Process offline payments with Square
About offline payments
The Square point of sale apps require an internet connection at all times to function optimally. This can be a Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection on your mobile device or Square hardware, or a Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or data service (such as 4G, 5G, or EDGE) on your mobile device.
If your internet connection becomes interrupted, is temporarily unavailable, or if Square has a service disruption, you can allow offline payments. While offline, you can accept cash and card payments and then upload them once you have an internet connection again.
Offline payments are securely stored in your point of sale app and will process automatically when you reconnect your device to the internet within 24 hours (no later than 72 hours).
With offline payments allowed, you can accept payments from most major card brands. Dip, tap, and swipe payment functionality varies by device when using offline payments. Your current processing rate will be applied to offline transactions, so you’ll see no difference in fees.
Before you begin
You have two options for allowing offline payments:
Allow offline payments in advance to prepare for a network outage or Square service disruption.
Allow offline payments in the moment when a network outage or Square service disruption occurs. Your team members will be unable to allow offline payments and accept payments while offline if they don’t have the correct permissions.
You can allow offline payments from Square Dashboard or the Square POS apps.
Offline payments can be processed on the supported Square POS apps, Square hardware, and mobile devices.
- Square Point of Sale app in full service, quick service, bar, retail, bookings, or standard mode. Learn how to use modes with Square Point of Sale.
- Square Restaurants POS app
- Square Appointments POS app
- Square Retail POS app
- Square Register
- Square Terminal
- Square Handheld
- Square Stand (2nd generation)
- Square Reader for contactless and chip (2nd generation)
- Square Reader for contactless and chip (1st generation, v3)
- Square Reader for magstripe, if you have Square Reader for contactless and chip or Square Stand connected to the device
- Square Stand (1st generation)
Learn how to identify your Square hardware.
Offline payments are not available or supported with the following:
-
Square hardware:
Square Reader for contactless and chip (1st generation - v1 and v2)
Square Kiosk hardware running the Square Kiosk app
-
Payment types:
Afterpay
Cash App Pay
Square Gift Cards
Tap to Pay on iPhone
Tap to Pay on Android
Manually-entered cards
-
Square apps:
Square Invoices app
Square Point of Sale app in services mode
Square Kiosk app
Square Loyalty: You’ll need to manually link and accrue customer points earned from offline payments once you reconnect to the internet and upload the payments.
Reports: Close of day reporting. Learn how to set up and run your restaurant’s close of day report.
Safety practices for offline payments
You must reconnect back to the internet no later than 72 hours after accepting offline payments, otherwise your payments will expire.
Be sure to obtain a signature for every transaction (where possible) and verify the signature on the screen matches the signature on the back of the payment card. Learn how to manage signatures for payments.
If the card is not signed, ask your customer for a government-issued ID and to sign the card. Looking at their ID, match the signature to the signature on the payment card.
While you can’t require your customer to provide an ID, and requesting an ID doesn’t change your liability for chargebacks, unsigned cards are invalid and should not be accepted.
You’re responsible for any expired, declined, or disputed payments accepted while taking offline payments. Square is unable to provide customer contact information or contact customers on your behalf for declined or expired offline payments.
Time limits for offline payments
Payment card industry partners and regulators set specific requirements related to the duration of offline payment sessions.
If you’re using the Square hardware listed below, you must reconnect your device to the internet and upload your offline payments within three days of the start of your offline payments session.
- Square Register
- Square Terminal
- Square Handheld
However, uploading your offline payments within 24 hours is highly recommended to reduce your risk of chargebacks or card declines.
If you’re using the Square hardware listed below, you need to reconnect to the internet every 24 hours while your Square hardware is connected to your iPhone, iPad, or Android mobile device.
- Square Reader for contactless and chip (2nd generation)
- Square Reader for contactless and chip (1st generation, v3)
- Square Stand (1st or 2nd generation)
Step 1: Download our guide to taking offline payments
Download the guide to taking offline payments and share it with your employees so they know what to do in the event of a network outage or Square service disruption. Learn more about offline payments as an overall solution.
Step 2: Allow offline payments
When offline payments are allowed prior to losing connection, your device will automatically begin an offline session when it loses connection to the internet. Offline payments can also be turned on during a Square service disruption. To get the most out of your offline session, we strongly recommend allowing offline payments prior to losing connection.
Allowing offline payments from point of sale modes in Square Dashboard will allow offline payments on every device that has the mode assigned to it. Learn how to create and assign modes.
- Sign in to Square Dashboard and go to Settings > Device management > Modes.
- Select an existing mode from the list and click Manage under Settings. If you do not have an existing mode, click Add mode.
- Under Checkout settings, select Offline payments > Toggle Allow Offline Payments ON.
- Set the max amount allowed per transaction for offline payments.
- Click Save.
From the Square POS app in full service, quick service, bar, retail, bookings, or standard mode, or from the Square Restaurants POS app, Square Retail POS app, or Square Appointments POS app:
- Sign in to your point of sale app and go to ≡ More > Settings.
- Tap Checkout > Offline payments > toggle Allow offline payments ON.
- Set the max amount allowed per transaction for offline payments.
- Tap the back arrow to save.
If you use modes with the Square Point of Sale app, the offline payment settings will apply to every device that has the mode assigned to it. Learn how to create and assign modes.
Allow offline payments during an outage
If offline payments aren’t allowed in advance to prepare for a network outage or Square service disruption, an outage notification will appear on your point of sale app when you lose connection. You can allow offline payments directly from the notification prompts.
-
Tap Take offline payments and review the risks.
If your team member doesn’t have the correct permission, someone with the correct permission needs to approve this by entering their passcode.
Tap Allow offline payments to confirm you accept the risks.
Step 3: Accept offline payments
Once allowed, you’ll see a notification banner at the top of your device screen any time your device goes offline. The banner indicates that your device has automatically started an offline session. If you’re experiencing an internet outage, the banner will be accompanied by a countdown clock showing how much time you have left to reconnect your device and upload the offline payments. The countdown clock will not appear during a Square service disruption.
Offline payments will appear as pending from your in-app transaction history while your device is offline. You'll see a notification when your device is back online, letting you know your offline payments are being processed.
After you’ve regained internet connectivity and uploaded your offline payments, another offline session will activate if you lose internet connectivity again or if there is a Square service disruption. Customers’ digital receipts and your payment notification emails will also be sent when the device is back online.
You can restart or power off your device or Square hardware, but you need to power it back on to upload any pending offline payments before they expire.
Refunds for offline payments
Offline payments can’t be canceled or refunded while they're still processing. You can issue a refund once your internet connection has been restored. Learn how to manage customer refunds.