Dispute reason codes are short numeric identifiers (usually 2 to 4 digits) assigned by the cardholder's bank to explain why a payment is being challenged. These codes help you understand the nature of the chargeback so you can respond accurately and submit the right evidence.
Each major card network uses its own coding system. This article explains how these codes work for Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover.
Visa dispute reason codes
Visa organizes its dispute codes into different categories. Each category reflects the type of issue, such as fraud, authorization problems, processing errors, or product dissatisfaction. Below is a categorized overview of common Visa reason codes:
| Dispute Category | Reason Code | Reason Description |
| Unprocessed Credit / Cancelled Services | 13.6 | Credit not processed |
| 13.7 | Cancelled Merchandise/Services | |
| Duplicate or Alternative Payment | 12.6.1 | Duplicate processing |
| 12.6.2 | Paid by other means | |
| Fraud | 33 | Fraud analysis request |
| 10.1 | EMV Liability Shift Counterfeit Fraud | |
| 10.2 | EMV Liability Shift Non - Counterfeit Fraud | |
| 10.3 | Other Fraud - Card Present Environment | |
| 10.4 | Other Fraud - Card Absent Environment | |
| 10.5 | Visa Fraud Monitoring Program | |
| General Disputes | 28 | Request for copy bearing signature |
| 30 | Cardholder request due to dispute | |
| 34 | Legal process request | |
| 11.1 | Card Recovery Bulletin | |
| 11.2 | Declined Authorization | |
| 11.3 | No Authorization | |
| 12.1 | Late Presentment | |
| 12.2 | Incorrect Transaction Code | |
| 12.3 | Incorrect Currency | |
| 12.4 | Incorrect Account Number | |
| 12.5 | Incorrect Amount | |
| 12.7 | Invalid Data | |
| 13.8 | Original Credit Transaction Not Accepted | |
| Product Not Received | 13.1 | Merchandise/Services Not Received |
| 13.9 | Non - Receipt of Cash or Load Transaction Value | |
| Product Not as Described or Unacceptable | 13.3 | Not as Described or Defective Merchandise/Services |
| 13.4 | Counterfeit Merchandise | |
| 13.5 | Misrepresentation | |
| Canceled Subscription or Recurring Charges | 13.2 | Cancelled Recurring |
| Non-Compliance or Processing Errors | C028 | Refinancing of an Existing Debit |
| C030 | Delayed or Amended Charges | |
| C031 | Sold Paper | |
| C034 | Merchant Processed Credit without a Previous Debit | |
| C035 | Merchant Must Process a Reversal If Sale Processed In Erron | |
| C036 | Electronic Commerce Transaction | |
| C038 | T&E Advance Deposit Service | |
| C045 | Dispute Reduction Service Returned | |
| C048 | Split Transaction | |
| C050 | Other, See Attached Documentation | |
| C071 | Prohibitions | |
| C081 | Limits of Fee Collection | |
| C0135 | Improperly Assessed Surcharge |
Mastercard dispute reason codes
Mastercard codes often apply to more than one type of dispute. For example, code 4834 may refer to a duplicate charge or a processing error. Code 4853 can appear in disputes related to product or service issues. Always review the transaction details and any supporting evidence to understand the context.
