Most Merchant of Record (MoR) platforms say approval takes 24 to 72 hours. In practice, Merchant of Record approval regularly takes creators one to four weeks, and some wait months only to be rejected. If you have a product ready to sell, that gap is lost revenue.

TL;DR

• Official review times: Polar and Creem quote 24-48 hours, Dodo Payments 24-72 working hours, Paddle auto-approves most domains but manual reviews take 5-7 business days.
• Real-world times: forum and community reports for several providers range from 2 days to 2 months, especially when Merchant of Record approval goes to a manual queue.
• Two different clocks matter: when you can take live payments, and when you can actually withdraw money. Some MoRs let you sell before approval but hold payouts until review is done.
• What slows you down: missing policy pages, a site behind a login, mismatched identity and bank details, and products in restricted categories.
• Vandly uses an instant identity check and needs no company or VAT number, so you can set up your first product in minutes.

Approval times below come from each provider’s own documentation and public user reports as of October 2026. They change often, and your experience depends on your product, country and documents.

Why Merchant of Record Approval Takes So Long

A Merchant of Record is the legal seller of your product. If you sell something fraudulent or prohibited, the MoR carries the chargebacks, the tax exposure and the regulatory risk. So every MoR checks you before it lets you sell in its name.

A typical MoR approval review covers four things:

1. Identity (KYC). A government ID and usually a liveness selfie, checked against your name.
2. Business (KYB). For companies only: registration documents, directors and beneficial owners. Individuals usually skip this.
3. Website and product. Is the site live and public? Does it show pricing, terms, a refund policy and a privacy policy? Does the product match what you described?
4. Payout account. The bank account must belong to the same person or company that passed KYC.

The automated parts often take minutes. The delay comes when an application lands in a manual review queue: a human has to look at your site, compare it with your form and decide on risk. Queue length depends on how many applications the provider has that week, which is why Merchant of Record approval with the same provider can take 2 days for one creator and 3 weeks for another.

Merchant of Record Approval Times Compared (2026)

On paper, most MoRs approve in one to three days; the difference shows up in the manual-review cases and in when you can actually take payments.

“What creators report” comes from public forums and community boards. These are individual cases, not averages.

MoR Approval, Provider by Provider

Paddle

Paddle’s verification has three phases: domain review, business verification and identity verification. Business verification is not required for individuals or sole traders. Paddle automatically approves most domain submissions; when a domain needs manual review, Paddle estimates 5-7 business days. Paddle’s own partner docs say login walls and missing public pricing are the most common reasons domain approval fails. Well-prepared individual developers report getting through Merchant of Record approval in about 1-2 business days.

Good fit for: established SaaS products with a polished public site. Watch out for: the manual-review path if your site is thin or new. See how it compares in our Paddle vs Vandly guide.

Lemon Squeezy

Lemon Squeezy was known for fast onboarding before Stripe acquired it in 2024. Since then, reported Merchant of Record approval times vary widely: creators describe approvals in 2 days, applications pending for 12+ days, and in one case two months before a rejection. Its future is also tied to Stripe’s own MoR product: in its January 2026 update, the team said it is building toward Stripe Managed Payments and acknowledged slower support.

Watch out for: uncertain MoR approval times and an uncertain long-term roadmap. More detail in Lemon Squeezy vs Vandly.

Stripe Managed Payments

Stripe’s own Merchant of Record product launched in public preview in February 2026. Stripe charges an extra 3.5% per successful transaction on top of its standard processing fees. It runs inside a Stripe account, so you first need Stripe to onboard you, which depends on your country appearing on Stripe’s global availability list. Some Lemon Squeezy features, like the storefront builder and digital download delivery, are reportedly not part of it.

Good fit for: developers already on Stripe in a supported country. Watch out for: a preview-stage product, and no access if Stripe doesn’t support your country.

Gumroad

Gumroad lets you publish a product immediately, with no upfront MoR approval. The review comes later: creators report that Gumroad checks new sellers before releasing larger payouts, which typically takes 1-3 weeks and wants to see a few real sales first. Gumroad has been a Merchant of Record since January 2025, at 10% + $0.50 per sale through your own links and 30% via its Discover marketplace.

Good fit for: testing a product quickly. Watch out for: fees at scale and a payout wait at the start.

Polar

Polar reviews your account before your first payout: you describe your business and products, complete ID verification and connect a Stripe Connect payout account. Its earlier docs quoted 24-48 hours for this review. You can take payments while under review; payout requests show as “Held” until approval. Once approved, payouts typically take 4-7 business days. Payouts go through Stripe Connect, and Polar notes most borderless accounts like Wise, Payoneer or Revolut fail Stripe’s verification, so you need a domestic bank account.

