---
title: "Stripe Connect Prerequisites"
description: "Pre-flight checklist for Split Pay. What you need on the Stripe side before you can split payments: a Stripe platform account in a Connect-eligible country, Connect enabled, the right API key permissions, and which gateway will charge customers."
url: "https://docs.splitpayplugin.com/getting-started/stripe-connect-prerequisites/"
---
## The five-item checklist
1. You operate a **Stripe platform account** — not a connected account that lives under another platform.
2. The platform account is registered in a country where Stripe Connect is generally available.
3. Stripe Connect is enabled and your platform profile passes Stripe’s platform-profile review.
4. You can generate API keys from that platform account with the Connect transfer-write scope.
5. You know which Stripe gateway will actually charge your customers (official WC Stripe, Payment Plugins for Stripe WC, or FluentCart’s built-in Stripe).
New to the platform / connected-account model? Read [How Stripe Transfers Work](../how-stripe-transfers-work/) first — the checklist below will make a lot more sense.
## 1\. Platform account, not a connected account
Split Pay creates Stripe Transfers. Only a **platform** account can create transfers. If your Stripe account was set up through a marketplace’s Connect onboarding (for example, the “Connect with Stripe” flow on another platform you sell through), it’s a *connected* account — it can receive transfers but not initiate them.
Quick check: in the Stripe Dashboard, do you see a **Connect** menu in the left sidebar with options like *Accounts*, *Transfers*, and *Settings*? If yes, you have a platform account. If you only see standard payments/customers/products and there’s a banner that says “This account is connected to…”, you have a connected account — create a fresh standalone Stripe account before installing Split Pay.
This is the cause of the *“Cannot create transfers on behalf of a Standard connected account”* error in [Common Errors](../../support/common-errors/#cannot-create-transfers).
## 2\. Connect-eligible country
Stripe Connect is available in many countries but not all of them. The platform country, connected-account country, service agreement, capability, currency, and funds flow determine whether a transfer route is eligible. Split Pay cannot expand Stripe’s supported country corridors; verify the exact route using [International Transfers](../../faqs/international-transfers/).
To verify, log in to the Stripe Dashboard and visit [docs.stripe.com/connect/how-connect-works](https://docs.stripe.com/connect/how-connect-works#availability) for the canonical availability list. If your country isn’t listed there as a supported platform country, Connect (and therefore Split Pay) will not work for you.
## 3\. Enable Connect on your platform account
Even in eligible countries, Connect isn’t on by default. Steps:
Sign in to the [Stripe Dashboard](https://dashboard.stripe.com) on your platform account.
Navigate to **Connect → Get started** (or **Settings → Connect** if Connect is already partially enabled).
Choose **Connect for marketplaces or platforms**, complete the platform profile (business model, expected volumes, sample seller URLs, etc.), and submit it for review.
While Stripe reviews the profile, the dashboard usually still lets you create test-mode connected accounts and test-mode transfers, so you can wire Split Pay up end-to-end on test mode while waiting.
If your platform-profile review is still pending and live transfers are returning permissions errors, that’s expected. Wait for the review to clear before going live.
## 4\. The right API keys
Split Pay needs platform-account API keys with the Connect transfer scope. Stripe’s recommended path is a **restricted API key** (RAK) limited to the permissions Split Pay actually uses, instead of a full secret key.
Generate the keys at [dashboard.stripe.com/apikeys](https://dashboard.stripe.com/apikeys). The [Quick Start](../quick-start/) walks through the exact permission boxes to tick (Stripe’s UI labels evolve, so we recommend following the in-product hints rather than memorizing label text). Repeat for both **test** and **live** modes — they have separate keys.
Split Pay accepts one platform **secret or compatible restricted key** for each mode you use; it does not ask for a publishable key. Save the Test and/or Live key on the Integrations platform card. If Payment Plugins charges the order, also save that same platform account’s mode-matched key in Payment Plugins’ Split Pay **Advanced** row so its readiness, account sync, and row-level check use the intended platform. FluentCart uses its Advanced override first; without one, its transfers use the first same-mode key in Split Pay’s detected platform-key chain.
## 5\. Pick a Stripe gateway
Split Pay does *not* process customer payments. A separate Stripe gateway plugin charges the card; Split Pay just creates transfers from the resulting charge. Split Pay supports three gateway adapters:
* **Official [WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway](https://wordpress.org/plugins/woocommerce-gateway-stripe/)** — the long-standing default for WooCommerce stores.
* **[Payment Plugins for Stripe WooCommerce](https://wordpress.org/plugins/woo-stripe-payment/)** (`woo-stripe-payment`) — a feature-rich alternative; covered in detail on [its own page](../../features/integrations-and-compatibility/payment-plugins-for-stripe-woocommerce/).
* **FluentCart’s built-in Stripe gateway** — required if you’re running on FluentCart instead of WooCommerce; covered on [FluentCart](../../features/integrations-and-compatibility/fluentcart/).
Both the gateway and Split Pay must be configured against the same platform Stripe account. Mixing accounts (e.g. configuring the gateway against Stripe Account A but Split Pay against Stripe Account B) will produce sync and transfer errors.
## Ready to install
Once all five boxes are ticked, install Split Pay (free or PRO — see [Activating PRO](../activating-pro/)) and follow the [Quick Start](../quick-start/). The Integrations tab detects your gateway; save the mode-matched platform secret/restricted key from item 4 in the location that gateway uses.
## See also
[Quick Start ›](../quick-start/) [Integrations Tab ›](../integrations-tab/) [International Transfers (cross-border rules) ›](../../faqs/international-transfers/)