| Dispute Category | Reason Code | Reason Description |
| Unprocessed Credit | 4860 | Credit Not Processed |
| 4860 | Timeshares | |
| 4860 | Credit Posted as a Purchase | |
| Duplicate Charges or Processing Errors | 4834 | Transaction Amount Differs |
| 4834 | Cardholder Debited More than Once for the Same Goods or Services | |
| 4834 | ATM Disputes | |
| 4834 | Charges for Loss, Theft, or Damages | |
| 4834 | Late Presentment | |
| 4834 | POI Currency Conversion (Dynamic Currency Conversion) | |
| 4834 | Merchant Credit Correcting Error Resulting in Cardholder Currency Exchange Loss | |
| 4834 | Improper Merchant Surcharge (Intra - European and Inter - European transactions only) | |
| 4834 | Unreasonable Amount - Intra - European Economic Area (EEA) Transactions Only | |
| Fraud | 6341 | Fraud investigation |
| 4837 | No Cardholder Authorization | |
| 4849 | Questionable Merchant Activity | |
| 4870 | Chip Liability Shift | |
| 4871 | Chip Liability Shift - Lost/Stolen/Never Received Issue (NRI) Fraud | |
| General Disputes | 6305 | Cardholder does not agree with amount billed |
| 6322 | Request Transaction Certificate for a chip transaction | |
| 6323 | Cardholder needs information for personal recordds | |
| 6342 | Potential chargeback or compliance documentation is requiired | |
| 6343 | IIAS Audit (for healthcare transactions only) | |
| 6390 | Identifies a syntax error return | |
| 4808 | General Chargeback AND General Arbitration Chaargeback | |
| 4807 | Deprecated | |
| 4812 | Account number not on file | |
| 4859 | Addendum, No - show, or ATM Dispute | |
| 4859 | German Domestic Rule - Card Acceptor Unwilling or Unable to Render Services | |
| 4859 | Addendum Dispute | |
| 4859 | No - show Hotel Charge | |
| 4831 | Transaction Amount Differs | |
| 4831 | Cardholder Debited More than Once for the Same Goods or Services | |
| 4831 | Merchant Credit Correcting Error Resulting in Cardholder Currency Exchange Loss | |
| 4842 | DEPRECATED: Late Presentment | |
| 4846 | DEPRECATED: POI Currency Conversion (Dynamic Currency Conversion) | |
| 4901 | Required Documentation Not Received to Support Second Presentment | |
| 4902 | Documentation Received was Illegible | |
| 4903 | Scanning error - Unrelated Documents or Partial Scan | |
| 4905 | Acquirer Reference Data (ARD) Does Not Match ois Invalid | |
| 4908 | Invalid Acquirer Reference Data; Documentation Receivved | |
| 4968 | bad code - needs investigation | |
| 4840 | bad code - needs investigation | |
| Product Not Received | 4855 | Transaction Did Not Complete |
| Product Not as Described or Unacceptable | 4853 | General Defective/Not as Described |
| 4853 | Goods or Services Were Either Not as Describeed or Defective | |
| 4853 | Goods or Services Not Provided | |
| 4853 | Failed Travel Merchant - Intra - EEA and Domestic European Transac | |
| 4853 | Digital Goods Purchase of USD 25 or Less | |
| 4853 | Credit Not Processed | |
| 4853 | Counterfeit Goods | |
| 4853 | Cardholder Dispute of a Recurring Transaction | |
| 4853 | Issuer Dispute of a Recurring Transaction | |
| 4853 | Addendum Dispute | |
| 4853 | No - show Hotel Charge | |
| 4853 | Transaction Did Not Complete | |
| 4853 | Timeshares | |
| 4853 | Credit Posted as a Purchase | |
| Canceled Subscription or Recurring Charges | 4841 | Digital Goods Purchase of USD 25 or Less |
| 4841 | Canceled Recurring or Digital Goods Transactions | |
| 4841 | Cardholder Dispute of a Recurring Transaction | |
| 4841 | Issuer Dispute of a Recurring Transaction | |
| Unrecognized Transactions | 6321 | Cardholder does not recognize transaction |
| 4863 | Cardholder Does Not Recognize - Potential Fraud |
American Express dispute reason codes
American Express (AMEX) uses its own system for dispute codes. These codes may overlap across different types of disputes depending on your business model or the transaction flow. Below is a categorized overview of commonly used AMEX dispute reason codes:
| Dispute Category | Reason Code | Reason Description |
| Unprocessed or Incorrect Credit | A01 | Charge Amount Exceeds Authorization Amount |
| C02 | Credit Not Processed | |
| C04 | Goods/Services Returned or Refused | |
| C05 | Goods/Services Cancelled | |
| C18 | “No Show” or CARDeposit Cancelled | |
| P03 | Credit Processed as Charge | |
| P05 | Incorrect Charge Amount | |
| 061 | Credit Processed as Charge | |
| 062 | Charge Processed as Credit | |
| 154 | Goods/Services Cancelled/Refused | |
| 158 | Goods Returned (Request Credit) | |
| 170 | Cancelled lodging reservation/CARDeposit not received | |
| 175 | Credit Not Processed | |
| 680 | Incorrect Charge Amount | |
| Duplicate Charges or Alternative Payment | C14 | Paid by Other Means |
| P08 | Duplicate Charge | |
