ImpactGraph’s merchant management tools help you:
Set up vendors quickly from invoices
Let vendors securely enter their own banking and tax details
Stay compliant with W-9 requirements
Adding a new merchant from Bill Pay
You’ll often add new merchants while you’re entering an invoice.
From Bill Pay, click Add new bill (or similar) in the top right.
Upload the invoice from the vendor. You’ll see the invoice on the right-hand side of the screen for easy reference.
Under Merchant, click Create new merchant.
Enter the basic details you can read from the invoice, for example:
Merchant name (e.g., Green Lawn Care)
Contact name
Contact email (e.g., the email listed on the invoice)
Optional phone or other contact info
At this stage:
Address and payment/banking details are not required.
You can click Create merchant to save the profile and continue with the bill, even if you don’t have their banking info yet.
After creating the merchant:
Select the new merchant in the bill.
Click Send for approval to submit the bill to your fiscal sponsor.
Important: The bill can move forward for sponsor approval, but no payment will be issued until the vendor’s required banking (and tax) information is collected and confirmed.
Letting vendors enter their own banking information
ImpactGraph lets vendors complete their own profile via a secure link.
When you create a new merchant with a contact email (but no banking info), ImpactGraph will send them an email link. You can still submit the bill for fiscal sponsor approval while this is happening.
While the bill is waiting for sponsor approval:
The merchant receives an email with a secure link.
When they click the link, they see a page that:
Shows the pre-filled information you entered (e.g., name, email).
Prompts them to enter:
Address
Account type
Routing number
Account number
They click Submit to send their information back to the platform.
Once they submit:
Their merchant profile in ImpactGraph is updated with their address and banking details.
After your fiscal sponsor approves the bill, the payment can be issued using that information.
Where to manage merchants
Log in to ImpactGraph.
Go to Bill Pay from the left-hand menu.
Click Manage Merchants (on the right side, right above the list).
You’ll see a table of all merchants you’ve paid:
The spend period defaults to this fiscal year (important for W-9 thresholds).
A Tax documents column shows whether W-9s / tax details are required and completed.
Review each merchant’s total spend, tax document status, and payment readiness.
Enabling W-9 / tax document compliance
By default, existing vendors are set to Tax documents: Not required. You can turn on tax requirements for any merchant individually.
To require a W-9 or tax documents for a vendor:
Go to Bill Pay → Manage Merchants.
Click into the merchant you want to update.
Toggle Tax documents required to On.
You now have two paths:
You already have the W-9: Upload the W-9 directly to the merchant record.
You don’t have the W-9 yet: When you toggle Tax documents required, ImpactGraph sends the vendor an email link.
FAQ
Q: What if I’m creating a bill but don’t have the vendor’s banking details yet?
A:
You can still create the bill and merchant using the information from the invoice (name, email, etc.).
ImpactGraph will email the vendor a secure link so they can enter their banking and profile data themselves.
The payment request can go to your fiscal sponsor for approval, but no payment will be issued until the vendor submits their banking info and your sponsor approves the bill.
Q: How does ImpactGraph help me know when I need a W-9 from a vendor?
A:
The Manage Merchants page defaults to your current fiscal year, so you can see how much you’ve spent with each vendor.
Always confirm specific compliance requirements with your accountant or sponsor
Q: Can I upload an existing W-9 instead of asking the vendor again?
A: Yes. Open the merchant in Manage Merchants, toggle Tax documents required, and upload the W-9 directly.
Q: What happens if a vendor doesn’t complete their profile or W-9 form?
A:
The vendor’s status will remain incomplete in Manage Merchants.
Payments may stay pending or be blocked until the required information is provided (depending on your sponsor’s policies).
You can resend the email link, follow up directly with the vendor, or manually enter information if you’ve collected it outside the system.
Q: Where do I see if a vendor is fully set up and “all clear” to pay?
A:
Go to Bill Pay → Manage Merchants.
Check both:
Tax documents status
Payment status
If you see "Ready for Payment" then the vendor is set up properly.