Centralized Commission Processing (“CCP”): Quick Reference for US Travel Agents (updated August 2022)

This overview provides essential information for Hilton’s travel agents so that they can maximize their benefits from Hilton’s Centralized Commission Processing (“CCP”) and the Travel Agency Commission Settlement (“TACS”) system. This supplements the information posted on https://www.hilton.com/en/portal/travel-agents/.

Introduction

With CCP, Hilton consolidates and pays individual commissions, also known as transient commissions, through TACS to give agents one payment, one statement and one contact for logging inquiries for all participating Hilton Worldwide hotels. CCP commissions exclude any commissions paid directly by hotels to agents. There are brand specific commission limit policies applicable to Home2 Suites, Homewood Suites and Embassy Suites. For these extended stay brands, commission will be paid for each night at an eligible rate, up to the first 29 consecutive nights of a guest’s stay. This applies to bookings made on or after September 1, 2017.

Note: Hilton and the hotels reserve the right not to pay commissions on bookings made through non accredited online travel agencies.

While Hilton facilitates the payment of travel agent commissions through a central payment system on behalf of hotels operating under the Hilton brands, Hilton is not a guarantor of payment. Hotels are solely responsible for all payments due.

The Commissions Process

Hotel Commission Processing. Hilton centrally calculates commissions and sends records to TACS for the weekly payment run based on the hotels’ daily checkout records.

TACS Services

TACS Payments and Reporting. All payments are accompanied by a paper or electronic statement that includes the property name, guest name, hotel PMS confirmation number, the arrival and departure date, the commissionable revenue, the gross commission amount and the commission paid. Commissions are processed on a weekly cycle, and the payment cycle takes approximately 10 days from the weekly cut-off, so depending on timing, payments should generally be received 2-3 weeks after checkout.

TACS Service Offering

  • Consolidated, weekly payments for all participating Hilton Worldwide hotels

  • Consolidation of multiple locations’ payments as selected by the agent

  • Payment in the agent’s preferred currency and preferred method, including ACH, wire and cheque

  • Real-time, online ability to check commission status and payment detail

  • Online ability to open inquiries and check status

  • Automatic return of inquiry closure responses to agents

  • Electronic statements of commissionable and non-commissionable bookings

  • Online reporting and ad hoc report capability

  • Live travel agent help desk, plus automated 24-hour help desk

  • No tiered membership structure and no contractual obligation

Recommendations for Agents

  • Register with an Industry Association. Hilton only pays bona fide agencies that are registered with an accredited organization such as IATA, ARC, TSI, CLIA, SATO, TRUE, and TIDS. Agents must quote their membership number when booking.

  • Register Payment, Reporting and User Preferences with TACS. Agents should go to http://ce.tacsnet.com to register for electronic payments and statements, and select preferences, including payment method (wire, bank transfer, ACH or cheque), currency, frequency and consolidated payments for multiple branches. Agents must ‘register’ in order to have TACS verify their identity in order to provide access to their payment records online. Agents should also provide TACS with details of users who should have access to researching and opening inquiries for various IATA/ARC numbers. There is no registration fee.

  • Do Not “Deduct Commissions at Source”. Hilton does not support this for individual guest stays due to potential duplication of payments through standard commission channels. Direct-billed companies should pay in full, and the hotel should pay the commission through CCP. Exceptions require explicit hotel agreement, subject to a strict internal approval process.

  • Reconcile Payments and Reporting Records with Booking Files. TACS provides agents with a detailed file of all transactions processed by Hilton and other participating chains, including non commissionable records, no-shows and cancellations. Agents should reconcile this against their booking files. All Hilton commissions are subject to a 3% processing fee for all Hilton hotels and for all agents worldwide.

  • Research Payments on TACSnet. After reconciling the TACS reports with their booking files, agents should research unreconciled transactions or missing payments on TACSnet.

  • Log Inquiries with TACS. Agents must log inquiries with TACS, not directly with the hotels, within 365 days of checkout and in batches of 25 or fewer. Agents must provide their agency ID and the guest stay details, including the hotel name. Inquiries can be loaded directly through http://ce.tacsnet.com, emailed to TACSCustomerService@nttdata.com or raised by telephone at +1- 703-480-6916. Inquiries outside this period must be addressed directly with the relevant hotels. TACS will research inquiries against Hilton’s checkout and payment records, and forward unresolved inquiries to hotels for investigation.

  • Identify Disputed Commissions Separately from Standard Inquiries. Agents may raise disputes where they have evidence that contradicts Hilton’s reported payment amount, number of rooms, room nights, commissionable status, no-shows or cancellations. Agents must advise TACS they are raising a dispute, not an inquiry. Failure to do so may result in the disputed record simply being closed as previously reported.

  • Advise TACS of Agency Address Changes. Provide full detail to: TACSCustomerService@nttdata.com.

TACS Contacts

www:http://ce.tacsnet.com (online auto help desk)

e-mail: TACSCustomerService@nttdata.com

Tel: +1-703-480-691