Switching cannabis payment processors before an account closes lets you overlap both rails, export your data while you still have portal access, and train staff on a live system. Ask a prospective provider what rails the transaction runs on before asking about rates, because that single answer determines whether a merchant category code is involved at all.
The cost of switching is a week of overlap. The cost of not switching is measured in held funds.
The short version
- Switching by choice lets you overlap rails; switching after a shutdown does not.
- Ask what rails a provider runs on before you ask about rates.
- Export customer and transaction data before you give notice, not after.
- Run both systems briefly so the counter never has a day without acceptance.
Two very different switches
There is switching because you chose to, and switching because an account closed on a Tuesday and you have cash-only until you solve it. The second one is where most cannabis operators find themselves, and it is the reason so many end up on their third or fourth card workaround.
If you are in the second situation, start with what to do after a shutdown, because the sequence is different and the first week matters.
If you are still live and considering a change, you have leverage you will not have later: time to evaluate, data you can still export, and the ability to run two systems at once.
The first question, and it is not about rates
Ask any prospective provider one thing before anything else: what rails does the transaction run on?
The answers cluster into two groups. If the transaction touches the card networks, in any configuration, it needs a merchant category code, and there is no code for cannabis. Cashless ATM, PIN debit routing, and "approved cannabis card programs" are all presentations of the same underlying structure. If the transaction moves bank-to-bank, the card networks are not in it.
This question sorts the market faster than any rate comparison, because it determines whether you are buying a payment method or renting time on a clock.
What else to ask before signing
- Settlement timing. When do funds actually reach your account, and is that business days or calendar days?
- Reserve terms. Is a rolling reserve held, at what percentage, and for how long?
- Fee structure. Flat per transaction, percentage, monthly minimum, setup, PCI, statement, early termination. Ask for all of them in writing.
- Channel coverage. Does it handle the counter, delivery, online and wholesale, or only the counter?
- Data ownership. Who owns the customer records, and can you export them at will?
- Integrations. POS, e-commerce, and QuickBooks, and whether that means a real sync or a CSV download.
- Contract term. Length, auto-renewal, notice period, and what termination costs.
Export your data before you give notice
This is the step most operators skip and most regret. Once notice is given, or once an account is flagged, portal access can be restricted quickly.
Pull the full transaction history, settlement reports, the customer list with contact details, any recurring billing schedules, and chargeback or dispute documentation. Store it somewhere you control. If your current provider owns your customer records and will not release them, that fact is itself a reason to leave, and it is worth knowing before rather than after.
Run both rails during the cutover
The reason to switch deliberately is that you can overlap. A workable sequence looks like this:
- Onboard the new platform while the existing one is still running. Licensing and banking documentation is usually the long pole, not the technical setup.
- Test at one register or one channel. A single terminal, or delivery only, for a few days of real transactions.
- Train staff on the live system, not a demo. Budtenders need to have run it during an actual rush before it is the only option.
- Move the volume once the new rail is handling real load correctly.
- Then give notice, in writing, matching the notice period in the contract.
- Track the final settlement and any reserve release, with dates in writing. Money in a closing account is easy to lose track of.
What customers experience
The migration risk operators worry about most is the customer at the counter. In practice the change is small: the customer scans a QR code with their phone camera, connects their bank once in about thirty seconds, and confirms. No app download. Every purchase after the first is one confirmation, typically under twenty seconds. Greencard Payments platform data puts the repeat rate at roughly 87%.
Cash stays exactly as it is. This is an addition to the payment mix rather than a replacement, which also means the cutover has a fallback on day one.