Key Takeaways
- Show who you are: Put the exact DBA/descriptor name, full price (with currency), and refund policy above the Pay button; Visa will flag mismatched names.
- Lock down checkout: PCI DSS v4.0 requires TLS 1.2+, script-integrity checks, and 24-hour change-detection on any page that touches card data by 31 Mar 2025.
- Visa’s new lines in the sand: Keep fraud + disputes < 0.9 % (VAMP) and register high-risk sites under the Integrity Risk Program or risk termination.
- Mastercard tightens subscriptions: Disclose billing cadence at checkout, e-mail a one-click cancel link, and send a reminder 7 days before the next charge on free trials.
- FTC Negative-Option rule: You must capture clear, affirmative consent and offer simple online cancellation for any recurring plan.
- BOI check: Acquirers now verify that your FinCEN beneficial-ownership report is on file before activating a MID.
- Best practice upgrades: Add 3-D Secure 2, tokenization, AI fraud screens, and age/geo fences for regulated products.
Securing an eCommerce Merchant Account Requiries Meeting Visa and Mastercard Rules
Having a reliable means of accepting customer payments via major credit cards is essential to the success of any eCommerce business. Approval for an eCommerce merchant account to process credit card payments isn’t automatic; the major card brands, including Visa and MasterCard, want to ensure that their cardholders have ready access to the information they need for a secure and satisfying shopping experience. To achieve that, these companies require that merchants who accept their cards clearly display certain important information on their eCommerce websites. Ensuring that this information is readily accessible also helps to minimize customer complaints and chargebacks. In addition to the criteria imposed by the major card brands, there may be state and federal regulations that place additional requirements on your eCommerce website. It’s important to ensure that you are in compliance with all statutory and industry requirements before applying for an eCommerce merchant account.
Non-negotiable items still on every approval list
Each e-commerce site must now show the legal or DBA name that will appear on customers’ statements, display accurate product descriptions with the final price and currency beside every “Add to Cart” button, and publish its refund or return policy in full before any payment is submitted—ideally on the checkout page itself or in a required checkbox link. A real street address, phone number or email must sit on the checkout page to satisfy card-brand contact requirements, and merchants are expected to repeat their statement descriptor beneath the pay button while featuring up-to-date card-brand logos in the footer.
| Requirement | What to do |
|---|---|
| Legal/DBA name | Show the business name customers will see on their statement in the header or footer of every page. Visa’s 2025 Merchant Data Standards call mismatched names a data-integrity violation. |
| Clear product descriptions, price and currency | List the final price (USD, CAD, € etc.) next to every “Add to Cart” button. |
| Refund / return policy before checkout | Either display the full text on the order page or force a checkbox that links to it; hiding it in footer fine print no longer satisfies Visa dispute reviewers. |
| Contact & country of establishment | Post a real street address plus phone or email on the checkout page. |
| Contact & country of establishment | Post a real street address plus phone or email on the checkout page. |
Security & data standards you must meet
By the first quarter of 2025, payment pages must load over TLS 1.2 or higher with HSTS enabled, and all third-party JavaScript must pass integrity checks mandated by PCI DSS v4.0 requirement 6.4.3. Merchants also need automated change-detection for any element that touches card data, and they must deploy 3-D Secure 2 or another strong-customer-authentication method—along with a tokenized vault—for repeat billing transactions. Low-risk merchants that join Mastercard’s new Compliance & Validation Exemption Program can forgo annual QSA sign-off yet still have to implement every technical control.
Visa 2024-25 rule changes
Visa now insists that the HTML merchant-name tag, MCC and country on your website mirror the details your acquirer submits to VisaNet, while its Acquirer Monitoring Program levies penalties once the combined fraud-and-dispute ratio crosses 0.9 percent. High-risk verticals—including adult content, supplements, crypto, and ticketing—face extra due-diligence via the Visa Integrity Risk Program, which demands age or KYC checks and explicit descriptor registration.
Merchant Data Standards Manual (April 2025) – your HTML “merchant name” tag, MCC and country must exactly match what your acquirer submits to VisaNet. usa.visa.com
Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program (VAMP) – keep combined fraud + dispute ratio under 0.9 % or pay US $10 per excess dispute. Acquirers exceeding 0.3 % also pay fees. durangomerchantservices.com
Visa Integrity Risk Program (VIRP) – adult content, supplements, crypto, and ticketing sites must add age-/KYC checks and register high-risk descriptors or risk termination.
