Authorize.Net · Decline codes
What does Authorize.Net 254 “This transaction has been declined (after manual review)” mean?
Checked
Authorize.Net response reason code 254 means the transaction was declined after manual review: a fraud filter held it, and someone on the merchant side then declined it in the Merchant Interface. It is a store decision, not a bank decline. If the decision was a mistake, the shopper simply has to place a new payment.
- Type
- Declined by merchant review
- Who declined
- The store (manual review)
- Retry
- No, it was a deliberate decision.
- Shopper action
- Contact the store if you think it was a mistake.
- Merchant action
- Nothing, unless the review was wrong; then ask the shopper to pay again.
What PlatformDTC does
PlatformDTC classes Authorize.Net code 254 as a fraud stop, so a payment your team declined on review is never retried on a backup processor behind your back. On a subscription renewal the code is not retried: the subscription is held past due and the customer gets an email with a link to add a new card.
Why it happens
Transactions held by the Fraud Detection Suite (codes 252 and 253) end up here when the reviewer chooses decline.
What the store can do
If the review was right, no action is needed. If not, contact the customer and ask them to check out again; a declined held transaction cannot be revived.
For developers
errors[0].errorCode "254" reported for a transaction declined from the held-for-review queue.
Frequently asked questions
- Who declined Authorize.Net code 254?
- Your own team, after reviewing a transaction your fraud filters held.
- Can a code 254 transaction be approved later?
- No. The shopper has to make a new payment.
Sources
- Authorize.Net Response Code Tool (response reason codes) — Authorize.Net
- Authorize.Net response codes (JSON list behind the Response Code Tool) — Authorize.Net
Related
- 252 — The payment was accepted but is held for your review by a fraud filter set to hold.
- 253 — The card was authorized, but a fraud filter is holding the payment for your review.
- 295 — The prepaid card only covered part of the amount; another payment is needed for the rest.
- 36 — The bank approved the card at checkout, but the payment failed when it was settled.
- 6 — The card number failed validation: a typo, a missing digit, or not a real card number.
- 37 — The card number was rejected as invalid (same text as code 6).
- 315 — The processor declined the card number as invalid.
- 7 — The expiry date was sent in the wrong format or is not a valid date.