MATCH List and TMF Removal

Card networks, such as Visa and Mastercard, operate databases referred to as Terminated Merchant Files (TMFs) which contain details about accounts that have actually been nearby credit card processors around the world for high chargebacks or offenses of card brand name guidelines.

All credit card processors should check a TMF when accepting a new user, and are likewise needed to include merchants to a TMF if the account is closed and meets TMF criteria.

Being placed on a TMF can have serious results. While they’re just expected to be educational tools during the account application process, numerous entities contradict organisations or people listed on a TMF. For this reason, it’s important to be knowledgeable about TMF criteria and make certain you avoid becoming eligible.

The most common list– and the only one with global reach– is Mastercard’s MATCH, or the Mastercard Alert to Control High-Risk Merchants. In the following areas, we explain how MATCH certification works and what occurs to MATCH entries.

Criteria for MATCH Qualification

When a relationship ends in between an organisation and a credit card processor, the processor needs to figure out whether business fulfills requirements to be placed on MATCH.

If any MATCH requirements are satisfied, the processor must include information about business to MATCH within one organisation day of termination or within one company day of the account ending up being eligible for MATCH after termination.

Qualitative criteria

Most of MATCH requirements, or “factor codes,” include breaches of card network guidelines, including unlawful activity and collusion. These 11 factor codes, and the exact Mastercard meaning, are listed below:

CODE REASON DESCRIPTION

1 Account Data Compromise An occurrence that results, directly or indirectly, in the unapproved access to or disclosure of Account information.

2 Common Point of Purchase Account information is stolen at the Merchant and then used for deceptive purchases at other Merchant locations.

3 Laundering The Merchant was engaged in laundering activity. Laundering methods that a Merchant provided to its Acquirer Transaction records that were not valid Transactions for sales of goods or services in between that Merchant and a bona fide Cardholder.

7 Fraud Conviction There was a criminal scams conviction of a primary owner or partner of the Merchant.

8 Mastercard Questionable Merchant Audit ProgramThe Merchant was determined to be a Questionable Merchant as per the requirements stated in the Mastercard Questionable Merchant Audit Program.

9 Bankruptcy/Liquidation/Insolvency The Merchant was not able or is likely to become unable to release its financial responsibilities.

10 Violation of Standards With respect to a Merchant reported by a Mastercard Acquirer, the Merchant remained in infraction of several Standards that explain treatments to be utilized by the Merchant in Transactions in which Cards are utilized, including, by way of example and not limitation, the Standards for honoring all Cards, displaying the Marks, charges to Cardholders, minimum/ maximum Transaction quantity restrictions, and restricted Transactions stated in Chapter 5 of the Mastercard Rules manual.

11 Merchant Collusion The Merchant participated in deceitful collusive activity.

12 PCI DSS Non-Compliance The Merchant failed to abide by Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS) requirements.

13 Illegal Transactions The Merchant was taken part in prohibited Transactions.

14 Identity Theft The Acquirer has factor to believe that the identity of the noted Merchant or its primary owner( s) was unlawfully assumed for the purpose of unlawfully participating in a Merchant Agreement.

The Identity Theft reason code must be used when a deceitful account is opened with stolen info, and the listing of this details on MATCH should not obstruct the legitimate identity holder from opening a processing account. It rather functions as an alerting to the credit card processor that the application may consist of taken identity information.

Quantitative criteria

When processors need to include accounts to MATCH, two MATCH reason codes have particular numerical limits specified by Mastercard for.

These reason codes, which involve chargeback and scams activity on an account, are the most common factors for being added to MATCH, and can impact organisations that are not taken part in illegal or rule-violating activity. These factor codes are as follows:

CODE REASON DESCRIPTION

4 Excessive Chargebacks With respect to a Merchant reported by a Mastercard Acquirer, the number of Mastercard chargebacks in any single month exceeded 1% of the number of Mastercard sales Transactions because month, and those chargebacks amounted to USD 5,000 or more.

