Card issuer response codes (ISO 8583) · Decline codes
What does card decline code 04 mean?
Checked
Code 04 is an ISO 8583 issuer response code. Visa defines it as "pick up card (no fraud)" and Mastercard as "capture card". The issuing bank has taken the card out of use and will not approve any charge on it. Visa puts 04 in Category 1, "issuer will never approve": after receiving it, a merchant must never resubmit an authorization for the same card. The shopper needs a different card.
- Type
- Hard decline
- Who declined
- The card's issuing bank
- Visa category
- Category 1 (issuer will never approve): never resubmit the same card
- Retry
- Never on this card
- Shopper action
- Use a different card or payment method
- Merchant action
- Stop charging this card; ask for a new one
- PlatformDTC renewal (fixed or Smart retry)
- Never retried; customer asked for a new card
What PlatformDTC does
PlatformDTC treats a raw 04 as a hard stop everywhere. On a Visa checkout it is never offered to a backup processor. On either retry schedule, fixed or Smart retry, a renewal declined 04 is not retried: the subscription is held past due, the card is marked blocked and the customer receives a one-click update-card link, re-sent up to 4 times per billing cycle at least 3 days apart.
Why it happens
The bank has decided the card should no longer be used, for example because it was replaced or the account changed. Visa's wording "no fraud" separates it from 07, 41 and 43, which are pick-ups linked to fraud, lost or stolen cards.
What the store can do
Ask for another card and do not run the old one again. Visa fines reattempts after a Category 1 code, and a retry cannot succeed anyway. Keep the message to the shopper neutral, such as "Your card was declined, please use another card".
For developers
On Stripe the raw issuer code arrives in charge.outcome.network_decline_code (here "04"), next to Stripe's own decline_code. Read it together with the card brand: the same two characters can mean different things on Visa and Mastercard. Mastercard's table lists 04 as "capture card". PlatformDTC's checkout routing table (cardroute visaCodes) marks Visa 04 as never-retry, which vetoes any backup-processor offer.
Frequently asked questions
- Can a code 04 card ever work again?
- Not that card. The bank has taken it out of use. The cardholder needs a replacement or another payment method.
- Do I really get fined for retrying code 04?
- Visa's rules say a merchant must never resubmit after a Category 1 code, and processors pass on Visa's fees for reattempts. Do not retry.
Sources
Related
- 07 — Pick up card, special condition: the account is flagged for fraud. Never retry.
- 41 — Lost card, pick up: the card was reported lost. Never retry it.
- 43 — Stolen card, pick up: the card was reported stolen. Never retry it.
- 05 — Do not honor: the bank refused the payment and gave no reason.
- 06 — Error: the issuer returned a general error instead of an approval.
- 12 — Invalid transaction: the issuer will not accept this kind of transaction on the card.
- 13 — Invalid amount: the issuer rejected the amount or the currency conversion.
- 14 — Invalid account number: no such card number exists at the bank.