Available for: Patriot Payroll (Basic and Full Service) with approved direct deposit application.
If you use direct deposit in Patriot and have missed the standard ACH deadline to run payroll, you can fund your direct deposit by sending a bank wire or an instant payment directly to Patriot. This option allows you to approve payroll as late as 3:00 p.m. ET the day before the employee pay date — instead of the usual four-day lead time required for standard ACH funding.
Definitions:
FedNow®: A separate instant payment network operated by the Federal Reserve. Patriot does not support FedNow — only the Real-Time Payment Network (RTP®).
ACH (Automated Clearing House): The standard banking network used for direct deposit. ACH transfers take 4 banking days to process.
Bank wire: A same-day funds transfer sent directly from your bank to Patriot’s bank account. Bank wires take several hours to process and typically cost more than instant payments.
Instant payment (Real-Time Payment, or RTP): A funds transfer that moves money between bank accounts in minutes through the Real-Time Payment Network (RTP®). Faster and cheaper than a bank wire, but not yet supported by all banks.
Comparison: Bank Wire vs. Instant Payment
| Bank Wire | Instant Payment RTN |
Patriot Fee | $15 per Wire | $5 per Instant Payment |
Bank Fee | Fees differ (contact your bank) | Fees differ (contact your bank) |
Availability | Most banks | Still being adopted by banks |
The time it takes for money to be received by Patriot | Several hours | A few minutes |
Deadline to run payroll | 3:00 pm ET | 3:00 pm ET |
💡Important: Patriot does not accept ACH direct transfers, Zelle, or Venmo as wire/instant payment alternatives. Funds must originate from a financial institution via bank wire or RTP® instant payment — not a money transfer service such as Western Union. |
Fees
Bank wire fee: Patriot charges $15.00 per wire transfer.
Instant payment fee: Patriot charges $5.00 per instant payment.
Patriot’s fees appear on your next monthly software invoice.
Your bank may charge its own fee for sending a wire or instant payment. Please contact your bank for their current rates.
How to Run Payroll with a Wire or Instant Payment
When you run payroll, Patriot detects whether your pay date is within the standard ACH window. On Payroll Step 1, you will see an option to select bank wire or instant payment as your funding method.
After you complete and approve the payroll on Step 3, Patriot displays your wire/instant payment instructions, including Patriot’s bank account information. These instructions also appear on your Dashboard and Payroll Overview page after the payroll is approved.
Wire instructions available on Step 3 of Payroll:
Wire Instructions available on the Dashboard:
Three Critical Deadlines
All three deadlines must be met for employees to receive their pay on time.
Deadline 1 — Approve payroll by 3:00 p.m. ET, the day before the pay date. You must complete and approve payroll in Patriot by 3:00 p.m. ET. This applies to both bank wires and instant payments.
Deadline 2 — Initiate the wire or instant payment from your bank by 3:00 p.m. ET, the day before the pay date. Log in to your bank and send the wire or instant payment no later than 3:00 p.m. ET. Note: bank wires can take up to 3 hours to arrive at Patriot, while instant payments arrive in minutes.
Deadline 3 — Funds must be received by Patriot by 7:00 p.m. ET, the day before the pay date. If funds are not received by 7:00 p.m. ET, on-time payment to employees cannot be guaranteed. Any wire amount Patriot receives that cannot be matched to a payroll will be returned by 7:00 p.m. ET; the funds will be available in your bank account the next banking day.
How to Confirm Wire or Instant Payment Has Been Sent
After you have sent your Bank Wire or Instant Payment you'll need to let our team know the wire has been sent so they know to look for it and apply it to your payroll.
You can do this on step 3 of payroll or on the Dashboard in your software.
Step 3 of payroll
This temporarily be on step 3 of payroll, but will go away if you navigate away from the page. If you navigate away, you can find the Confirm payment sent button on the Dashboard, see below.
Dashboard
The Confirm Payment Button will display on the Dashboard until an action (Confirm payment or I will not be sending funds link) has been confirmed.
Log in to your software
Go to the Dashboard to locate the direct deposit banner.
Click the Confirm Payment Sent button.
A modal will appear, with your Account ID.
Click the radio button of the Payment Type:
Bank wire
Instant Payment
Enter the Amount Sent by clicking the radio button for
The payroll total
Patriot cannot guarantee that all employees will be paid if the amount received is less than the payroll total.
Other amount
Enter the exact amount you are sending in the box provided.
Combining multiple payrolls. If you have more than one payroll run that needs wire/instant payment funding, you may send a single wire or instant payment for the combined total of all payroll runs.
Notes (optional) Any special instructions or notes you want the Escrow team to know about this payment. We recommend this when sending an amount other than the payroll total.
Click the I've Sent My Payment button to confirm and send to the Escrow team.
Click the Cancel button to leave the modal.
A confirmation email will be sent once the payment has been applied to your payroll.
Any wire amount we receive that cannot be confirmed to a matching payroll will be returned by 7 PM Eastern Time. The funds will be available in your bank account the next banking day.
How to Cancel a Wire or Instant Payment
If you decide not to send a wire or instant payment after running payroll, you can cancel the pending payment by:
Log in to your software
Go to Dashboard.
Click the I'm not sending a payment link located in the direct deposit banner on your dashboard.
Important Details
Bank wires: If you have not received a confirmation email and are concerned about your wire status, email [email protected] with your Fedwire number — a 16–20 digit number found after the words “Fed Number” or “Federal Number” on your wire receipt. Patriot’s team can trace the wire using this number.
Instant payments: Funds arrive in minutes.
Instant payments fund your direct deposit, it does not pay employees. Instant payments move money from your bank to Patriot’s bank account. Employee direct deposits are still sent via traditional ACH from Patriot to employee bank accounts.
Not all banks support RTP® instant payments. The Real-Time Payment Network (RTP®) is supported by Patriot, but not yet universally available at all banks. If your bank does not support RTP®, use a bank wire instead. Note: FedNow® is a separate network and is not supported by Patriot.