5 Excessive Fraud The Merchant effected deceitful Transactions of any type (counterfeit or otherwise) meeting or going beyond the following minimum reporting Standard: the Merchant’s fraud-to-sales dollar volume ratio was 8% or greater in a calendar month, and the Merchant effected 10 or more fraudulent Transactions totaling USD 5,000 or more in that calendar month.

Additional information on excessive chargebacks and fraud

These MATCH factor codes are different from card brand chargeback and fraud monitoring programs run by Visa and Mastercard. However, as defined, the excessive chargebacks requirements only applies to activity on Mastercard cards, despite the fact that MATCH is required by all significant card networks. It would not certify toward MATCH counts if conflict activity does not take place on a Mastercard card. Other card networks may request for services to be noted on MATCH if those services struck the “excesssive” stages of their card brand name monitoring programs or are fined as part of those programs.

A month is specified as a calendar month. For example, if a processor were assessing MATCH eligibility from the month of January, they would look at the number of transactions in January and the variety of chargebacks in January– not the number of chargebacks from transactions made in January.

As soon as a business satisfies the excessive chargebacks or fraud MATCH criteria in a calendar month, the merchant needs to be added to MATCH if the processing relationship is ended, even if the processing relationship is not ended in that calendar month. For instance, if a business just fulfills MATCH requirements in February, and the processing relationship is not ended until September, the processor is still needed to include info to MATCH although the certifying activity took place in February. Furthermore, even if a business does not meet MATCH requirements when the relationship is at first ended, it can still receive MATCH if the criteria are satisfied later– for example, if chargebacks are initiated after termination.

Example credentials data

Take the following sample information from a calendar month:

Variety of Mastercard deals: 125

Variety of Mastercard chargebacks: 6

Ratio of chargebacks to transactions: (6/125) = 4.8%.

Volume of Mastercard chargebacks: $6250.

In this case, business would get approved for MATCH for excessive chargebacks if the processing relationship later ends. If chargebacks are later reversed or won by the merchant, it does not matter.

Note that there is no minimum variety of chargebacks for MATCH credentials for extreme chargebacks.

Information contributed to MATCH.

The card networks need that the following info be added to MATCH if available:.

Company Legal Name and DBA.

Service Address.

Organisation Phone Number.

Business Tax ID.

Service URL.

Principal Owner Name.

Principal Owner Address.

Principal Owner Phone Number.

Principal Owner Tax ID.

Account Opening Date and Termination Date.

MATCH Reason Code.

Mastercard does not assess the precision of MATCH listings.

Removal from MATCH.

FinTechMerchantAccounts or any other processor– typically can not remove an account’s info from MATCH upon demand. A processor can only remove a MATCH entry if:.

The processor added the business to MATCH in error.

The listing is for MATCH reason code 12 (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard Noncompliance) and the processor has confirmed that business has actually become certified with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard.

If you believe either of those 2 circumstances exist, you’ll need to connect to the processor that listed your details on MATCH to be gotten rid of. Records stay on the MATCH system for 5 years before being instantly purged by Mastercard.

If you are noted on MATCH, next steps.

You’re likely to find out when you try to sign up for a brand-new processor if you’re listed on MATCH. MATCH is just supposed to be used as an informational tool by processors throughout the application process; nevertheless, the presence of a MATCH listing often indicates that an application is decreased.

You’ll need to reach out to your previous processor to discover why your info was added to MATCH. Keep in mind, nevertheless, that MATCH criteria are figured out by Mastercard and processors are needed to follow this criteria. Typically credit card processors can not remove a merchant that with “extreme chargebacks” requirements even if business has actually remediated the concerns leading to chargebacks.

FinTechMerchantAccounts.com provides High Risk Merchant Accounts and can process for organisations noted on MATCH and TMF  For questions about MATCH List and TMF Removal and Merchant Account Approval call us today at:

617-918-7235