Mastercard 2024-25 rule changes
Mastercard continues to enforce its subscription and negative-option rules: you must place price + cadence text directly above the pay button, send an immediate email confirmation with a one-click cancel link, and issue a reminder at least seven days before the next charge when a free or low-cost trial ends. The network’s new C-VEP lets small, low-fraud merchants skip annual PCI validation, while the refreshed BRAM guidelines prohibit deepfake porn, drug sales without e-prescriptions, and hidden fulfillment jurisdictions.
Subscription / Negative-Option Rules (Sept 2022 onward) – at checkout you must (a) disclose price + billing cadence directly above the Pay button, (b) email a confirmation with one-click cancel link, and (c) send a reminder 7 days before the next charge if the trial was free or <$10.
C-VEP (Mar 2025) – low-risk merchants processing ≤ 20k e-commerce tx/mo with < 0.1 % fraud can apply to skip annual PCI validation; acquirer enrollment required.
BRAM refresh (2024) – reinforces bans on deepfake porn, prescription-drug sales without e-prescriptions, and any site that hides true fulfillment country.
FTC & government add-ons that card brands now audit
Under the FTC Negative-Option Rule, any plan that rebills must obtain unambiguous affirmative consent and provide a simple online cancellation path—no phone-only loopholes. Separately, acquirers validate that a business has filed the Corporate Transparency Act’s Beneficial-Ownership report; missing or inconsistent filings can stall MID activation even though no extra website edits are required.
2025 best-practice upgrades
Merchants should add AI-driven real-time fraud screening, because Visa automatically routes businesses with dispute ratios above 0.75 percent into higher-risk monitoring tiers. Accessible, mobile-friendly sites that meet WCAG-AA guidelines increasingly receive preferential placement in AI-powered search results, and both networks advise enabling Click-to-Pay wallets, which often raise authorization rates by several percentage points. Finally, sellers of regulated goods—CBD, nicotine, i-gaming—are expected to implement robust age and geolocation controls to satisfy acquirer risk reviews.
Real-time AI fraud screens – Visa now bumps merchants with > 0.75 % disputes into VIRP; add 3-DS 2 + device fingerprinting.
Accessibility & mobile UX – Google prioritizes WCAG-AA compliant sites in AI Overviews; card brands follow suit.
Tokenized “Click-to-Pay” button – both networks push their one-click wallets; early adopters see 3–6 % auth-rate lift.
Age/geo fences for regulated products (CBD, nicotine, i-Gaming) to satisfy acquirer due-diligence files.
FAQ — Visa & Mastercard E-commerce Compliance (2025)
What information has to be visible before a customer clicks “Pay”?
Card-brand reviewers want five items above or immediately next to the Pay button: (1) your legal/DBA name, (2) a clear product or plan description, (3) the total price and currency, (4) a one-click link (or checkbox) to your refund/return policy, and (5) a statement descriptor cue such as “Charge will appear as ACME-Widgets.” Hiding any of these in the footer or a pop-up can trigger automatic decline of your MID application or a post-launch compliance hold.
Do low-volume merchants still need a full PCI audit under v4.0?
If you process fewer than 20,000 e-commerce transactions per month and maintain fraud plus dispute ratios below 0.1 %, you may qualify for Mastercard’s new Compliance & Validation Exemption Program (C-VEP). That waives the annual QSA attestation but does not waive the actual security controls—TLS 1.2+, script-integrity monitoring, 3-D Secure, and automated change detection must still be live, and your acquirer must enroll you in the program.
What extra steps do I need for subscriptions or free trials?
Mastercard’s 2022 subscription rules and the FTC’s 2024 Negative-Option Rule both apply. At checkout you must display the billing cadence and price directly above the Pay button, capture an explicit checkbox or similar “affirmative consent,” email a confirmation that includes a one-click cancel link, and—if the initial period was free or under $10—send a reminder 7 days before the first full charge. Failing any of these points exposes you to chargeback reversals and network fines.
