Common Decline Reasons - ePayPolicy
The ePayPolicy guide explains that electronic payment failures, particularly for ACH transactions, are communicated via specific three-character decline codes from the payer's bank, with common reasons including insufficient funds, account not found due to errors, unauthorized transactions requiring payer bank intervention, closed accounts, and stopped payments, all of which help businesses identify issues and guide payers on corrective actions.
Electronic payments are a core part of business, but rejected or returned transactions are an unavoidable reality. When a payment fails, the payer's financial institution sends back a decline code or return code. These short messages are essential for understanding why a payment failed and determining the correct next steps.
This guide outlines the most common decline reasons you may encounter for both ACH (Automated Clearing House) and Credit Card (CC) payment.
ACH Return Reasons
ACH payments, which include direct deposits and direct debits, involve bank-to-bank transfers. When an ACH transaction fails, the Receiving Depository Financial Institution (RDFI, or the payer's bank) sends a three-character code back through the ACH network (governed by NACHA).
Common ACH Return Codes:
- Insufficient Funds: The account holder did not have enough available funds in their account to cover the total debit amount at the time of processing.
- Account Not Found: The account information provided does not exist at the receiving financial institution. This is typically due to an entry error (a typo in the account number) or a mismatch between the provided "Bank Account Holder Name" and the authorized name on file. Please have the payer check their payment information before resubmitting payment.
- Corporate Customer Advises Unauthorized: The payer's bank (the RDFI) has blocked the payment, likely if they don't recognize our processor or are detecting unusual activity. Action Required: The payer must contact their bank and "whitelist" our Originator IDs before they can successfully resubmit the payment. If Originator IDs are needed, they can be located in your ePayPolicy Dashboard under the Accounts tab.
- Account Closed: The bank account was previously active but has been formally closed by either the customer or the financial institution. The account can no longer accept any debits or credits.
- Payment Stopped: The account holder actively issued a stop payment order to their bank, instructing them to specifically reject this particular ACH debit transaction.
- Account Frozen: The bank account is currently in a "frozen" state, meaning all or most transactions are blocked by the financial institution. No ACH transactions can be processed.
- Unauthorized Corporate Debit: Although rare, a corporate bank may allow its customer to revoke authorization on a payment up to 90 days after the transaction. You will need to work with the payer directly to recoup funds.
- Uncollected Funds: The account technically had enough balance, but the required portion consisted of recently deposited funds (like a check) that had not yet cleared (become "available" for withdrawal).
- Non-Transaction Account: The ACH transaction was attempted on an account type that is restricted from electronic debits or credits, such as certain savings, money market, or CD accounts.
Credit Card Reasons
Credit card declines happen when the merchant's payment processor attempts to get authorization from the payer's card-issuing bank. These codes are typically two-digit numbers and fall into two main categories: soft declines (temporary, can be re-tried) and hard declines (permanent, do not re-try).
Common Credit Card Decline Reasons:
- Not enough balance / Insufficient Funds: The cardholder has either exceeded their credit limit (for a credit card) or does not have enough available funds in their checking account (for a debit card) to cover the transaction amount.
- Refused / Deny / Declined Non Generic: The card-issuing bank has declined the transaction without providing a specific reason. This is often a temporary security measure. The cardholder will need to contact their bank to resolve the issue.
- Issuer Suspected Fraud: The card-issuing bank's fraud detection system flagged the transaction as suspicious or potentially fraudulent, often due to unusual activity, location, or amount. The cardholder will need to contact their bank to resolve the issue.
- Expired Card: The transaction was declined because the card's expiration date has passed or the date entered is invalid.
- Restricted Card: The card issuer has placed restrictions on the card type or merchant category (e.g., a corporate card or HSA card restriction), preventing this specific transaction.
- Withdrawal amount exceeded: The cardholder has exceeded a daily, weekly, or single-transaction limit set by the card issuer for purchases or withdrawals.
- Not supported: The card-issuing bank cannot process this type of transaction or the card type is not supported (e.g., some pre-paid, gift cards, or non-standard bank cards).
- FRAUD: This is an explicit decline reason from the card issuer, indicating that the transaction has been flagged as fraudulent by their fraud detection system. This is a hard decline, and the card should not be used again. We recommend the payer reach out to their card issuer to resolve.
- CVC Declined: The Card Verification Value (CVC/CVV) entered does not match the number on file with the card issuer.
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