Quick answers to the questions people ask most about Factorial cards: getting and activating a card, paying, fixing a declined payment, adding receipts, and looking after cards and the cards account (balance, top up) as an admin. Each answer links to the article with the full steps.

Tips and Best Practices

Troubleshooting and FAQ

FAQ

Getting and activating a card

1. How do I get a Factorial card?

Admins create virtual, physical and single-use cards, and employees can request a single-use card in the app. Requests are decided by people with Can manage cards. See How do I create or request a virtual, physical or single-use card?.

2. How do I create a virtual card or request a physical card for an employee?

Admins create cards: Spending > Employee expenses > New card, then choose Virtual card, Physical card or Single-use card. Employees can request only a single-use card (with One, also a virtual card). See How do I create or request a virtual, physical or single-use card?.

3. Who can request, approve and manage cards?

Permissions decide it: Can request cards for requesting, Can manage cards for issuing, approving, deactivating, reactivating and cancelling any card. See Who can manage and request Factorial cards?.

4. My physical card hasn't arrived. How do I track it?

Open the card in My spending > My cards: once it has shipped you'll see the carrier, the date and a Track Shipment link. Before that it shows that the card is being processed. See How do I activate my Factorial card and see my PIN?.

5. How do I activate my physical card?

Open the card in My spending > My cards on the web, enter the Card's last 4 digits and click Activate card. The mobile app doesn't offer activation. See How do I activate my Factorial card and see my PIN?.

6. Where do I find my card number, CVV or PIN?

Virtual and single-use cards show their number and CVV, and physical cards show their PIN, once the card is active. On the web open the card (the PIN is under Information); in the app tap Show details or Show PIN. See How do I activate my Factorial card and see my PIN?.

7. Can I add my card to Apple Pay or Google Pay?

Yes, from the Factorial app, when the Apple Wallet or Google Pay button appears on the card. See How do I activate my Factorial card and see my PIN?.

8. Which countries can open a cards account?

Legal entities in several European countries, including the United Kingdom. The full list is in What are Factorial cards, and why use them for company spending?.

Paying and declined payments

9. Where can I use my Factorial card?

A physical card works in shops and online, and a virtual card is for online payments. Each payment must fit the card's limit and any restriction your company set. See How do I pay with my Factorial card, add the receipt and deactivate it if it's lost?.

10. Why was my payment declined?

Open the card, go to Card payments and read the Decline reason. Common causes are not enough funds in the cards account, the card's limit or merchant restrictions, or a deactivated, cancelled or expired card. See A card payment is missing in Factorial. Where is it?.

11. Why does my card show Inactive and decline payments?

Inactive means the card is deactivated: by the cardholder, an admin, or because the person left or was removed from Expenses. A new physical card is also inactive until its cardholder activates it. An admin with Can manage cards can reactivate a deactivated card in Treasury > Cards. See A card payment is missing in Factorial. Where is it?.

12. The decline reason says "insufficient funds in your account". What do I do?

The cards account doesn't have enough money. An admin adds funds: Treasury > Accounts, open the cards account and click Add funds. See How do I open a Factorial cards account, add funds and check the balance?.

13. Can I withdraw cash with a Factorial card?

Factorial cards are for purchases: cash withdrawals and cash advances can be declined. See What are Factorial cards, and why use them for company spending?.

14. A payment keeps asking for a code, or the code goes to an old number. What do I do?

Some payments ask for a one-time code sent to the mobile phone registered on the card. The phone can be changed by an admin with Can manage cards, or with permission to change a cardholder's phone number. Go to Treasury > Cards and choose View details on the card. Open Information, update Country code and Mobile phone under Cardholder information, and click Update. See Who can manage and request Factorial cards?.

15. Why is the amount on my expense different from the price at checkout?

The expense takes the amount and currency charged to your card, which can differ when the merchant charged in another currency or added a tip or a final amount later. See How do I pay with my Factorial card, add the receipt and deactivate it if it's lost?.

Expenses and receipts for card payments

16. Do I have to create an expense when I pay with my Factorial card?

No. Factorial creates a draft expense for every accepted payment, and you only add the receipt. See How are card payments matched to expenses and receipts?.

17. How do I add the receipt to a card payment?

Tap the New card payment notification on your phone and add the receipt (with One, take a photo and One does the rest), or open the card expense in My spending > My expenses on the web and click Send for approval after adding it. See How do I pay with my Factorial card, add the receipt and deactivate it if it's lost?.

