Checkout.com · Decline codes
What does Checkout.com 30021 “Total amount limit reached” mean?
Checked
Checkout.com 30021 "Total amount limit reached" means the card has reached a total amount limit set by its bank. Checkout.com tells the shopper to try a different card or contact the bank. It is in the hard-decline range, so retrying the same card is unlikely to help until the bank changes the limit.
- Type
- Hard decline (30xxx)
- Who declined
- The shopper's card issuer
- Retry
- Possibly. Visa category 4 (generic): at most 15 retries in 30 days
- Shopper action
- Use another card or contact the bank
- Merchant action
- Offer another payment method
What PlatformDTC does
PlatformDTC treats 30021 from Checkout.com as final for that card. Checkout will not move the payment to a backup processor; the shopper needs a different card or corrected details. A subscription renewal declined with 30021 is never retried: the subscription is held past due and the customer is emailed a link to add a new card.
Why it happens
The card's total allowed spend was used up.
What the shopper can do
Pay with another card, or ask the bank to raise the limit.
What the store can do
Suggest alternatives rather than repeated attempts.
For developers
The payment comes back with status Declined, response_code 30021 and a response_summary such as "Total amount limit reached" (Checkout.com notes the text can vary by endpoint). Checkout.com's Visa table puts this code in category 4, which it pairs with recommendation code 02 (try again later); read processing.recommendation_code on the response.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Checkout.com 30021 the same as 20061?
- Both are limits; 20061 is an activity amount limit in the soft range, 30021 a total amount limit in the hard range.
- When can 30021 pass?
- After the bank raises or resets the limit.
Sources
- API response codes — Checkout.com
- Visa response codes — Checkout.com
- Mapping to Visa system integrity fee categories — Adyen
Related
- 30020 — The payment amount was not valid.
- 30022 — The card has reached its limit on the number of transactions.
- 30015 — The card number does not belong to any known bank. Usually a typo.
- 30033 — The card is expired and the bank wants it taken out of use.
- 30034 — The bank suspects fraud and wants the card withdrawn. Never retry.
- 30035 — The bank withdrew the card and refers the merchant to its acquirer.
- 30036 — The card is restricted and the bank wants it withdrawn.
- 30037 — The bank withdrew the card and asks the acquirer's security team to call.