3.1 The Purpose of Authorisation
3.5 Possible Authorisation Responses
3.6 Obtaining an Authorisation
3.7 Card Identification (CID) Number
a.The purpose of an Authorisation is to provide you with information that will help you determine whether or not to proceed with a Charge.
b.For every Charge, you are required to obtain an Authorisation Approval except for Charges under a Floor Limit (see Section 3.4, "Floor Limit"). The Authorisation Approval must be for the full amount of the Charge except for Merchants and/or Transaction types that we classify in the industries listed in Section 3.3, "Estimated Authorisation".
c.An Authorisation Approval does not guarantee that (i) the person making the Charge is the Cardmember, (ii) the Charge is in fact valid or bona fide, (iii) we will accept the Charge, (iv) you will be paid for the Charge, (v) you will not be subject to a Chargeback, or (vi) the Charge you submit will not be rejected.
a.Authorisation Approvals are valid for seven (7) days after the Authorisation date. You must obtain a new Approval if you submit the Charge to us more than seven (7) days after the original Authorisation date.
b.For Charges of goods or services that are shipped or provided more than seven (7) days after an order is placed, you must obtain an Approval for the Charge at the time the order is placed and again at the time you ship or provide the goods or services to the Cardmember.
c.The new Approval must be included in the Charge Record. If either of the Authorisation requests is Declined, do not provide the goods or services or submit the Charge. If you do, you will be subject to a Chargeback.
d.For Estimated Authorisation timeframes see Subsection 3.3, "Estimated Authorisation".
a.If we classify or otherwise determine that you are in one of the following industries, then the following Estimated Authorisation procedures apply where the final Charge amount is not known at the time of Authorisation.
b.You may only obtain an Estimated Authorisation in the industries listed below. Do not overestimate the Authorisation amount. You must obtain the Cardmember's consent to such estimated amount prior to requesting the Authorisation.
c.For travel industries (e.g., lodging, cruise, and car rental), upon reservation or check-in, determine the estimated amounts of Charges based upon the daily rate and the expected number of days, plus taxes and any known incidental amounts, and obtain Authorisation. You must not include an amount for any possible damage to or theft in the Estimated Authorisation. You may obtain Authorisation and submit intermittently (no less than daily) throughout the duration of travel.
d.For car rental periods exceeding four (4) months, you shall obtain Authorisation for the amount of each of the monthly rental periods of a multi-month rental immediately prior to each such monthly rental period. You represent and warrant hereunder that your multi-month rental programme complies with Applicable Law.
e.Regardless of the industry, you must submit the corresponding Charge no later than the Estimated Authorisation timeframe. For any amount of the Charge that exceeds the amount for which you obtained an Authorisation, you must obtain the Cardmember's consent.
f.If the final amount of the Charge is:
i.no greater than the amount for which you obtained Authorisation plus the applicable Estimated Authorisation percentage listed below of that amount, no further Authorisation is necessary; or
ii.greater than the amount for which you obtained Authorisation by more than the applicable Estimated Authorisation percentage listed below of that amount, you must obtain a new Authorisation. If you fail to obtain such Authorisation, or your request for such Authorisation is declined, we will have Chargeback rights for the amount in excess of the original Authorisation amount plus the applicable Estimated Authorisation percentage of that amount. For the avoidance of doubt, we will have Chargeback rights for the final amount of the Charge for reasons other than the failure to obtain an approved Authorisation.
g.An Estimated Authorisation is valid for the applicable Estimated Authorisation timeframe listed below. You must obtain a new Approval if you do not submit the Charge to us within the Estimated Authorisation timeframe.
|
Industry |
MCC |
Estimated Charge Variance +/- |
Authorisation Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Eating Places, Restaurants |
5812 |
30%2 |
7 days |
|
Drinking Places |
5313 |
30%2 |
7 days |
|
Grocery Stores (CNP) |
5411 |
15%1 |
7 days |
|
Retail Stores (CNP) |
All MCCs |
15%1 |
7 days |
|
Taxicabs & Limousines |
4121 |
20% |
7 days |
|
Car Rental |
7512 |
15% |
Duration of rental |
|
Lodging |
7011 |
15% |
Duration of stay |
|
Motor Home & RV Rentals |
7519 |
15% |
7 days |
|
Steamship & Cruise Lines |
4411 |
15% |
Duration of cruise |
|
Truck Rental |
7513 |
15% |
7 days |
|
Fast Food Restaurants |
5814 |
30%2 |
7 days |
|
Beauty & Barber Shops |
7230 |
20% |
7 days |
|
Health & Beauty Spas |
7298 |
20% |
7 days |
1 The 15% Estimated Charge variance for Retail and Grocery only applies to Card not present transactions
2 The Estimated Charge variance at Restaurant, Fast Food, and Drinking Places for debit and prepaid transactions is 20%
a.We maintain a zero-dollar Floor Limit on all Charges regardless of the amount, unless we assign a Floor Limit to an Establishment. If any one Charge, or series of Charges, made on the same day by any one Cardmember at the Establishment, is equal to or greater than this Floor Limit, the Establishment must request Authorisation.
