Issuing decline codes
Last updated: September 11, 2024
If a transaction performed by a card you issued fails, you may receive an authorization_declined
or reversal_declined
webhook.
The webhook response contains a decline_reason
field with one of the values listed on this page.
Authentication errors occur when the card or user cannot be authenticated.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| There was a problem with the physical card, and it may need to be replaced. | Contact your Account Manager. |
| The number of consecutive unauthenticated contactless transactions on the card has exceeded the threshold. This threshold is set to protect the card from potential fraud. | Before using contactless again, the cardholder must make a Chip and PIN transaction with the card. |
| The cumulative cardholder billing amount for unauthenticated contactless transactions on the card has exceeded the threshold. | The cardholder must enter their PIN on the terminal when prompted to complete the transaction. Alternatively, the cardholder can perform another transaction and authenticate with their PIN. |
| The contactless transaction was declined because the amount exceeds the limit for the country it was performed in. | The cardholder must perform a Chip and PIN transaction instead. |
| Authentication failed because the authorization and authentication amounts did not match. | Review the authorization and authentication amounts provided in the payment request. |
| Authentication failed because the authorization and authentication amounts did not match. | Review the authorization and authentication currencies provided in the payment request. |
| Authentication failed because of an issue with the merchant's configuration - | No further action is available. |
| The card scheme was unable to authenticate the transaction at the user authentication stage. | No further action is available. |
| A recurring or a merchant-initiated transaction was attempted, but the original transaction was not strongly authenticated. | No further action is available. |
Authorization errors typically occur when there are problems with the information provided when authorizing a transaction.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| Reversal failed because the billing and card currency account currencies did not match. | No further action is available. |
| An internal balance control failed. | No further action is available. |
| The transaction amount exceeded the limit allowed for non-Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) transactions. | Attempt the transaction again later. |
| The card could not be verified because the CVV or service code received was incorrect, so the payment was declined. | Contact your Account Manager. |
| An incorrect CVV was provided in a card-not-present (CNP) transaction. | Validate the CVV. |
| An incorrect card expiry date was provided in a card-not-present (CNP) transaction. | Validate the card's expiry date. If this error is received from a physical card, replace the card, or contact your Account Manager. |
| The amount required to complete the transaction is higher than the funds available in the card's currency account. | Add funds to your currency account. |
| A low-value payment transaction was attempted, but the authorization amount exceeded the low-value payment limit. | The cardholder must reattempt the transaction with 3D Secure. |
| Too many low-value payment transactions were attempted with the card within a short period of time. | The cardholder must reattempt the transaction with 3D Secure. |
| A reversal, recurring transaction, or merchant-initiated transaction was attempted, but the original transaction could not be found. | No further action is available. |
| A partial reversal was attempted, but the reversal amount exceeded the authorization amount. | No further action is available. |
| Reversal failed because the reversal and authorization currencies did not match. | No further action is available. |
| The reversal amount exceeded the pending authorization amount. | No further action is available. |
| There was a failure with Checkout.com systems. | Checkout.com monitors the frequency of this error and automatically triggers an investigation if we detect a high number of occurrences. If the issue persists, contact your Account Manager. |
| Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) was required for the transaction, but no 3D Secure challenge was attempted. | The cardholder must reattempt the transaction with 3D Secure. |
| The country code or state the merchant provided was invalid. | No further action is available. |
| The type of transaction attempted is not supported by Checkout.com, or has been disabled for the card. | Contact your Account Manager. |
Authorization relay errors typically occur due to issues with the authorization relay service integration, or client-server communication.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| Your authorization relay server declined the authorization relay request. | If this payment should have been approved, review your authorization logic configuration. |
| The authorization relay request was sent, but your server was unreachable. | Reattempt the authorization relay request. If the error persists, contact your Account Manager. |
| The authorization relay response received from the client was invalid, likely due to a formatting issue. | Review your client-side authorization relay service integration for formatting issues. |
| Your authorization relay server timed out during an authorization relay request. | Reattempt the authorization relay request. If the error persists, contact your Account Manager. |
Card control errors occur when a transaction conflicts with the spending controls you applied to the card.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| There was an error with the spending controls. Rules from different controls may be conflicting. | Review the spending controls using the Dashboard or API, and update them as required. |
| A transaction was attempted for a merchant category code (MCC) that is blocked by your spending controls. | To allow transactions for the blocked MCC, update your spending controls. |
| A transaction was attempted for a merchant ID (MID) that is blocked by your spending controls. | To allow transactions for the blocked MID, update your spending controls. |
| The transaction amount exceeded the card's velocity limit. | If the cardholder requires a higher velocity limit, update your spending controls. |
| A transaction was attempted for a merchant ID (MID) that is blocked by your spending controls. | To allow transactions for the blocked MID, update your spending controls. |
Card errors typically occur due to the card's status. You may be able to resolve the problem by updating the card status.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| The card has expired. All authorizations will be declined, permanently. | To allow the cardholder to continue to perform transactions, issue them with a replacement card. |
| The card has not been activated. All authorizations will be declined. | To allow transactions, activate the card. |
| The card has been revoked. All authorizations will be declined, permanently. | To enable the cardholder to continue performing transactions, issue them with a replacement card. |
| The card has been suspended. All authorizations will be declined. | To allow transactions, activate the card. Alternatively, to permanently block all transactions, revoke the card. |
Card scheme errors typically occur because the card scheme declined the transaction. In some instances, attempting authentication at a later time may resolve the problem.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| The card scheme authentication failed due to a missing fraud score. | Attempt authentication again later. |
| The card scheme blocked the transaction, and may suspect fraud. | Attempt authentication again later. |
| The merchant information supplied during authentication and authorization did not match. | No further action is available. |
Digital wallet errors typically occur due to a digital card's status, or issues with authentication. If the card status is the cause, you may be able to resolve this by updating the card status.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| Authentication failed because the authorization and authentication amounts did not match. | No further action is available. |
| The digital card has been deleted and no longer exists in the digital wallet. | Check if you, or the cardholder, have previously revoked the card. If the card is not revoked, add it to the digital wallet again. Otherwise, no further action is available. |
| The card has expired. All authorizations will be declined, permanently. | To allow the cardholder to continue to perform transactions, issue them with a replacement card. |
| The digital card has been deactivated in the digital wallet. All authorizations will be declined. | Check if you, or the cardholder, have previously suspended the card and reactivate if necessary. |
| The digital card has not been found in the system. | No further action is available. |
| The transaction was declined on the card scheme's recommendation. | No further action is available. |
| Card tokenization was attempted from a digital wallet other than Apple Pay or Google Pay. | Contact your Account Manager. |
PIN errors can typically be resolved by the cardholder reattempting the transaction or changing their PIN.
Decline reason | Description | Recommended action |
---|---|---|
| A physical card PIN change was attempted without inserting the card into the ATM. | The cardholder must insert the card and attempt the PIN change again, or use a different ATM. |
| A PIN change was attempted, but the new PIN was not received successfully. | The cardholder must attempt to change the PIN again. |
| An online PIN change attempt failed, or there was an error when attempting to cancel it. | If the cardholder attempts an online PIN change again and it fails, contact your Account Manager. |
| The PIN provided during the point-of-sale (POS) transaction was invalid, or incorrect. | If the cardholder attempts the transaction again, validate the PIN. |