My verification is taking longer than expected

2 min read

Quick answer #

Pay@ Gateway’s standard verification SLA is 24 hours, and around 70% of applicants are verified inside 4 business hours. If your verification is taking longer, it’s almost always one of three things: a document was unreadable or didn’t match registry records, the verification queue hit a public holiday or weekend, or your application is sitting in extended review for a risk-related reason. Check your inbox first (including spam) for an email from Pay@ Gateway — most cases come with a specific reason and a clear fix.

Step 1 — Check your email #

Pay@ Gateway sends an email the moment each verification check completes. Look for:

Subject lines from Pay@ Gateway in your inbox AND in your spam/promotions folder
Emails to the address you signed up with (not your accounting email or any aliases)
Emails within the last 48 hours — earlier emails may have been read and forgotten

If we’ve found a problem, the email tells you exactly what to fix — usually one specific document to resubmit. Most “stuck” verifications resolve once the merchant sees and responds to this email.

Step 2 — Check your dashboard #

In your merchant dashboard, the home page shows your current verification status:

“In progress” — checks are still running. Usually resolves within hours.
“Action required” — we need something from you. Click through for details.
“Extended review” — your application has been escalated to manual review. See Step 4.
“Verified” — you’re cleared and can go live.

Step 3 — Check timing factors #

Verifications submitted at certain times take longer for unavoidable reasons:

Friday afternoon to Monday morning — the CIPC database (where company details are verified) doesn’t process queries on weekends. Applications submitted Friday afternoon may not complete until Monday.
Public holidays — CIPC and the major banks pause processing. Long weekends in particular can stretch verification to 3–4 calendar days.
End of tax year (Feb/Mar) and end of financial year (June) — CIPC processing volumes spike, and individual queries take longer.

If your application is under 24 hours old and overlaps with a weekend or public holiday, it’s not actually delayed — it’s still inside the expected window.

Step 4 — If you’re in “Extended review” #

A small number of applications go to manual review. The most common reasons:

High-risk industry — gambling, adult content, tobacco, or other regulated sectors require additional checks
Director appearing on a watchlist — typically a name match that needs human review to clear
Recent CIPC changes — if your company details changed in the last 30 days, we wait for the changes to be reflected in the CIPC database
First-time merchant patterns — occasionally an automated risk flag triggers manual review without a specific issue

Extended review typically completes within 3 business days. You’ll get an email when it does — either approved, or with a specific question.

Step 5 — When to contact us #

If none of the above explains what’s happening, reach out: [PH-003]

When you contact us, please include:

Your business name (as registered)
The email address you signed up with
The date and approximate time you submitted your documents
A screenshot of the current dashboard status

This lets the support team find your application and tell you exactly where it is in the queue.

What you can do while you wait #

Verification status doesn’t block everything. While waiting, you can:

Build and test your integration in sandbox mode
Install plugins on your Shopify or WooCommerce store
Configure your dashboard preferences
Add team members to your account

The moment verification clears, you can switch from sandbox to live and start accepting real payments.