Chargeback reason codes

A chargeback reason code is the specific category an issuer (the cardholder's bank) assigns when filing a dispute against a merchant. Each code identifies why the chargeback was filed — fraud, authorization, processing error, or cardholder dispute — and determines the time limits, the evidence the merchant must provide, and the path through the dispute lifecycle.

Visa and Mastercard both default to 120 days from the transaction or settlement date for most reason codes. Certain codes — particularly services not received and cancelled recurring transactions — extend up to 540 days. Specific time limits are listed per code in the catalogue above.

Visa allows 30 days from the chargeback notification for the merchant to submit a representment. Mastercard allows 45 days. Missing the response window is an automatic loss; merchants should treat the deadline as the most critical part of the dispute.

Compelling evidence is the documentation a merchant submits to prove the cardholder authorized the transaction or that the goods or services were delivered as described. The accepted evidence varies by reason code — for example, AVS/CVV match plus 3DS authentication for fraud disputes, or signed delivery confirmation and access logs for digital services-not-received disputes.

Card-absent fraud (Visa 10.4, Mastercard 4837 / 4863) without 3DS authentication, late presentment (Visa 12.1, Mastercard 4842), and misrepresentation disputes (Visa 13.5) are the hardest to win. Fraud codes covered by 3DS authentication shift liability to the issuer and become defensible. Processing errors that the merchant actually committed (late submission, wrong amount) cannot be defended at all.

A single lost chargeback does not result in MATCH listing. MATCH is triggered by acquirer termination — which usually happens when chargeback ratios cross Visa VAMP or Mastercard ECP thresholds, or when reason codes signal fraud or money laundering. Sustained excessive chargebacks across any reason code can lead to termination and MATCH listing. Use the chargeback risk calculator to see where your ratio currently sits.