An ACH form is a brief but essential document that authorizes banks, individuals, and businesses to move funds from one bank account to another through the ACH network. However, juggling piles of ACH forms and other physical documents can quickly spread your team too thin. Below, we’ll cover how you can start using CDP’s secure ACH form templates, what to consider as you switch to digital documents, and how we can help you build a workflow that makes sense for your needs.
Get Started with CDP’s ACH Form Templates
A routine task like filling out and distributing ACH forms can be a surprisingly significant drain on your resources. But with CDP’s ACH form templates, you can save time and energy by cutting back on the amount of work it takes to manage documents from start to finish.
Click the link above to check out some of our templates and see how you can tweak them to fit your needs.
Stop ACH Form Template
Need another example of an ACH form template you can use to make life easier? Check out our stop ACH form example below.
How to Use Our ACH Templates
To save time with CDP’s ACH form templates, click the link below to enter your name and email so you can receive instructions for getting started. We’ll walk you through how to use our templates and pass on some helpful insights about how you can leverage CDP’s software tools to make creating, sending, and signing digital documents as stress-free as possible.
Once you’ve accessed our templates, you can customize them to your liking and save templates of your own so that your organization has a library of materials to return to in the future.
CDP also makes it simple to collect e-signatures and securely store documents so you can easily access them whenever you need to. You can also distribute digital documents without the need to print or mail physical paperwork back and forth.
What is an ACH Form?
The term “ACH form” is somewhat vague, but it refers to a specific type of document that’s used to authorize electronic payments through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network.
The ACH is used by financial institutions nationwide to process electronic transactions, oftentimes referred to as ACH payments. These payments are one of many types of electronic funds transfers (EFTs) that allow institutions to move money between different accounts, as is necessary for direct deposits, automatic bill payments, and similar transactions.
Once completed and signed, an ACH form allows organizations or entities to deposit or withdraw funds directly from or into an account holder’s bank account. There are several types of ACH forms, though, including, but not limited to:
- ACH direct deposit authorization forms
- ACH payment authorization forms
- ACH stop payment forms
- ACH return forms
- ACH revocation of authorization forms
What to Include on an ACH Form
Anything that a bank needs to securely move funds from one account to another should be included on an ACH form. In most cases, then, an ACH form includes essential information about a person or business’s financial and personal details, including:
- The name of the account holder, whether it’s an individual or business authorizing the transaction
- Bank details, such as routing numbers, account numbers, and the name of the bank or financial institution
- An indication of the type of account being used, whether it’s a checking or savings account
- Details about the transaction, including whether it’s a one-time payment or recurring
- An authorization statement that officially authorizes the transaction and lists terms for any recurring payments, if applicable
- A signature from the account holder and the date the form is completed
Whether the form is aiming to grant authorization or transactions, reverse previous authorization, or cancel ACH transactions, its core features tend to be the same.
Best Practices for Using ACH Templates
CDP’s ACH templates are built with all the features and details you need to hit the ground running. But whether you use one of our ACH form templates or create one of your own, there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. Here are some best practices to consider when using digital documents:
- Check, check, and double-check. When using a template, it’s easy to go into auto-pilot mode. As you fill out your digital forms or create customized templates to use in the future, make sure you compare them to a physical copy, if possible, or a list of key features to ensure you don’t miss anything. Also, look out for typos and empty fields. It can sometimes be helpful to highlight or otherwise single out specific fields that tend to be missed so that you don’t run into any delays down the road.
- Offer clear instructions. Ensure that everyone who receives and uses your ACH templates and forms understands how to fill them out appropriately. This might mean communicating with your colleagues to make sure everyone is on the same page, or it might mean including language on the template itself explaining where to put what information.
- Consider how to integrate signatures. If you don’t already have a system for collecting e-signatures, it’s time to look into one. As you transition into using digital ACH forms and other documents, it helps to have access to a tool that integrates into your document management system. The fewer platforms you have to hop between to get the job done, the better.
Create and Use ACH Form Templates and More with CDP
Using digital documents is the new status quo – but that doesn’t necessarily mean that making the switch to electronic workflows is easy. While there may be more tech solutions out there than ever to help you digitize tasks, for many, the sea of options makes things even more confusing.
That’s why CDP takes an individualized approach to building a technology stack that suits your needs.
We work with you to understand where you’re at, where you’d like to be, and what tools you need to get there. After an initial demo, we’ll create a system that gives you what you need to succeed, not the things you don’t.
We know that making the digitization process as accessible as possible is an important part of helping businesses and organizations of all sizes grow and thrive.
Want to learn more about how a custom-built software approach can help you save time, money, and resources? Reach out to us today to start a conversation.
