Single Use Virtual Card

Paying a bill by vendor card creates a single use vendor card that expires at the end of the following month and closes itself after one successful authorization

Need to pay one vendor invoice, or cover a one-off purchase for a team member who is traveling? You can create a virtual card, fund it with the exact amount of the purchase and send the card details straight to the merchant. No plastic card, no shared company card number and no surprise charges.

Single use vendor cards are automatic

When you pay a bill to a vendor that’s set up for vendor card payments, PEX creates a single use vendor card for that payment and shares the card delivery details with the vendor. You don’t order the card or set anything up:

• The card is funded with the amount of the payment
• The expiration is set automatically to the end of the following month
• The card closes automatically once there’s a successful authorization on it

The vendor collects the details and charges the card once. After that the card is closed, so the number is worthless to anyone who sees it later. To review these cards, go to the Cards page and filter by Single use cards.

Note:

Single use vendor cards are available to everyone using Bill Pay. Not using Bill Pay yet? See Getting Started with Bill Pay to learn more

How to pay a bill with a single use vendor card

1. Set the vendor up for vendor card payments

   Add the vendor as a payee and enable vendor card as its payment method. See Getting Started with Bill Pay

2. Create the bill payment

   Enter the invoice amount and send it for approval as usual. See Bill Pay: Create & Send a Bill Payment

3. We create the card and notify the vendor

   Once the payment is on its way, PEX creates the single use vendor card for the payment amount and emails the vendor a secure invitation. The vendor follows the link to collect the card number, expiration date and CVV

4. The vendor charges the card once

   The charge settles your bill, and you see the transaction against the card like any other card spend

5. The card closes itself

   Once the charge authorizes successfully, the single use card closes on its own. No cleanup needed. See How to Close a Card if you need to close a card early

Sending a vendor card you created yourself

A vendor card you order from the Cards page is a regular vendor card, even when you deliver it with Send to vendor — it isn’t single use, so it stays open until you close it. To use one for a single purchase:

1. Order a Vendor card for the supplier you’re paying. See How to Create Vendor Cards

2. Under Funding, select Add funds to card and enter the exact purchase amount. Leave the recurring funding frequency off, and leave Use Auto Card Funding off so the card can’t pull more from your business balance

3. Check the vendor locking box and select the merchant, so the card only works with that merchant

4. From the Card details page, hover the card image and click Send to vendor to email a secure invitation. The merchant follows the link to collect the card number, expiration date and CVV, then charges the card to settle your bill. The link expires as soon as it’s opened, or after 30 days. See How to send card to vendor

5. Close the card once the transaction settles. See How to Close a Card

Note:

Sending a card to a vendor requires an administrator with Funding of Cards and View Card Usage permissions and multi-factor authentication enabled.

One-time spend for a team member

Use a Team Member virtual card when the purchase is made by an employee rather than billed by a vendor: an event or conference registration, a one-time SaaS or software purchase, an insurance premium or a flight and hotel for someone on the road. Team Member cards can’t be sent to a merchant — the Cardholder uses the card details themselves — so there’s no automatic single use behavior. You can get close to it:

1. Order a Team Member virtual card. See Creating Virtual Cards

2. Choose the shortest expiration that covers the purchase. See Expiration terms below

3. Fund the card with the exact amount of the purchase, so there’s nothing left to spend afterwards

4. Close the card once the transaction settles. See How to Close a Card

Expiration terms

PEX expiration terms are flexible. On the card order form you can choose:

• 1 month
• 3 months
• 6 months
• 1 year
• 3 years
• 4 years
• 5 years — the longest term available

For a one-time payment, 1 month is usually enough. Give yourself a longer term when a vendor bills on a delay or when the same card will cover a multi-month engagement.

Single use vendor cards skip this choice — their expiration is always the end of the following month.

Note:

Custom card expiration depends on your plan. If the Card expiration dropdown isn’t on your order form, contact [e-mail]

When to use a single use card

• Bill payments. Pay one vendor invoice without handing out a reusable company card number. See Bill Pay: Create & Send a Bill Payment
• Team member travel. Fund a flight, a hotel or a client dinner for an employee on the road
• Events and conferences. Cover registrations, booth fees or catering for a single event, with a card that expires soon after
• One-off suppliers. Buy from a merchant you don’t expect to use again

Recurring spend instead?

If the same charge repeats every month — software and SaaS subscriptions, insurance premiums, ad spend, utilities — create a vendor card with recurring funding rather than a single use card. Set a funding frequency (or auto card funding with a time-based spend limit) and a longer expiration term so the card keeps paying the bill.

• How to Create Vendor Cards — funding options and vendor locking
• Using a Vendor Card for Subscriptions (Step by Step for Google Workspace) — a worked subscription example
• Using Auto Card Funding Instead of Manual Card Funding
• Scheduled Card Funding

Single use card FAQs

When is a single use card created?

• Whenever you pay a bill to a vendor that’s set up for vendor card payments. We create the single use vendor card for that payment and share the delivery details with the vendor — there’s no separate card type to pick, and nothing to order
• A vendor card you order yourself isn’t single use, even if you deliver it with Send to vendor. Close it yourself once the purchase settles

Who can use single use vendor cards?

• Everyone using Bill Pay. If Bill Pay isn’t enabled for your business, see Getting Started with Bill Pay

Does the card close itself after one payment?

• Yes. A single use vendor card closes automatically once there’s a successful authorization on it
• Vendor cards you order yourself and Team Member cards don’t close themselves. Fund one with the exact purchase amount, then close it once the transaction settles

When does a single use vendor card expire?

• At the end of the following month. The expiration is set automatically, so you don’t pick a term

How do I find my single use cards?

• Go to the Cards page and filter by Single use cards. See How To Find Cards using Filters on All Programs

Can I reuse the card for the next payment?

• No — a single use vendor card is closed after the first successful authorization. Your next bill payment to that vendor gets its own new card
• If the same charge repeats every month, use a vendor card with recurring funding instead

What happens if the merchant charges more than the amount on the card?

• The transaction is declined for insufficient funds. If the final amount can vary — a hotel incidental hold, for example — add a small buffer, or set a time-based spend limit instead. See What are the reasons for card declines?

Do these cards count against my plan's card count?

• Vendor cards are free and don’t count toward your allotted card accounts. Team Member cards do count

Can a team member add the card to a digital wallet?

• Team Member virtual cards can be added to a digital wallet, so they work for in-store purchases while traveling. Vendor cards are online-only. See Adding a PEX Card to a Digital Wallet

See related articles

How to send card to vendor

How to Create Vendor Cards

Creating Virtual Cards

Getting Started with Bill Pay