Adyen · Decline codes
What does Adyen refusal reason 3 “Referral” mean?
Checked
Adyen refusal reason 3, "Referral", means the card issuer referred the transaction instead of approving it, the online equivalent of "call us first". Adyen's raw responses describe 01 Refer to card issuer the same way: the shopper should contact their bank, then try again or use another payment method. For an online store, switching card is usually the fastest fix.
- Type
- Soft decline (referral)
- Who declined
- The shopper's card issuer
- Retry
- Not straight away. The shopper should contact the bank first.
- Shopper action
- Call the bank, then try again or use another card.
- Merchant action
- Ask for another payment method.
What PlatformDTC does
PlatformDTC does not connect to Adyen; its checkout runs on Stripe and PayPal. A refer-to-issuer answer reaches it as Stripe's call_issuer or do_not_honor; PlatformDTC gives a renewal one more try 48 to 72 hours later, and at checkout can offer PayPal card fields if the store set that backup.
Why it happens
Issuers refer a transaction when they want to speak to the cardholder before approving, often because of an unusual purchase. The refusal is not final, but it will not clear by itself.
What the shopper can do
Ring the number on the back of your card, confirm the purchase, then pay again. Or use another card now.
What the store can do
Online stores cannot complete a voice referral on the shopper's behalf; ask for another card or wallet.
For developers
resultCode "Refused", refusalReasonCode "3". The raw response behind it is typically 01 or 02 (refer to card issuer); those are Visa generic responses, retry-limited to 15 in 30 days.
Frequently asked questions
- What does a referral mean on Adyen (refusal 3)?
- The bank wants the cardholder to contact it before it will approve the payment.
- Should I retry Adyen refusal 3 automatically?
- No. Nothing changes until the shopper talks to their bank, so ask for another payment method instead.
Sources
- Adyen refusal reasons — Adyen
- Adyen raw acquirer responses — Adyen
- Stripe decline codes — Stripe
Related
- 2 — The issuer refused the payment and gave no usable reason; Adyen's catch-all refusal.
- 27 — A specific refusal Adyen could not reliably map to one of its named reasons.
- 4 — Something failed on the acquirer's side, not with the shopper's card.
- 5 — The card is blocked and cannot be used.
- 6 — The card's expiry date has passed.
- 7 — An amount mismatch occurred while the payment was being processed.
- 8 — The card number is wrong or does not exist.
- 9 — Adyen could not reach the shopper's bank to authorize the payment.