Key Takeaways

  • “Presentment for payment” is a demand to pay or accept an instrument; under modern rules it can be made by any commercially reasonable means (including electronic) and is effective when received.
  • If the payor has a cut-off hour (not earlier than 2 p.m.), a late-day presentment may be treated as occurring the next business day.
  • In payment systems, a merchant typically presents the check/receipt to the acquiring bank; funding to the merchant often follows in about 1–3 business days.
  • Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP) has largely replaced paper bill presentment and is a core feature of online banking.  
  • On demand, the presenter must exhibit the instrument, provide reasonable identification/authority, and sign a receipt or surrender the instrument on full payment.

Presentment: The written notice taken by a grand jury of any offence, from their own knowledge or observation, without any bill of indictment laid before them at the suit of the government upon such presentment, when 'proper, the officer emloyed to prosecute, afterwards frames a till of indictment, which is then sent to the grand jury, and they find it to be a true bill. In an extended sense presentments include not only what is properly so called, but also inquisitions of office, and indictments found by a grand jury.

The difference between a presentment and an inquisition, is this, that the former is found by a grand jury authorized to inquire of offences generally, whereas the latter is an accusation found by a jury specially returned to inquire concerning the particular offence. The writing which contains the accusation so presented by a grand jury, is also called a presentment.

Contracts - The production of a bill of exchange or promissory note to the party on whom the former is drawn, for his acceptance, or to the person bound to pay either, for payment.

Presentment Under the UCC: Method, Effect, and Who May Be Addressed

In modern commercial law, presentment for payment may be made at the instrument’s place of payment (and must be made there if the instrument is payable at a U.S. bank). It can be accomplished by any commercially reasonable means—oral, written, or electronic—and is effective when the demand is received. Presentment is effective if made to any one of multiple makers, acceptors, drawees, or other payors. 

Upon the payor’s demand, the person making presentment must:

  • exhibit the instrument;
  • provide reasonable identification (and, if acting for another, reasonable evidence of authority); and
  • sign a receipt for any payment or surrender the instrument if paid in full. 

These rules apply alongside your existing sections on person, place, and time of presentment and help clarify acceptable means of presentment and what proof the presenter must offer.

The holder of a bill is bound, in order to hold the parties to it responsible to him, to present it in due time for acceptance, and to give notice, if it be dishonored, to all tho parties he intends to hold liable. And when a bill or note becomes payable, it must be presented for payment.

Modern Payment Flows (Card/ACH): Roles and Timing

In contemporary merchant transactions, presentment for payment commonly means the merchant “presents” a signed check or transaction receipt to the acquiring bank to obtain funds from the original sale. Funding to the merchant typically follows within about 1–3 business days (and if processed the next day, not earlier than 2 p.m. transaction time). 

Typical participants include the buyer and the merchant (with the acquiring bank facilitating settlement).  Where a third party initiated the transaction for the purchaser, endorsements and surrender of the instrument to the processor/financial institution may be required. 

These practical details complement the traditional negotiable-instruments rules in your Contracts section and help readers understand how presentment operates in today’s payment rails.

When a bill or note is made payable at a particular place, a presentment, as we have seen, may be made there; but when the acceptance is general, it must be presented at the house or place of business of the acceptor.

Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP)

EBPP allows invoices to be created, presented, and paid online and has functionally replaced paper-based bill presentment in many contexts. As a core feature of online banking, EBPP enables customers to pay utilities, insurance, mortgages, and similar obligations on set dates or intervals, improving customer experience and reconciliation.  

This addition links your place-of-payment discussion to how “place” increasingly means a secure electronic channel designated by the parties (bank portal, biller site, or payment processor).

The principal circumstances concerning presentment, are the person to whom, the place where, and the time when, it is to be made.

In general the presentment for payment should be made to the maker of a note, or the drawee of a bill for acceptance, or to the acceptor, for payment; but a presentment made at a particular place, when pavable there, is in general sufficient. A personal demand on the drawee or acceptor is not necessary; a demand at his usual place of residence of his wife or other agent is sufficient.

In treating of the time for presentment, it must be considered with reference to:

  • A presentment for acceptance
  • One for payment

When the bill is payable at sight, or after sight, the presentment must be made in reasonable time; and what this reasonable time is depends upon the circumstances of each case. The presentment of a note or bill for payment ought to be made on the day it becomes due, and notice of non-payment given, otherwise the holder will lose the security of the drawer and endorsers of a bill and the endorsers of a promissory note, and in case the note or bill be payable at a particular place and the money lodged there for its payment, the holder would probably have no recourse against the maker or acceptor, if he did not present them on the day, and the money should be lost.

The excuses for not making a presentment are general or applicable to all persons, who are endorsers; or they are special and applicable to the particular' endorser only. Among the former are:

  • Inevitable accident or overwhelming calamity
  • The prevalence of a malignant disease, by which the ordinary operations of business are suspended
  • The breaking out of war between the country of the maker and that of the holder
  • The occupation of the country where the note is payable or where the parties live, by a public enemy, which suspends commercial operations and intercourse
  • The obstruction of the ordinary negotiations of trade by the vi's maj or
  • Positive interdictions and public regulations of the state which suspend commerce and intercourse
  • The utter impracticability of finding the maker, or ascertaining his place of residence

Among the latter or special excuses for not making a presentment may be enumerated the following: 

  • The receiving the note by the holder from the payee, or other antecedent party, too late to make a due presentment; this will be an excuse as to such party
  • The note being an accommodation note of the maker for the benefit of the endorser
  • A special agreement by which the endorser waives the presentment
  • The receiving security or money by an endorser to secure himself from loss, or to pay the note at maturity. In this case, when the indemnity or money is a full security for the amount of the note or bill, no presentment is requisite
  • The receiving the note by the holder from the endorser, as a collateral security for another debt

A want of presentment may be waived by the party to be affected, after a full knowledge of the fact. 

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What counts as a valid presentment for payment today?
    Any commercially reasonable method—oral, written, or electronic—so long as the demand is received by the payor; if payable at a U.S. bank, presentment must be made there.
  2. How do cut-off hours affect my deadlines?
    If the payor’s cut-off hour is 2 p.m. or later, a presentment after that time can be treated as made on the next business day, which can shift notice/dishonor timelines.
  3. How does merchant presentment work in practice?
    Merchants typically present the signed check/receipt to their acquiring bank; funding often occurs within 1–3 business days (subject to network rules and bank policies).
  4. What if the instrument lacks a necessary indorsement?
    The payor can return it or refuse payment for non-compliance without dishonor; fix the defect (e.g., obtain the indorsement) and re-present.
  5. Is paper presentment still required?
    Often no. EBPP allows bills to be presented and paid online, and has largely replaced paper-based presentment in many contexts.

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