Set up accounts and environment for payouts

You can use the procedures in this section to ensure that your accounts and environment are set up to send payouts.

Set up business account for Web UI file upload

Work with your account manager, call 1-888-221-1161, or contact PayPal to request Payouts access. After successful activation, you can go to your account and send payouts through file upload.

Set up SFTP account

You must set up a Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) account to facilitate large-batch file transfers. Use this account to access the reports generated for large-batch file transfers and Web UI.

1. Contact PayPal or your PayPal account manager to:

   1. Enable report access for your PayPal business account.
   2. Create SFTP accounts for sandbox and production environments. You can choose your preferred authentication method for the SFTP server:
      • Password: PayPal will generate the password.
      • SSH key: You must provide your public SSH key to PayPal.

   Important: SFTP account setup might take up to 48 hours. After this, PayPal sends an encrypted email to your primary email address with the access credentials. This includes the SFTP server endpoint, port, username, and password or SSH key information. Use this information to connect to the SFTP server through your SFTP client.

2. To add users who can access the SFTP server:

   1. Log in to your PayPal business account.
   2. Click on your profile logo and from the dropdown menu, select Account settings.
   3. On the Account access page, click Update next to Secure FTP.
   4. Follow the on-page instructions to add users. When finished, the final page displays the list of SFTP server users and their information.

After you set up the SFTP account, connect to the SFTP server using an SFTP client such as DropZone, FileZilla, WinSCP, or Cyberduck. PayPal recommends using DropZone, a PayPal-developed SFTP platform that simplifies secure file transfers. For more information, see Secure File Transfer with DropZone.

Sandbox DropZone credentials

• Sandbox endpoint/URL: dropzone.es-ext.paypalcorp.com
• Destination host port: 22
• Sandbox username (from your sandbox SFTP user account)
• Public SSH key (from your sandbox SFTP user account)

Production DropZone credentials

• Production endpoint/URL: dropzone.paypal.com
• Destination host port: 22
• Production username (from your production SFTP user account)
• Public SSH key (from your production SFTP user account)

Set up sandbox account for Payouts API integration

1. Sign up for a developer account. On successful signup, PayPal automatically creates your sandbox environment. The sandbox environment is a test environment that helps you mimic real-world transactions. By default, the environment includes a business and personal account. When testing your app, you can use the business account to send payouts and the personal account to receive. You can create multiple additional business and personal accounts.

2. Set up the sandbox environment:

   1. Go to your PayPal developer account and toggle to Sandbox.
   2. Go to Apps & Credentials and select Create App.
   3. Enter your app name, select Type as Merchant, select the sandbox business account to test your app, and select Create App. The app details page is displayed.
   4. Configure a webhook listener for the app and subscribe to events: - Go to Features > Sandbox Webhooks.
   5. Select Add Webhook.
   6. Enter a Webhook URL (the server endpoint where notifications from PayPal are sent), select the events the app wants to subscribe to, and select Save. The webhook listener is successfully configured and a Webhook ID is displayed. You can store the ID and use it in your app code to verify the source sending a message to your listener. For more information on webhooks, see Webhooks guide. For the list of payouts events that the app can subscribe to, see Webhook reference.

3. Retrieve sandbox app credentials: To integrate Payouts APIs and test them successfully, you require the following sandbox credentials for your app:

   • Client ID: App identifier that helps with account authentication.
   • Client secret: App credential that helps with app authorization.

   To retrieve the sandbox credentials:

   1. Go to your PayPal developer account and switch to Sandbox.
   2. Go to Apps & Credentials > API Credentials > REST API apps.
   3. Copy the Client ID and Secret (Client secret) listed next to your app name and save them.

4. Retrieve sandbox account credentials: When you test your payout integration end-to-end, you run your app, start a payout, log in to your business and personal PayPal accounts, and check that money moves from your business to your personal account. If you send a payout to a Venmo account, you check that the money moves from your business account. You require sandbox log-in credentials for both accounts. For information on how to get these from your developer account, see Get sandbox account credentials.

5. Set up the development environment.

Set up production business account

To use PayPal Payouts, you need a verified PayPal business account. After creating your production business account,

1. Verify your account:

   1. Complete identity verification.
   2. Complete email verification.
   3. Link a bank account or credit card to your PayPal account.

2. Request payouts activation: Contact PayPal support to enable Payouts on your account.

Fund your account

To successfully send payouts, ensure your PayPal account has sufficient funds.

1. Link a funding source: Log in to your PayPal account and link a bank account or credit card.
2. Add funds to your PayPal account:
   1. Navigate to the Wallet section of your PayPal account.
   2. Transfer money from your linked bank account or card to your PayPal balance.
3. Set up auto-funding: Enable auto-funding in your PayPal account settings to ensure your account always has sufficient funds for payouts.
4. Monitor transactions: Regularly review your account balance and transaction history to ensure smooth payouts.