a.Responses to your requests for Authorisation are generated by Issuers and transmitted by us to you. The following are among the most commonly generated responses to your request for Authorisation. The exact wording may vary, so check with your Processor or Terminal Provider to determine what Authorisation responses will display on your equipment.
|
Authorisation response |
What it means |
|---|---|
|
Approved |
The Charge is approved. |
|
Partially Approved |
The Charge is approved. The approval is for an amount less than the value originally requested. The Charge must only be submitted for the approved amount. Collect the remaining funds due from the Cardmember via another form of payment. For Split Tender, you may follow your policy on combining payment on Prepaid Cards with any Other Payment Products or methods of payment. |
|
Declined or Card Not Accepted |
The Charge is not approved. Do not provide the goods or services or submit the Charge. Inform the Cardmember promptly that the Card has been Declined. If the Cardmember has questions or concerns, advise the Cardmember to call the customer service telephone number on the back of the Card. Never discuss the reason for the Decline. If you submit the Charge after receiving a Decline, we may reject the Charge or you will be subject to a Chargeback. |
|
Pick up |
You may receive an Issuer point of sale response indicating that you must pick up the Card. Follow your internal policies when you receive this response. Never put yourself or your employees in unsafe situations. If your policies direct you to do so, you may initiate the pick up process by calling our Authorisation Department. |
a.You must ensure that all Authorisation requests comply with the Technical Specifications (see Section 1.3, "Compliance with our Specifications"). If the Authorisation request does not comply with the Technical Specifications, the Authorisation was Declined, or for which no Approval code was obtained, we may reject the Submission or we may exercise a Chargeback.
b.If the Card is unreadable and you have to key-enter the Charge to obtain an Authorisation, then you must follow the requirements for key-entered Charges.
c.If you use an electronic POS System to obtain Authorisation, the Approval must be printed automatically on the Charge Record.
d.When obtaining an Authorisation is not possible due to POS System problems, system outages, or other disruptions of an electronic Charge, you must obtain a Voice Authorisation as follows:
i.Call our Authorisation Department and provide: Card Number or Token, Merchant Number, and Charge amount. In some situations, you may be asked for additional information such as Expiration Date or CID Number.
ii.A response will be provided. If the request for Authorisation is approved, capture the Approval code for Submission and enter the Approval code into your POS System.
iii.For instructions on how to complete this type of Charge, contact your Terminal Provider, Processor, or if you have a direct link to American Express, your American Express representative.
iv.We may assess a fee for each Charge for which you request a Voice Authorisation unless such a failure to obtain Authorisation electronically is due to the unavailability or inoperability of our computer authorisation system.
a.The Card Identification (CID) Number provides an extra level of Cardmember validation and is part of the Authorisation process. The CID Number is printed on the Card.
b.If, during the Authorisation, a response is received that indicates the CID Number given by the person attempting the Charge does not match the CID Number that is printed on the Card, follow your internal policies.
c.Note: CID Numbers must not be stored for any purpose. They are available for real time Charges only. See Data Security Operating Policy (DSOP).
a.We recommend that you reverse an Authorisation for an Approved Charge if you do not intend to send a Submission to American Express within the Authorisation time limits. See Section 3.2, "Authorisation Time Limit".
b.You may reverse an Authorisation for a corresponding Charge by initiating an Authorisation reversal message.
c.After a Charge Record has been submitted to us, however, the Authorisation cannot be reversed, cancelled or changed. For example, if you make an error in a Charge but have already submitted the Charge Record, you cannot systematically request a change in the Charge. You must instead, follow the procedures for Processing a Credit, as defined in Chapter 4.3, "Submitting Credits"
a.A pre-Authorisation is an Authorisation request that you submit in advance of providing the goods or services, allowing you then to submit the Approved Charge (e.g., fuel pump CATs).