| 173 | Duplicate Charge | |
| 684 | Paid by Other Means | |
| Fraud or Unauthorized Use | F10 | Missing Imprint |
| F24 | Multiple ROCS | |
| F29 | Card Not Present | |
| F30 | EMV Liability Shift - Counterfeit | |
| F31 | EMV Liability Shift - Lost/Stolen/Non - Received | |
| FR2 | Fraud Full Recourse Program | |
| FR4 | Immediate Chargeback Program | |
| FR5 | Immediate Chargeback Program | |
| FR6 | Partial Immediate Chargeback Program | |
| 177 | Unauthorized Charge | |
| 193 | Fraudulent Charge | |
| General Disputes | A02 | No Valid Authorization |
| A08 | Authorization Approval Expired | |
| M10 | Vehicle Rental - Capital Damages, Theft, or Loss of Usse | |
| R03 | Insufficient Reply | |
| R13 | No Reply | |
| M01 | Chargeback Authorization | |
| P01 | Unassigned Card Number | |
| P04 | Charge Processed as Credit | |
| P07 | Late Submission | |
| P22 | Non - Matching Card Number | |
| P23 | Currency Discrepancy | |
| M04 | Merchant Accepted | |
| M11 | Reversal Due To Credit | |
| M36 | See Notes | |
| M38 | Reversal | |
| M39 | Correct a Previous Transaction | |
| M42 | Reversal Request Too Late | |
| S01 | Reversal Request Denied | |
| S04 | Reversal Request Under Review, Please Wait | |
| OP1 | General | |
| 147 | Charge paid by Insurance Company | |
| 169 | Charge submitted in an invalid currency | |
| 693 | Questioning Charge for Damage/Theft/Loss | |
| S02 | Reviewed Support; Will not be Debiting Account | |
| S03 | Support received | |
| Product Not Received | C08 | Goods/Services Not Received or Only Partially Received |
| 004 | Product Not Received | |
| 155 | Goods not Received (Request Credit) | |
| Product Not as Described or Defective | C31 | Goods/Services Not As Described |
| C32 | Goods/Services Damaged or Defective | |
| 024 | Goods Damaged/Defective | |
| 059 | Goods Damaged/Defective (Request Repair) | |
| 063 | Product Quality Unacceptable | |
| Cancelled Subscriptions or Recurring Charges | C28 | Cancelled Recurring Billing |
| 021 | Goods/Services Cancelled/Expired | |
| Unrecognized Charges | 127 | Unrecognized Charge |
| 176 | Unrecognized Charge (Card Not Present) | |
| 691 | Requesting Support |
Discover dispute reason codes
Discover has its own set of dispute codes to classify chargebacks involving fraud, duplicate transactions, authorization issues, and more. Below is a categorized list of commonly used Discover dispute codes:
| Dispute Category | Reason Code | Reason Description |
| Unprocessed Credit | 8002 | Credit Not Processed |
| Duplicate or Alternative Payments | 4534 | Duplicate Processing |
| 4865 | Paid By Other Means | |
| Fraud | 6041 | Transaction Documentation Request for Fraud Analy:sis |
| 4866 | Fraud Chip Card Counterfeit Transaction | |
| 4867 | Fraud Chip Card and PIN Transaction | |
| 7010 | Fraud Card Present Transaction | |
| 7030 | Fraud Card Not Present Transaction | |
| General Disputes | 6021 | Transaction Documentation Request |
| 6005 | Transaction Documentation Request Due toCardholder Dispute | |
| 6040 | Good Faith Investigation | |
| 4542 | Late Presentation | |
| 4550 | Credit/Debit Posted Incorrectly | |
| 4553 | Cardholder Disputes Quality of Goods or Services | |
| 4586 | Altered Amount | |
| 4752 | Does Not Recognize | |
| 4753 | Invalid Cardholder Number | |
| 4757 | Violation of Operating Regulations | |
| 4762 | Good Faith Investigation | |
| 4863 | Authorization Non Compliance | |
| 6050 | Disputes Compliance | |
| Product Not Received | 4755 | Non - Receipt of Goods or Services |
| 4864 | Non Receipt Of Cash From ATM | |
| Cancelled Subscriptions or Recurring Charges | 4541 | Recurring Payment |
Best practices for handling disputes
Once you know the dispute reason code, the next step is to build a clear and relevant response. The suggestions below help you respond based on the type of dispute and the expectations of each card network.
- Identify the reason code: Start by checking the reason code. This helps you understand why the chargeback was filed.
- Review the dispute category: Once you know the category, you can prepare a response based on the type of issue.
- Tailor your evidence: Use the correct documents and explanations based on what the card network expects for that type of dispute.
- Refer to supporting resources: For more detailed advice, visit Responding to different dispute types. This article includes example responses, evidence suggestions, and tips for submitting disputes on time.
Understanding dispute reason codes gives you a stronger foundation when managing chargebacks. Interpreting the code accurately helps you respond effectively and improve your chances of a successful resolution.
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