their card too fast. Our tap reader is slow for some reason, and they should be holding their card over the symbol near the top of the reader, not just over the screen. The tap works as long as they hold the card over the symbol until it beeps. If they take it away too fast, you’ll probably have to redo the transaction.

Question 30

In Person: Does the CC reader have a touch screen?

Answer 30

No. They must press the buttons. The ones on top are small and difficult to press, but when selecting Debit or Credit, they must press one of buttons directly under the word to proceed. The buttons beep when they are pressed successfully.

Question 31

In Person: Can we void CC transactions?

Answer 31

No. Once they are processed, that's that. ** Make certain with taxpayers and yourself that you're applying to the correct bill for the correct amount.

Question 32

Can partial payments be made?

Answer 32

Yes. In person and online, generally, partial payments are accepted. Allocate as necessary.

Question 33

In Person: If someone selects Debit, do they have to input a PIN #?

Answer 33

Yes. If they don't want to or don't remember their PIN #, they can cancel the transaction and run it as credit instead.

Question 34

In Person: How many receipts should you print?

Answer 34

2. One from PayIt, and One from NCPTS that shows the updated balance(s). Give both to taxpayer.

Question 35

Can you view older previous transactions that you've made in PayIt?

Answer 35

Yes. There is a Transaction History button on the left side that looks like a clock with an arrow going counter-clockwise. Your transactions for that day, or whichever day you choose, will show up. Receipts can be re-printed from here.

Question 36

Can you view transactions that someone else has made in PayIt?

Answer 36

Not unless you're a supervisor.