Method of Payment

The NPDB accepts query fee payments by credit card (VISA, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express), bank debit card (with a VISA or MasterCard logo), or preauthorized Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). However, individual and organizational Self-Query fees must be paid by credit or debit card. Eligible entities may choose to pay by credit or debit card or preauthorized EFT. The NPDB does not accept personal checks, money orders, or cash.

Credit or Debit Card

Eligible entities and self-queriers choosing to pay by credit or debit card are not required to make advance arrangements with the NPDB to use their cards.

• An eligible entity making a One-Time Query or Continuous Query should enter the credit or debit card number and expiration date on the appropriate screen when querying (after signing in to the Integrated Querying and Reporting Service [IQRS], go to the Options menu).
• Self-queriers who process their requests entirely online through the Self-Query service should use their own credit or debit card while online; self-queriers who do not use the Self-Query service should enter a credit or debit card number and expiration date in the appropriate fields of the Self-Query application, either electronically before printing or in writing after printing the application, before submitting the printed application.

An eligible entity's administrator has the option to securely store the eligible entity's credit or debit card information to prevent having to enter it each time a new query is being submitted. In addition, the administrator can assign users to the credit or debit card for query processing. The administrator can assign multiple credit or debit cards if he or she chooses to do so.

EFT

Eligible entities choosing to pay by EFT must submit an Electronic Funds Transfer Authorization form before EFT payments can be processed. To obtain this form, go to the sign in screen, then to the Administrator Options menu, and select Authorize Electronic Funds Transfer.

For detailed instructions, visit How to Authorize Electronic Funds Transfer.

Query Prepayments

Entities can prepay a lump sum to the NPDB for queries they intend to make, rather than paying for individual transactions. Data Bank administrators can purchase unlimited query credits in advance by credit card or EFT transaction from their Administrator Options screen. For detailed information, see How to Purchase Query Credits.