Good fit for: developers and open-source maintainers selling software. Watch out for: country support tied to Stripe Connect.

Creem

Creem reviews your store before you can accept live payments, and says reviews are typically completed within 24-48 hours, or up to 72 hours at peak times. It checks your website, support email and product details, and each website needs its own store. Most first-time submissions that don’t pass get a “changes requested” status rather than a rejection, which adds another round to your MoR approval. Creem only onboards merchants in its supported countries.

Good fit for: indie SaaS founders. Watch out for: re-review rounds if your site isn’t complete.

Dodo Payments

Dodo lets you integrate and use live mode from day 1, but live payments and payouts need account verification: a product form, ID check with a selfie, business verification for companies, and bank verification. Dodo’s docs give a typical window of 24-72 working hours. Some merchants have publicly reported being stuck in “Submitted” for 25+ days.

Good fit for: founders in markets other MoRs don’t serve well. Watch out for: occasional long manual-review backlogs. Compare in Dodo Payments vs Vandly.

Vandly

Vandly is built for creators who want to sell quickly. Sign-up includes an instant identity check, no company or VAT number is needed, and you can set up your first product in minutes. More on how it works below.

How to Get Merchant of Record Approval Faster

Most Merchant of Record approval delays come from things you control. Fix these before you apply, whichever MoR you choose.

• Site behind a login. Reviewers must see your product, pricing and policies without signing up. Paddle names this as a top reason domain approval fails.
• Missing policy pages. Have public Terms, Refund Policy and Privacy Policy pages. Many MoRs also want their name mentioned as the seller in your terms.
• No public pricing. Show prices on the site, not only at checkout.
• Product doesn’t match the form. Describe exactly what you sell. A vague “digital services” description invites follow-up questions.
• Identity and bank mismatch. The name on your ID, your account and your payout bank account must match. Payouts to third-party accounts are refused.
• Unsupported bank account. Some MoRs pay out through Stripe Connect, where most borderless accounts (Wise, Payoneer, Revolut) fail verification. Check this before you apply.
• Restricted categories. AI image and video wrappers, adult content, gambling, financial advice and resold accounts often trigger manual review or rejection.
• Slow replies. When a reviewer asks a question, answer the same day. Every round trip can add days to your MoR approval.
• One store, many sites. Some MoRs need a separate store per website. Mixing products from different sites on one account causes review issues.

Where Vandly Fits: Sell in Minutes, Not Weeks

Vandly is a Merchant of Record for digital product creators, built on Stripe and incorporated in Estonia. It is designed around one idea: you shouldn’t wait weeks for Merchant of Record approval just to sell a $29 template.

How onboarding works:

1. Sign up and verify your identity. The identity check is instant. No company, VAT number or business registration needed.
2. Add your product. Set a price for a template, plugin, course, PDF or license. Vandly’s team reviews each new product before its checkout link goes live.
3. Share it. Put the payment link on your website, social bio or email, or add the product to your own Vandly storefront.
4. Get paid. Vandly handles checkout, invoicing, VAT and fraud protection, and pays out in EUR, USD or 60+ currencies to your local bank account.

Pricing: Stripe fee + 2% per sale, no monthly fee, and your first sale is free (see Vandly pricing).

Coverage: creators in 150+ countries, excluding sanctioned regions.

Merchant of Record Approval FAQ

How many days does Merchant of Record approval take?

Officially, most providers quote MoR approval in 24 hours to 3 business days. If your application goes to manual review, expect 5-7 business days or more, and public reports show waits of several weeks.

Which MoR approves the fastest?

Providers with automated identity checks and no upfront website review are fastest. Vandly runs an instant identity check, so the main wait is the review of your first product. Polar and Gumroad let you start selling first and review before payouts.

Can I sell before my MoR account is approved?

With some providers, yes: Polar and Gumroad hold payouts until review is done. Paddle and Creem need approval before live payments.

Why is my Lemon Squeezy or Paddle account stuck in review?

Usually a manual review queue, or something missing: a site behind a login, no public pricing, or missing terms and refund pages. Reply to the review email and fix what’s missing.

Do I need a company for Merchant of Record approval?

Usually not. Paddle, Dodo, Creem, Polar, Gumroad and Vandly accept individuals. Companies go through extra business verification, which can make approval slower.

What documents do I need?

For Merchant of Record approval you typically need a government ID, a selfie for liveness, a live public website or product page, and a bank account in your own name.

Conclusion

Merchant of Record approval time is rarely listed on an MoR’s pricing page, but it is the first cost you pay: every day in review is a day you can’t sell. Official review windows of 24-72 hours look similar on paper; the real difference is how often applications fall into a manual queue, and whether you can sell while you wait.

If you want to start selling without a company or a multi-week review, create your free Vandly account. Your first sale is free.