18. I sent a receipt but One created a separate expense. What now?

One matches a receipt to a card payment only when the amount is exactly the same and the date and category fit. Delete the manual expense and add the receipt to the card expense, so the purchase isn't reported twice. See How are card payments matched to expenses and receipts?.

19. Can I change or delete a card expense?

You can edit everything except the amount, currency and merchant, which come from the card payment, and you can't delete a card expense that has an amount. See How are card payments matched to expenses and receipts?.

20. A card payment is missing. Where is it?

Every payment attempt is recorded on the card's Card payments tab, so check its status there: Withheld, Completed, Declined, Reversed or Refunded. Only accepted payments create an expense. See A card payment is missing in Factorial. Where is it?.

21. What does "Withheld" mean?

The merchant has reserved the amount but hasn't charged it yet. The payment already has an expense, which updates when the merchant charges. See A card payment is missing in Factorial. Where is it?.

22. A merchant refunded my card payment. Why didn't my expense change?

A refund appears as its own line with the status Refunded, and the original expense keeps its full amount. The refunded amount frees up the card's budget in the current limit period. See A merchant refunded a card payment. How does it show in Expenses?.

23. How do I find card expenses that are missing their receipt?

In Spending > Employee expenses, filter Expense type by Factorial Card and Status by Draft. There's no filter for expenses without a receipt. See How do I make sure every card payment has its receipt and details?.

24. What reminders do cardholders get to add their receipt?

A New card payment notification on their phone once per payment, and an Expenses in draft reminder by email and push every Monday at 08:00 in their time zone. See How do I make sure every card payment has its receipt and details?.

25. What is card reconciliation?

It means linking each card payment to its receipt, category, project, cost centre and VAT. With Factorial cards, Factorial creates the expense and One completes it from the receipt. See Card reconciliation: what it means and how it works, in the Expenses section under Reconcile card payments.

Looking after cards (admins)

26. My card is lost or stolen, or I want to freeze or pause it. What do I do?

Deactivate it as soon as you notice: open the card in My spending > My cards (admins: Treasury > Cards), choose Deactivate card and confirm, or ask One to freeze it. If it won't be found, choose Cancel card and pick the reason: a cancelled card can't be used again. See How do I pay with my Factorial card, add the receipt and deactivate it if it's lost?.

27. How do I deactivate, reactivate or cancel someone else's card?

With Can manage cards, go to Treasury > Cards, open the actions menu on the card and choose Deactivate, Reactivate or Cancel; the cardholder is notified when you deactivate or reactivate. By default cardholders can deactivate and cancel their own card but not reactivate it. See How do I pay with my Factorial card, add the receipt and deactivate it if it's lost?.

28. How do I replace a damaged or expired card?

Cancel the old card with the reason Other and issue a new one. See How do I create or request a virtual, physical or single-use card?.

29. A charge I don't recognise appeared. What should I do?

Deactivate the card, then contact the merchant. If it isn't resolved, contact our support team with the card's last 4 digits, the date, the merchant and the amount. See How do I pay with my Factorial card, add the receipt and deactivate it if it's lost?.

30. What happens to an employee's cards when they leave?

When they leave the company, or stop being an Expenses user, their active Expenses cards are deactivated, not cancelled. See How do I create or request a virtual, physical or single-use card?.

31. How do I set a limit or restrict where a card can be used?

Open the card, go to Controls and set a spending limit or the merchant categories. See How do I control how much a card can spend, and where?.

Cards account and balance (admins)

32. How do I see the balance of the cards account?

Go to Treasury > Accounts and open the cards account: Balance is at the top. See How do I open a Factorial cards account, add funds and check the balance?.

33. How do I top up (add money to) the cards account?

Open the account in Treasury > Accounts, click Add funds and make a bank transfer to the Beneficiary name and Account number shown. See How do I open a Factorial cards account, add funds and check the balance?.

34. How do I move money from the cards account back to our bank account?

Factorial has no button for this. If you need money back, contact our support team. See How do I open a Factorial cards account, add funds and check the balance?.

35. My cards account disappeared from Treasury. Where is it?

Look under In review in Treasury > Accounts, clear the Legal entity filter, and check that you have See banking transactions. See How do I open a Factorial cards account, add funds and check the balance?.

36. How do I download card movements from Treasury?

Open the cards account in Treasury > Accounts and click Export transactions. See How do I open a Factorial cards account, add funds and check the balance?.