Incredibly Frustrating Experience – Not Suitable for Time-Sensitive Campaigns

We signed up with PayFast hoping to quickly and efficiently set up payment processing for a fundraising campaign that had a very tight deadline. What followed was weeks of delays, vague instructions, and constant back-and-forth with their support team.

At no point during the sign-up process were we clearly informed that a business accepting "sponsorships" or "contributions" would be classified under the same strict requirements as a registered non-profit. We are a VAT-exempt educational institution offering services in exchange for payment — not a donation-based charity. The lack of transparency cost us valuable time we couldn’t afford to lose.

Despite multiple clarifications, we were sent in circles, with conflicting advice and very little urgency or support to help resolve the matter. When every day mattered to our campaign, PayFast unfortunately became a source of stress and lost momentum.

Their system may be fine for general e-commerce, but if you’re running a time-sensitive or community-driven initiative, be warned — PayFast is not the platform to rely on.