A client tells you they are setting up payment for work you have completed. Two small deposits arrive in your Elevate Pay account, and they ask you to confirm the exact amounts.

It may feel like a routine step toward getting paid. But sharing those amounts could help your client link your account to their bank. Depending on the bank, that connection may allow them both to send you funds and to withdraw money from your account.

If a client asks you to share micro-deposit amounts, do not share them. Here is what those deposits mean and why the request matters.

What are micro-deposits?

Micro-deposits are small test deposits used to verify a bank account or someone’s access to it. The process usually involves two deposits, each less than $1, sent through the US Automated Clearing House (ACH) bank transfer system.

A bank or payment service sends the deposits, then asks the person setting up the connection to enter the exact amounts received. As Nacha explains, micro-deposits are used to verify an account or someone’s access to it.

For example, you might receive two separate deposits: $0.10 and $0.15. The bank may reclaim these test amounts through two separate debits of $0.10 and $0.15, or one combined debit of $0.25. These debits take back the money deposited for verification. Deposits and their matching debits may appear in your account at different times.

They are not payment for your work or proof that a larger payment is on its way.

Why would a client ask for the amounts?

Your client may have selected an option in their banking app to “link an external account.” This can be a feature for connecting another bank account they own or control.

If they enter your Elevate Pay account details instead, their bank may send micro-deposits to your account and ask them to confirm the amounts.

Your client cannot normally see the amounts received in your account. If you share them, the client can enter them into their bank’s verification process, helping them verify access to your account.

This may be an honest mistake. A client might believe they are simply adding you as someone to pay. The risk comes from how the account is connected, even when their intention is to send you money.

What could this mean for your account?

Depending on the client’s bank, a verified external-account connection may allow money to move in both directions:

• Into your account: the client can send you funds.

• Out of your account: the client may be able to initiate an ACH debit, which is a request to withdraw money.

The routine reclaiming of test deposits is separate from the risk of future withdrawals. Once the account is linked and verified, the connection may allow the client to request withdrawals of larger amounts. The risk is not limited to the $0.25 used in this example.

Sharing the deposit amounts does not give your client your Elevate Pay login. But it may help them establish a separate banking connection that puts your funds at risk.

It can also complicate disputes over future debits because the connection was verified using information you provided. Always report any transaction you do not recognize so our team can review it.

Are all micro-deposits unsafe?

No. Micro-deposits are a legitimate verification method. You may encounter them when setting up a service yourself through its official website or app.

The important questions are who is setting up the connection and what it allows them to do.

A client should not link your Elevate Pay account as their own external bank account. Do not share micro-deposit amounts, verification codes, or other account verification information with a client. If you are unsure about a request, contact Elevate Pay support.

How should clients pay you instead?

Your client should use their bank’s ACH payment or transfer service for paying another person or business, using the receiving account details you provide.

They should add you as the recipient, rather than connect your account as one they own or control. If they cannot find the right option, they should ask their bank how to send an ACH payment to someone else.

You can tell them:

Please send payment using your bank’s ACH payment service, with me as the recipient. Please do not link my Elevate Pay account as your own external account. If your bank asks for micro-deposit verification, please check with them before continuing.

What if you have already shared the amounts?

Contact Elevate Pay support promptly, even if no money is missing. Explain that a client requested micro-deposit amounts and that you shared them. Keep the related messages and transaction details available for review.

Where a third party has already linked and verified your account this way, our compliance team recommends closing the affected account and issuing new account details. This prevents the existing connection from being used to initiate future transactions against the closed account.

Our team can guide you through the next steps, including what to do about expected payments.

Keeping the existing account open carries an increased risk of unauthorized debits and may complicate future disputes. A client’s reassurance that they only intended to pay you does not remove that risk.

Your account should remain under your control. Treat micro-deposit amounts as sensitive verification information. Do not share them with a client, and contact Elevate Pay support if someone asks for them.