PayPal · Decline codes
What does PayPal processor response code 0100 mean?
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PayPal processor response code 0100 (REFERRAL) means the card's bank referred the payment instead of approving it: it wants to speak to the cardholder first. PayPal gives no further reason. The shopper should call the number on the back of the card or pay another way; the merchant can retry once after the bank has been contacted, but should not keep re-sending the same card.
- PayPal label
- REFERRAL
- Type
- Soft decline
- Who declined
- The card's bank (via PayPal)
- Similar Visa code
- 01 (Refer to card issuer): Visa Category 4 (generic): reattempts allowed, up to 20 in 30 days
- Retry
- Once, after 2–3 days; a second refusal means ask for another payment method
- Shopper action
- Call the bank, then try again or use another card
- Merchant action
- One retry after the bank is contacted; otherwise ask for another method
- PlatformDTC renewal (Smart retry)
- One retry after 48–72 hours, then an update-card request
What PlatformDTC does
PlatformDTC records PayPal 0100 as call_issuer, a bank refusal with no stated reason. With Smart retry on, a subscription renewal declined this way gets exactly one more attempt 48–72 hours later at the store's local charge hour. If the bank refuses again, retries stop and the customer is emailed a one-click link to add a new payment method. The raw 0100 stays in the failure message for support.
Why it happens
A referral is the bank's way of saying "not without talking to the cardholder". PayPal's label is only REFERRAL, so the exact trigger stays between the bank and its customer.
What the shopper can do
Call the number on the back of the card and ask the bank to allow the payment, then try again.
If the bank can't be reached, pay with a different card or with a PayPal balance.
What the store can do
Don't fire repeated attempts at a referred card: one attempt after the shopper has spoken to the bank is reasonable, more just adds declines to your record.
Offer another payment method on the same screen so the order isn't lost.
For developers
PayPal returns 0100 in processor_response.response_code on the capture (purchase_units[].payments.captures[]) or authorization of a card payment. PayPal's own name for it is REFERRAL.
Visa has a similarly named raw response code, 01 ("Refer to card issuer"); in the Visa Core Rules (24 October 2026, Table 7-2) that code is category 4 (generic): reattempts allowed, up to 20 in 30 days. PayPal's code list doesn't map its codes to Visa's, so treat this as context, not a translation.
Keep the raw code with the order. PayPal's label is the only official meaning, and the exact code tells support which branch of PayPal's table fired.
Frequently asked questions
- Is a 0100 referral a fraud flag?
- Not necessarily. PayPal only labels it REFERRAL: the bank wants the cardholder to get in touch. That can follow a fraud check, but it can also be a routine confirmation.
- Can the merchant call the bank instead?
- Banks discuss a cardholder's account only with the cardholder, so the shopper has to make the call.
Sources
Related
- 9530 — Hold, call center: the merchant must call the number on the back of the card.
- 0500 — Do not honor: the card's bank refused the payment and gave no reason.
- 5100 — Generic decline: the card was refused and no reason was given.
- 0390 — Account not found: the bank has no account matching these card details.
- 0580 — Unauthorized transaction: the payment isn't authorized for this card.
- 0960 — System malfunction: a technical fault stopped the payment, not a bank refusal.
- 10BR — Issuer rejected: the card's bank turned the payment down.
- 1310 — Invalid amount: the payment amount was refused as invalid.