Dispute categories

Learn more about the reasons for disputes and how to respond to each.

Each card network defines hundreds of codes representing very specific reasons for dispute claims, many of which overlap across all the networks that Stripe does business with. Stripe maps each network code into one of eight categories, based on the general claim and the evidence you need to submit to effectively challenge that type of claim.

Dispute network reason codes categorization

The following tables show the Stripe categories for each card network’s dispute reason codes. Network reason code is available on the dispute object.



Credit not processed	13.6 Credit not processed 13.7 Cancelled Merchandise/Services
Duplicate	12.6.1 Duplicate processing 12.6.2 Paid by other means
Fraudulent	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	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 unacceptable	13.3 Not as Described or Defective Merchandise/Services 13.4 Counterfeit Merchandise 13.5 Misrepresentation
Subscription canceled	13.2 Cancelled Recurring
Unrecognized	None

General evidence for all dispute categories

While each dispute reason requires specific types of evidence to show why the payment should stand, some types of evidence are universal for all dispute responses.

Evidence file size limits

Submit as much relevant evidence as possible while keeping the size and length of the final file within card issuer maximums:

4.5 MB for all networks
19 pages for Mastercard. See Limit evidence file length for recommendations.

Discrediting evidence

Providing evidence of one of the following has a high likelihood of proving a dispute invalid and overturning the chargeback:

Evidence	Dashboard Evidence Category	API Evidence Parameter
Any documentation of the account owner withdrawing the dispute.	Customer communication	`customer_communication`
Proof that you already compensated the customer before they initiated the dispute (either within Stripe or using some other method).	Customer communication	`refund_refusal_explanation`

Background evidence

The following types of evidence are relevant for most dispute types. Include them in every dispute response when possible. In the API, all of these data points are attributes of the dispute evidence object. In the Dashboard, many of them are fields of information separate from the Supporting evidence section of the response form.

When your integration supports it, Stripe automatically captures most of the data for background evidence and pre-populates both the API evidence object attributes and the form fields in the Dashboard. The more information your integration collects and passes to Stripe when your customer makes a payment, the better your ability to prevent disputes and fraud from occurring, and challenge them effectively when they do.

Evidence	Dashboard Evidence Category	API Evidence Parameter
The billing address provided by the customer (if the AVS check was successful). This field is automatically filled when possible.	Billing address	`billing_address`
The name of the customer. This field is automatically filled when possible.	Customer name	`customer_name`
The email address of the customer. This field is automatically filled when possible.	Email	`customer_email_address`
The IP address that the customer used when making the purchase. When possible, Stripe captures this data in the response and expands it to include geographical data.	Other	`customer_purchase_ip`
A relevant document or contract showing the customer’s signature.	Customer signature	`customer_signature`
Any communication with the customer that you feel is relevant to your case (for example, emails proving that they received the product or service, or demonstrating their use of or satisfaction with the product or service). If you have multiple items of this type, consolidate them into a single file.	Customer communication	`customer_communication`
Any receipt or message sent to the customer notifying them of the charge. This field is automatically filled with a Stripe generated email receipt if any such receipt was sent.	Receipt	`receipt`
A description of the product or service and any relevant details on how this was presented to the customer at the time of purchase.	Product or service details Description	`product_description`

Compelling evidence for Visa disputes

The Visa network has a technical specification for the evidence required to overturn disputes with a reason of fraudulent, which they call Compelling Evidence.

You must provide at least one item (more is always better) that satisfies Visa’s Compelling Evidence specification for fraud disputes. Examples of evidence that meet Visa’s specification are labeled as Compelling Evidence in the Dashboard and in the fraudulent dispute type documentation.

If you don’t submit Compelling Evidence, your likelihood of overturning a Visa fraud dispute is very low, and while Visa is the only card network that designates this specification, Stripe recommends you apply the practice to all disputes.

Visa CE 3.0

Visa Compelling Evidence 3.0 (CE 3.0) introduced new qualifying criteria that allows businesses to show prior non-fraudulent history with the cardholder to combat friendly fraud. Submitting qualifying evidence for Visa CE 3.0 eligible disputes significantly increases the likelihood of an issuer overturning friendly fraud disputes in favor of the business. Stripe supports this feature by:

Flagging disputes that are eligible for Visa CE 3.0 by searching your history for prior qualifying transactions
Notifying you in the dispute email and in the Dispute details page that the dispute qualifies for a Visa CE 3.0 counter response.
Automatically adding qualifying transactions to your dispute evidence.
Identifying required elements in the evidence form with Required for Visa CE 3.0 badge.
Pre-populating required information from qualifying transactions, when available.
Submitting evidence for Visa CE 3.0 through the Stripe API.

If you get a dispute that qualifies for a Visa CE 3.0 counter response, we recommend that you submit evidence.

Read more about Visa CE 3.0 in our Support FAQ.

Dispute category types

Use the selector to choose the category that matches the reason given for your dispute to see guidelines for responding.

The customer claims they’re entitled to a full or partial refund because they returned the purchased product or didn’t fully use it, or the transaction was otherwise canceled or not fully fulfilled, but you haven’t yet provided a refund or credit.

How to prevent it

Have a clear return or cancellation policy that’s easy to find or explicitly disclosed to the customer prior to purchase.
Honor your written policies promptly when a customer requests and is entitled to a full or partial refund.

How to overturn it

Explain and demonstrate one or more of the following:

You already issued the refund your customer is entitled to
The customer isn’t entitled to a refund
The customer withdrew the dispute

Choose the product type of the disputed transaction to see relevant evidence suggestions.

Physical products are tangible goods that were either purchased in a store or shipped to the recipient, so evidence often proves the customer is in possession of the item.
Digital products or services are often virtual in nature and don’t have trackable shipping data, so focus on evidence of usage, login, or download.
Offline services include purchases that are made in advance, such as event tickets and reservations, where evidence of a cancellation policy can be material.

evidence you can submit for:

For this type of recommended evidence	Designate this Dashboard label or API parameter
The language of your refund policy, as provided to the customer. This might be: The text copied from your policy page A screenshot of the policy on a receipt A PDF of the applicable part of your business’s terms and conditions	`refund_policy`
An explanation of how and where the applicable policy was provided to your customer prior to purchase.	`refund_policy_disclosure`
Your explanation for why the customer isn’t entitled to a refund, or no further refund, if you already issued a partial refund.	`refund_refusal_explanation`
Whether or not the customer attempted to resolve the issue with you prior to filing a dispute. If they didn’t reach out to you before the dispute, state that clearly. If you did communicate with them prior to the dispute, or if later conversations shed light on the facts of the case, submit this with your evidence. This could look like: A screenshot of a text conversation A PDF of an email exchange A PDF of your written account of a phone conversation, including dates of contact	`customer_communication`
Any argument invalidating the dispute reason, such as a PDF or screenshot showing: Whether you already issued the refund the cardholder is entitled to Whether or not the customer returned the merchandise in whole or in part. If they partially used the merchandise or returned it, or whether the dispute amount exceeds the value of the unused portion Whether the cardholder withdrew the dispute	`uncategorized_text` `uncategorized_file`